[Kip Currier: One of the biggest misconceptions about public libraries founded by Andrew Carnegie seed money in the late 19th and early 20th centuries is that those libraries have permanent endowments to this day from those charitable beginnings. Most do not. And if they do, the amounts are modest or meager. The hard fiscal reality is that libraries like the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall in Carnegie, Pennsylvania (a suburb of Pittsburgh) struggle to provide ever-vital services with less money to do so. Through the leadership of Executive Director Maggie Forbes (a very inspiring guest speaker for my LIS 2700: Managing and Leading Libraries class a few years ago!), in collaboration with the Library Board and mobilized citizens/patrons, it's encouraging to see that this gem of a library and music hall has achieved unanimous buy-in for a strategic funding plan that will increase its chances of survival and the ability to continue with its mission: "The Mission of the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall is to serve as an outstanding library, theater and historic site that informs, entertains and engages its community and the region in lifelong learning."] "As executive director of the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall, Maggie Forbes faced some difficult decisions for 2017: drastically cut the library’s hours of operation to 20 hours a week, close entirely or become a branch of another library outside of Carnegie. She appealed to Carnegie council for help, and council came through last week with a 7-0 vote to double funding from $35,000 a year to $70,000. “We weren’t crying wolf. We would have closed,” Ms. Forbes said. “For the first time in 115 years, we have a stable source of income.” “The new funding allows us to live within our means. The library had been borrowing $30,000 a year to remain open, a course that was unsustainable,” she said, adding that she is also excited about the possibility of extending hours and creating more children’s programming. The need for programs geared to children is greater now since the Carlynton School District, which serves Carnegie, recently closed its school library, she said. “It was a team effort,” she said of the push to obtain funding for the library. “The library board of trustees, and the residents turned out to support the library."
My Bloomsbury book "Ethics, Information, and Technology" was published on Nov. 13, 2025. Purchases can be made via Amazon and this Bloomsbury webpage: https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/ethics-information-and-technology-9781440856662/
Friday, December 23, 2016
Carnegie saves library by doubling its funding; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 12/23/16
Bob Podurgiel, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Carnegie saves library by doubling its funding:
Wednesday, December 21, 2016
The Future of Open Government; Huffington Post, 12/19/16
Manish Bapna, Huffington Post; The Future of Open Government:
"This blog post is co-authored with Jean-Vincent Placé, French Minister of State for State Reform and Simplification, attached to the Prime Minister. More than 4,000 people gathered in Paris from 7-9th December for the Open Government Partnership (OGP) Global Summit 2016 hosted by the Government of France. OGP is a unique partnership dedicated to making government decision making more open, inclusive and responsive. Summit attendees included representatives from 80 governments, many of them heads of state and senior ministers; leaders from cities, municipalities and regions; and leading civil society organizations from around the world. The goal for the summit was to highlight the crucial role of open government as a countervailing force to the rise of various forms of nationalism and populism around the world."
"Re-evaluating Goals"; Non Sequitur, Go Comics, 12/21/16
Wiley Miller, Non Sequitur, Go Comics; "Re-evaluating Goals"
Labels:
goals,
Non Sequitur,
strategic planning
Sunday, December 18, 2016
Why Ethical People Make Unethical Choices; Harvard Business Review, 12/16/16
Ron Carucci, Harvard Business Review; Why Ethical People Make Unethical Choices:
"Despite good intentions, organizations set themselves up for ethical catastrophes by creating environments in which people feel forced to make choices they could never have imagined. Former Federal Prosecutor Serina Vash says, “When I first began prosecuting corruption, I expected to walk into rooms and find the vilest people. I was shocked to find ordinarily good people I could well have had coffee with that morning. And they were still good people who’d made terrible choices.” Here are five ways organizations needlessly provoke good people to make unethical choices."
