Contents of November 1999 American Libraries

News Fronts

6 ALA

Sheketoff Named Head of Washington Office
FTRF Joins Court Battles
Endowment Trustee Post Open
Chapter Report, by Christine Watkins

11 Washington

USIA Abolished; Functions Go to State Department
House Holds Hearing on NTIS Closing
Rep. Owens Introduces School Media Bill

12 USA

Louisville Fire Damage Estimated at $1.8 Million
Queens Librarians Rally to Halt Attrition
Floods from Floyd Swamp Eastern Libraries

26 International

A First Time for Everything in Azerbaijan, by Ann K. Symons, Jordan M. Scepanski, and H. Lea Wells
Global Reach

Features

38 We Call Them Libraries: What the “L” Word Means to Me

BY WALT CRAWFORD
A library leader looks at the semantics of the profession.

42 The Coolness Factor: Ten Libraries Listen to Youth

BY ELAINE MEYERS
Teens tell libraries what they must do to change their image.

46 Galloping New Ignorance, Watchdogs, and the Enlightenment Syndrome

BY CHARLES CURRAN AND DENNIS ADAMS
These menaces pose threats to the mission of libraries.

50 Web Regulation Battles Heat Up

BY PAT NEWCOMBE
Two victories bolster the argument that information should be free from government control, but the war is far from over.

54 Cite-Seeing in New Jersey

BY ROBERT MILLER
The state library’s citation/location service makes bibliographic detection more successful.

50 Conference Call: Children’s Access: Protection or Preparation

Family Friendly Libraries’ Karen Jo Gounaud and ALA Intellectual Freedom Committee member Carrie Gardner tackle a thorny issue.

64 A Community Mirror: Reflections on the Color of Librarianship

BY CHRISTINE WATKINS
“Not typical” librarians are actually very typical of a fast-changing population.

Departments

29 Money Matters

30 Reader Forum

32 ALA President’s Message

“Planning for the Next Century”
BY SARAH ANN LONG

34 Editorial

“Soothing Words Often Begin with ‘L’”
BY LEONARD KNIFFEL

36 On My Mind

“A Warning about the Teaching of Evolution in Kansas”
BY EARL LEE

68 Currents

70 Internet Librarian

“Look Backward, Look Forward: Faces of the Fin de Siècle”
BY KAREN G. SCHNEIDER