Let's Hear It From The Jury and New Year's Resolutions for the Librarian Professional

The first issue for this year covers both January and February, so I will be telling you about 2 interesting articles I read. So here it goes and enjoy!

The first article I thought was interesting was “Librarians in the Jury Box” by Nancy Kalikow Maxwell. The author of this article talked with attorneys and did research on trial technique handbooks to find out if her hunch that librarians make highly desirable jurors was correct. When talking with the attorneys, the author found that they feel that librarians make excellent jurors and are preferred when selecting a jury. One reason is because “librarians are interested in the facts and not generally swayed by innuendo or subjective beliefs.” Other reasons are because librarians “listen to reason” and “librarians are organized, practical, conservative, and careful…conservative, I don’t mean politically, but rather they are the kind of people who pay their bills on time. They would focus on the facts and not be swayed by the big picture a plaintiff tries to paint.” Much of the research of the handbooks show that librarians are potential jurors because they are described as intelligent, are seen as literary people, and people who can empathize.

Of course this being said, the article goes on to say how not all librarians are created equal when it comes to being desirable as jurors. Catalogers could be seen as too requiring of “everything in a case to fit together too neatly” while school librarians are “reportedly make good jurors because they are accustomed to making do with available materials.” Public librarians are preferred as defense jurors in criminal cases because they are exposed to a “variety of aspects of life” and are “less likely to be shocked by the details of a crime.”

The last part of the article talks about looking like a librarian. One of the things materials counsel lawyers to consider when selecting jurors is physical characteristics. One reference cautions against selecting a person who is frowning over half-glasses, thin people, and people with thin lips, thin hair, and angular features. Other sources advise lawyers to choose people that are heavy, round-faced, jovial looking as the most desirable for the jury as well as smiling jurors. I found this article interesting because it gave an incite to how we can be perceived by other professions and other people.

The other article I found interesting is a short article on twelve resolutions for the New Year at your library. It is called “Be It Resolved…Twelve resolutions for the New Year at your library” by Mary Pergander. The article goes into some ideas/resolutions on making a difference in your professional career and your library. The resolutions on her list are:

1. Can you name three librarians colleagues working in similar roles in nearby libraries?
2. Is there at least one professional journal you read cover to cover each month?
3. Attend a professional conference, if you can.
4. Subscribe to at least on RSS feed on a library topic of interest.
5. Are you a technology superuser?
6. Share your librarianship ideas more broadly.
7. Vote, not just in the political elections but your library organizations also.
8. Take a local or web-based continuing education class related to your own information needs.
9. Serve on a committee in your library, school, or professional organization.
10. Nominate a librarian for an award.
11. Apply for a grant.
12. Take a vacation, and visit a library.
    

She encourages librarians to complete at least two or three completely.

I hope you have enjoyed learning about a couple interesting articles in the January/February 2008 issue of American Libraries, a publication of the American Library Association. If you like what you have seen and want to read more or you want to read more interesting articles on the library world, check out the January/February 2008 issues of American Libraries!