Free Libraries for All

Libraries have historically existed to serve and support public interest, not to generate a profit. While taking in everything from this week's readings, one quote in particular caught my attention, “Some have suggested more recently that an emerging business model for library service is seriously distorting this service orientation” (Rubin, 2004, p. 305). This statement raised a lot of questions in my mind. The most intriguing question being, would running a library like a business (ie. charging customers for materials and services) be helpful or harmful?
In today's world, it is rare to find things that are free. Most, if not all, services rendered come at a cost. When traveling on some airlines you can't even take your necessary clothes and toiletries in a suitcase without paying for it these days. Therefore, is it presumptuous of us to think that library materials and services should and will always be free? According to Rubin, “Information has become a recognized entity to be measured, evaluated, and priced” (Rubin, 2004, p. 57). But in a traditional library environment, whose responsibility is it to foot the bill?
Traditionally, public library materials and services have been available at no charge to the user, except for the occasional late fee or replacement costs for lost or damaged materials. The idea that running a library like a business would hurt the library's reputation for being service-oriented can be looked at in two ways. First, if libraries begin charging patrons for materials and services, the divide between information users and non-users would increase. In other words, those who could afford it would have access to knowledge, while those less fortunate would not. This seems like a step backward in terms of free knowledge for all. Not exactly the direction we want to be headed.
On the other hand, as patrons demand more and more information and library budgets in many areas continue to dwindle, where is the money going to come from to staff libraries and keep collections current? “Increasingly, many libraries have become aware that in order to meet the needs of our large and varied customer base, we need to offer different services at different 'price points' - some that are free and some that are available for a fee” (Morrow, 2007, p. 123). Morrow is not suggesting that we start charging for all library services. Instead, she proposes that all traditional services remain free of charge, but that libraries should start charging for additional services like having research experts do the work for patrons who do not have the time. To many businesses that do not always have the time to do research themselves, this many be a useful service worth the money. “To some customers, getting 'good value' for their dollar is important… trying to balance out what you offer for free and what you offer for a fee is the challenge” (Morrow, 2007, p. 123).
The fear of many, however, is that by charging a fee to access information, libraries would be undermining “the obligation to protect the rights of patrons to free access to ideas and information in a democratic society” (Rubin, 2004, p. 187). While a service charge for extensive searches may help cover the costs of the databases used and the librarian's time, in the end, I could not see libraries doing much more than breaking even.
In recent times, “The increasing complexity of the society and its reliance on information have only made the concept of information as a commodity more prevalent” (Rubin, 2004, p. 57). Therefore, to paraphrase Anne Goulding (2001) in her editorial in the Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, it is up to librarians to raise concerns when information is exploited for profit rather than being available to all as a way of enriching individuals and the community as a whole.
While I think the information field could benefit from more research in this area (I had a hard time finding hard evidence to my original question), my gut instinct is that charging library users for materials and services would be harmful to society's perception of libraries and to the ability of all citizens to maximize the potential of information access.


References

Goulding, A. (2001). Information: Commodity or social good. Journal of Librarinaship and Information Science, 33(1), 1-4. Retrieved May 29, 2008, from Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA).

Morrow, L. (2007). Time is money: Pricing options for libraries. Feliciter, 53(3), 123-124. Retrieved May 29, 2008, from Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA).

Rubin, R. E. (2004). Foundations of library and information science (2nd ed.). New York: Neal-Schuman.