Friday, December 16, 2016
Trademarks Coast to Coast, Guest blog by Commissioner for Trademarks Mary Boney Denison; Director's Forum: A Blog from USPTO's Leadership, 12/8/16
Director's Forum: A Blog from USPTO's Leadership; Trademarks Coast to Coast, Guest blog by Commissioner for Trademarks Mary Boney Denison:
"USPTO regional offices support the agency’s mission of fostering innovation by serving their regions’ intellectual property (IP) communities, assisting local businesses, and educating the public about the importance of IP. Regional office staff, in addition to USPTO trademark staff from headquarters, provide the public with full access to trademark information and resources in their local communities. This year, I visited all four regional offices: Denver and Silicon Valley in the fall, and Dallas and Detroit earlier in the year. During these visits, I had the chance to meet with USPTO employees, hear from local businesses, inventors, and IP practitioners about their concerns, and hold events on the importance of trademarks."
A year after food safety scares, Chipotle has a new set of problems; Washington Post, 12/14/16
Sarah Halzack, Washington Post; A year after food safety scares, Chipotle has a new set of problems:
"“The data, everything that we have, suggest that there are not large numbers of customers staying away from Chipotle because they feel like either we didn’t address the problem properly or that they are afraid of Chipotle,” said Mark Crumpacker, the restaurant’s chief marketing and development officer. Instead, the company is having trouble getting the basics right: Throughput is down, meaning customers are facing frustratingly long lines. The dining room tables and drink stations are often a mess. And patrons are constantly finding that the burrito assembly line is out of an ingredient or two. In other words, it seems the core source of Chipotle’s difficulty right now is convincing people it is enjoyable to eat at Chipotle — a remarkable turn of events for a company that was not long ago the darling of the industry for its seemingly unstoppable sales growth."
Michelle Obama urges students to keep up diversity legacy: 'It's your turn now'; Guardian, 12/15/16
David Smith, Guardian; Michelle Obama urges students to keep up diversity legacy: 'It's your turn now' :
"She did not mention the election or Donald Trump once. But Michelle Obama’s message about diversity and inclusiveness was clear... The first African American first lady addressed a gathering of students – many of them young black women – at the White House on Thursday after a screening of Hidden Figures, a new biopic of three black female mathematicians who helped launch Americans into space... Obama, wearing black, added somewhat somberly: “But it’s up to all of you, our young people, to continue that legacy. It’s your turn now. All right?”"
Friday, December 9, 2016
Ethics in the swamp: the rot of corruption; Huffington Post, 12/9/16
Katherine Marshall, Huffington Post; Ethics in the swamp: the rot of corruption:
"Corruption is a live topic today. Since 2005, international anti-corruption day has been “celebrated” on December 9, in hopes that a visible day marking the topic can raise awareness about corruption and bolster a sense that something can be done to combat and prevent it. The large biannual International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC17) in Panama City ended on December 4, where some 1300 very diverse participants addressed a multitude of issues, from green eyeshade detail, lawyerly discourse, to lofty principles such as trust. The meeting concluded with a commitment that: “Together we will strengthen our web of anti-corruption activists. Together, the public sector, business and civil society will hold the corrupt to account. It is Time for Justice, Equity, Security, and Trust.” The activists, many part of Transparency International, come from all over the world, widely different in ideology and approach, but they share a gutsy determination to hold leaders to account. More tellingly, corruption is a leading topic in political discourse, from Washington to Manila to Kabul to Nairobi to Abuja. The belief that corruption is pervasive drives much of the anger that we see reflected in extremist movements, secular and religious. It fuels the populist surge and the sense of rot that discredits governments and politicians in widely different countries and cultures. America’s political campaign featured narratives about a Washington swamp with bloated, rotten bureaucracies wasting or diverting public resources. The narratives can be misleading, undermining courageous political leaders and public servants, but many see little beyond stories about corrupt practices... The next International Anti-Corruption Conference will be in Denmark in 2018. It’s time to mix the oil and water. Fighting corruption is about more than exhortation: declaiming against those who steal and fail to honor their public responsibilities. Anti-corruption strategies and practices can work. But only when the passion of activists and moral leaders comes together with different parts of society, religious institutions included, to translate anger and a desire for good governance into reality. The fight against corruption, for decent governance and strong public service depends on public morality and a common commitment to ethical standards and priorities. Draining the swamp depends on linking the best of religious and civic teachings to the realities of political leadership and governance. That’s what it will take to achieve “Justice, Equity, Security, and Trust”."
