Category: Information Policy

Chris Hubbles wins 2018 Litwin Books Award for Ongoing Dissertation Research in the Philosophy of Information

by RoryLitwin

Press release 8/17/2018 Media contact: Rory Litwin, rory@staging.litwinbooks.com We are pleased to announce the winner of the 2018 Litwin Books Award for Ongoing Dissertation Research in the Philosophy of Information. We are granting this year’s award to Chris Hubbles of the University of Washington, based on his dissertation project, “No Country for Old Media.” In … Read more Chris Hubbles wins 2018 Litwin Books Award for Ongoing Dissertation Research in the Philosophy of Information

New book: Open Divide: Critical Studies on Open Access

by RoryLitwin

Editors: Ulrich Herb and Joachim Schöpfel Price: $35.00 Published: April 2018 ISBN: 978-1-63400-029-1 Printed on acid-free paper Open access has transformed the traditional way of scientific communication. Open repositories and open access journals provide large and free access to articles, theses and dissertations, reports, working papers, proceedings and books but also to other unpublished items, … Read more New book: Open Divide: Critical Studies on Open Access

A note on our copyright statements

by RoryLitwin

When Library Juice Press or Litwin Books signs a contract with an author, the contract is typical for the publishing industry in most ways. One of the commonalities in publishing agreements is that the publisher doesn’t end up owning the copyright to the work, but they do get a temporary exclusive license to publish it. … Read more A note on our copyright statements

Interview with Joachim Schöpfel, author of Learning from the BRICS: Open Access to Scientific Information in Emerging Countries

by RoryLitwin

Joachim Schöpfel is lecturer of Library and Information Sciences at the University of Lille 3 (France), director of the French Digitization Centre for PhD theses (ANRT) and member of the GERiiCO research laboratory. He teaches on LIS topics, including intellectual property. His research interests are scientific information and communication, especially open access and grey literature. … Read more Interview with Joachim Schöpfel, author of Learning from the BRICS: Open Access to Scientific Information in Emerging Countries

Learning from the BRICS: Open Access to Scientific Information in Emerging Countries

by RoryLitwin

Learning from the BRICS: Open Access to Scientific Information in Emerging Countries Editor: Joachim Schöpfel Price: $35.00 Published: May 2015 ISBN: 978-1-936117-84-0 Printed on acid-free paper The market for scientific and technical information (STI) has been dominated by publishers from the United States, Great Britain, Germany, and the Netherlands. This book takes a look at … Read more Learning from the BRICS: Open Access to Scientific Information in Emerging Countries

Piracy: Leakages from Modernity

by RoryLitwin

Piracy: Leakages from Modernity Editors: Martin Fredriksson and James Arvanitakis Price: $40.00 Published: July 2014 ISBN: 978-1-936117-59-8 Printed on acid-free paper Available on Amazon “Piracy” is a concept that seems everywhere in the contemporary world. From the big screen with the dashing Jack Sparrow, to the dangers off the coast of Somalia; from the claims … Read more Piracy: Leakages from Modernity

Dalton and Thatcher commentary – “There is a need for a critical data studies”

by RoryLitwin

Craig Dalton and Jim Thatcher’s provocative piece “What does a critical data studies look like, and why do we care? Seven points for a critical approach to ‘big data’” begins like this: As the public discourse around data turns from hubristic claims to existing, empirical results, it’s become nearly as easy to bash ‘big data’ … Read more Dalton and Thatcher commentary – “There is a need for a critical data studies”

Interview with Gretchen McCord

by RoryLitwin

Gretchen McCord is an attorney-consultant and educator in the areas of copyright law, privacy law, and legal issues related to social media. Her practice specializes in assisting libraries, educational institutions, and non-profit organizations in transitioning into the ever-changing digital world. She was an academic librarian prior to becoming an attorney, and served as the President … Read more Interview with Gretchen McCord

Elisabeth Jones’ Comments on the Google Books Fair Use Decision

by RoryLitwin

I had the opportunity to chat with Elisabeth Jones at the ASIS&T conference earlier this month about the controversy over Google Books. Our conversation was on my mind when I posted that email discussion on the Google Books fair use decision, and I asked her if she would be interested in writing a follow-up. As … Read more Elisabeth Jones’ Comments on the Google Books Fair Use Decision

