Abstract

Commercializing Information
Schiller, Anita R.; Schiller, Herbert I. | October 4, 1986 issue

add to cart   close window

In March a small number of readers staged sit-ins at the main reading room of the Library of Congress. They were protesting early closing hours, imposed because of severe budget cutbacks. The incident received national media attention, and rightly so. A related struggle, for similar though broader goals, has gone relatively unnoticed, however. It pits the fundamental mission of American libraries--to insure free access to information--against the interests of the private information suppliers and their advocates in government. The commercialization of information, the growth of a powerful private information sector engaged in its purchase and sale, has become a dominant feature of the U.S. economy. As processed data and selectively produced information have acquired monetary value, information companies have rapidly increased their resources and influence.

See Also:

DEMONSTRATIONS; LIBRARIES; BUDGET -- United States; LIBRARY of Congress; WASHINGTON (D.C.); UNITED States
ARCHIVE HOME
Pricing
Articles are sold in 'packs,' which are priced as follows:

1 for 2.95
4 for 9.95
10 for 19.95
50 for 34.95
300 for 149.95
Refund Policy
Sales of archive individual articles, full issues or article packs are final and no refunds will be issued.
Access for libraries
help
Search
Browse
Sample Article

My Articles

You must be logged in to view your articles.

User name

Password

I don't have a login.

I forgot my user name/password.
Advertisement
Advertisement

Blogs

» State of Change

Obama Anoints Kaine, Praises (And Snubs?) Dean | Obama and Kaine signal they'll continue the fifty-state strategy, but why wasn't Dean in the building?
Ari Berman
Posted at 5:17 PM ET

» Altercation

Altercation 3.0 | Altercation takes up residence today at The Nation. In this incarnation, expect more music and movies and maybe a little less politics. But first, a word about Cass Sunstein.
Eric Alterman

» Editor's Cut

Obama Must Get Afghanistan Right | If he doesn't, the US will be stuck in another military catastrophe.
Katrina vanden Heuvel

» Capitolism

ET Come Home | Tom Friedman testifies on Capitol Hill on green technology
Christopher Hayes

» The Beat

Feingold's Outline for a Constitutional Presidency | In a letter to Obama, Constitution subcommittee chair seeks a commitment to end executive excess.
John Nichols

» The Dreyfuss Report

Panetta? Ummmmm... Well..... | Could Obama have made a weirder choice for CIA director? Here's why Panetta is doomed.
Robert Dreyfuss

» Act Now!

Allow Media into Gaza | Israel is encouraging abuses by preventing foreign journalists from entering the Gaza Strip.
Peter Rothberg

» The Notion

Hard Times Without Studs | One of Terkel’s former book editors considers a Studs-less world.
Tom Engelhardt

» And Another Thing

Bill Ayers Whitewashes History, Again | The Weathermen were not just a bunch of idealistic young people.
Katha Pollitt