Congressional panel calls for independent Copyright Office; Washington Post, 12/9/16
Peggy McGlone, Washington Post; Congressional panel calls for independent Copyright Office:
"Federal lawmakers are calling for an independent Copyright Office that would be led by a Register nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. The House Judiciary Committee on Thursday released the first in what is expected to be a series of reforms. They suggest keeping a newly independent office in the Legislative branch, and funding technology upgrades including a searchable, digital database of historical and current copyright ownership. Coming on the heels of the resignation of Copyright Register Maria Pallante, and previous suggestions from the Senate Judiciary Committee, the proposals set up a show-down between Congress and new librarian Carla D. Hayden over the future of the agency."
Thursday, December 1, 2016
Social scientists set to decipher various shades of ethics; The Peninsula: Qatar's Daily Newspaper, 12/1/16
Irfan Bhukhari, The Peninsula: Qatar's Daily Newspaper; Social scientists set to decipher various shades of ethics:
"On the academic landscape of Qatar, an international ethics summit is set to appear which will cover dozens of topics having contemporary importance from corporate citizenship in global context to ethics revolving around gender, religion, business and conflict. A three-day International Ethics Summit themed “Morality in the Global Era: Theory, Policy and Praxis” will start from December 4 at HBKU Students Centre at Education City. The summit will be an international opportunity for scholars, academia and audiences representing various segments of society to explore and understand a number of issues such as: Ethical Leadership and Social Responsibility; Ethics in the Professions; Integrity in Business; Corporate Citizenship in a Global Context; Ethics and the Environment; Immigration and Moral Tragedy; Ethics and Technology in the Global Age; Ethics and Sports; Ethics and Gender among others according to university’s call-for-papers and leaflet pertaining to programme-details. The summit is being sposored by RasGas."
Donald Trump’s ‘Monster’s Ball’; New York Times, 12/1/16
Charles M. Blow, New York Times; Donald Trump’s ‘Monster’s Ball’ :
"Donald Trump was elected on a wave of fake news, fake minority outreach and an 11th-hour email head fake by James Comey... Donald Trump is a fraud, and a dangerous one. This country is depending on morally principled patriots to never let that fact be shifted from center stage. Trump rode to victory on a cloud of vapors and vapid promises, and now he is assembling a counsel of acolytes and opportunists. Now each of us must demonstrate our fortitude in vocal, steadfast resistance. Trump must be made to know, in no uncertain terms, that he was elected president and not anointed emperor. Not every battle can be won, but every battle must be waged. This is the proving ground. Are you prepared to stand your ground?"
Michael James Delligatti, Creator of the Big Mac, Dies at 98; New York Times, 11/30/16
Kevin Rawlinson, New York Times; Michael James Delligatti, Creator of the Big Mac, Dies at 98:
"Most memorable was the ad campaign, begun in 1974, in which actual customers tried to recite the ingredients in a Big Mac, with comic results, before a chorus jumped in and smoothly sang the now-famous jingle. “It wasn’t like discovering the light bulb,” Mr. Delligatti told John F. Love, the author of “McDonald’s: Behind the Arches” (1986). “The bulb was already there. All I did was screw it in the socket.”... ...[T]he sales remain huge, leading many to believe that Mr. Delligatti, as its inventor, must have reaped a windfall worth billions. Not so. “All I got was a plaque,” he told The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 2007."
Tuesday, November 29, 2016
The TPP wasn't killed by Donald Trump – our protests worked; Guardian, 11/28/16
Evan Greer, Tom Morello, and Evangeline Lilly, Guardian; The TPP wasn't killed by Donald Trump – our protests worked:
"As more and more people learned about what the TPP really meant for them and their families, it became politically toxic, to the point that no major party candidate for president could openly support it. This was a sign that the TPP was on its deathbed, but with the threat of a last-minute push during the “lame duck” session after the election, we needed to be sure. So we targeted undecided lawmakers with protests and flew inflatable blimps outside their offices. We harnessed the power of music to draw huge crowds across the country to “Rock Against the TPP” concerts and teach-ins, taking our opposition to the TPP into the cultural mainstream. We tuned out the chorus of voices that told us that corporate power would always prevail in the end. And finally, we claimed our victory. Now more than ever, it’s crucial that Americans understand how the TPP was really defeated. An organized and educated public can take on concentrated wealth and power and win. With four years of new battles ahead of us, this is a story we must commit to memory, and a lesson we must take to heart."