Email discussion on the recent Google Books copyright decision

by RoryLitwin

An interesting, overlapping discussion about the recent Google Books copyright decision took place on the Progressive Librarians Guild email discussion list and the Social Responsibilities Round Table discussion list over the past few days. I have permission from the participants to reproduce that discussion here. I used to do this frequently with the original Library … Read more Email discussion on the recent Google Books copyright decision

Comment’s on Eric Hellman’s note on eBook Copyright Pages

by RoryLitwin

Eric Hellman, founder of Unglue.it, has a note in the current issue of the New York Law School Review titled, “The eBook Copyright Page is Broken.” It is a quick read, and what I have to say is in response to it, so please read it in order to understand what I am commenting on. … Read more Comment’s on Eric Hellman’s note on eBook Copyright Pages

Great Response to an Illegitimate Takedown Notice

by RoryLitwin

This great response to an illegitimate takedown notice is going around on Facebook. It’s funny because of how it shows just how unjust these robo-generated takedown notices can be, but it also reveals a problem that deserves serious discussion. These kind of takedown notices go out by the thousands, and not many people who receive … Read more Great Response to an Illegitimate Takedown Notice

State of the Commons: Wikipedia, Flickr, and the Public Domain

by RoryLitwin

An article by Josh Wallert went up on Nov. 8 at the Design Observer Group’s Places: Forum of Design for the Public Realm, titled, “State of the Commons: Wikipedia, Flickr, and the Public Domain. It’s a good, though brief, read on the state of the public commons for visual documentation. Excerpt: For better and worse, … Read more State of the Commons: Wikipedia, Flickr, and the Public Domain

Late Night Library One for the Books Campaign

by RoryLitwin

Late Night Library One for the Books Campaign FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE A PLEDGE CAMPAIGN SUPPORTING INDEPENDENT BOOKSELLERS AND PUBLISHERS PORTLAND, OR, October 22, 2012—Responding to the US Department of Justice vs. Apple case set to go to trial in June of 2013, Late Night Library has announced the One for the Books! campaign in support … Read more Late Night Library One for the Books Campaign

New international trade agreements undermining copyright balance

by RoryLitwin

This is a couple of months old now but has just reached my attention. It is a statement from IFLA, cosigned by some of its member associations, including ALA and ARL, raising alarm about a new multi-lateral trade agreement that establishes new intellectual property rules that bypass essential balancing user rights such as Fair Use. … Read more New international trade agreements undermining copyright balance

Facebook Abuse Standards Leaked

by RoryLitwin

A low-paid outsourced content screener in Morocco has apparently leaked the “Abuse Standards” guidelines that are in effect at Facebook. Gawker.com published the next update to those standards shortly after releasing the originally-leaked document (these were versions 6.1 and 6.2). Without commenting on the appropriateness of the rules as we now know them, I want … Read more Facebook Abuse Standards Leaked

Obituary: Barney Rossett, groundbreaking publisher at Grove Press, lived to 89

by RoryLitwin

Excerpted from Barney Rosset’s obituary: By Elaine Woo, Los Angeles Times February 23, 2012 Barney Rosset, the renegade founder of Grove Press who fought groundbreaking legal battles against censorship and introduced American readers to such provocative writers as Harold Pinter, Samuel Beckett, Eugene Ionesco and Jean Genet, died Tuesday in New York City. He was … Read more Obituary: Barney Rossett, groundbreaking publisher at Grove Press, lived to 89

On the “undue weight” rule in Wikipedia

by RoryLitwin

An illuminating article in the Chronicle of Higher Education this week: “The ‘Undue Weight’ of Truth on Wikipedia,” by historian Timothy Messer-Kruse. It illustrates a problem with the protocol in place on Wikipedia that operate to attempt to ensure objectivity. This problem is one that academics who work on Wikipedia articles are likely to run … Read more On the “undue weight” rule in Wikipedia