Monday, November 28, 2016
Campus Libraries See Increase in Discriminatory Incidents; Library Journal, 11/28/16
Lisa Peet, Library Journal; Campus Libraries See Increase in Discriminatory Incidents:
"Within the libraries, administrators have used these events to highlight ongoing issues such as how to spot and respond to fake news. On a wider scale, they have stepped up their mission to support various campus communities and interest groups, particularly when it comes to student welfare. Said Hutto, “We, like a lot of colleges, have been very proactive about increasing diversity on campus. I think especially for those students, they definitely… are thinking of Reed as being a safe place. And to find out that it’s kind of like any other place is not a pleasant thing for them. We’re really concerned about them.” In a statement released by the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), Chris Bourg, director of libraries at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and ARL Diversity and Inclusion Committee chair, stated, “While ARL libraries and archives work hard to be inclusive in their hiring, collections, services, and environments, the Association and its members will not claim neutrality in the face of discrimination, sexism, ableism, racism, homophobia, religious persecution, or other forms of oppression. We support freedom of speech and the open exchange of ideas and opinions, but we will not tolerate hate speech, silencing, inflammatory rhetoric, or any other speech or action that threatens the safety or dignity of any member of our community.” Addressing the proactive role campus libraries can play post-election, Bourg wrote in a statement from MIT Libraries, “This election has highlighted the urgent need for open, enduring, and equitable access to credible sources of news, data, and knowledge. At the MIT Libraries we will redouble our efforts to provide not only credible sources of information to our communities, but also the expertise, services, collections, tools, and spaces that facilitate and promote the critical assessment of information. We will also continue to document and provide access to the ideas, knowledge, and perspectives of our communities, as we did by archiving the post-election posters containing the immediate reactions of MIT students and community members.”"
Saturday, November 26, 2016
No, Trump, We Can’t Just Get Along; New York Times, 11/23/16
Charles M. Blow, New York Times; No, Trump, We Can’t Just Get Along:
"[Donald Trump] ended the meeting by saying: “I will say, The Times is, it’s a great, great American jewel. A world jewel. And I hope we can all get along well.”... You slammed Clinton for destroying emails, then Newsweek reported last month that your companies “destroyed emails in defiance of court orders.” You slammed Clinton and the Clinton Foundation for paid speeches and conflicts of interest, then it turned out that, as BuzzFeed reported, the Trump Foundation received a $150,000 donation in exchange for your giving a 2015 speech made by video to a conference in Ukraine. You slammed Clinton about conflicts of interest while she was secretary of state, and now your possible conflicts of interest are popping up like mushrooms in a marsh. You are a fraud and a charlatan. Yes, you will be president, but you will not get any breaks just because one branch of your forked tongue is silver. I am not easily duped by dopes. I have not only an ethical and professional duty to call out how obscene your very existence is at the top of American government; I have a moral obligation to do so. I’m not trying to convince anyone of anything, but rather to speak up for truth and honor and inclusion. This isn’t just about you, but also about the moral compass of those who see you for who and what you are, and know the darkness you herald is only held at bay by the lights of truth."
Thursday, November 24, 2016
‘Fraud is not a trade secret’: How a 27-year-old blew the whistle on Theranos; MarketWatch, 11/17/16
Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch; ‘Fraud is not a trade secret’: How a 27-year-old blew the whistle on Theranos’ :
[Kip Currier: Ethics instructors of all stripes were served up a whopping good case study with the story of Tyler Schultz (grandson of former Secretary of State George Schultz) exposing the dazzlingly fraudulent actions of health tech powerhouse, Theranos, Inc. and its now-disgraced CEO Elizabeth Holmes. This is one that should and will be studied in MBA programs and ethics courses for years.] "‘Fraud is not a trade secret. I refuse to allow bullying, intimidation and threat of legal action to take away my First Amendment right to speak out against wrongdoing.’"
Sunday, November 20, 2016
Retired NBA commissioner David Stern went off about cheating and ethics; Quartz, 11/19/16
Oliver Staley, Quartz; Retired NBA commissioner David Stern went off about cheating and ethics:
"Cheating and ethical lapses are pervasive, from soccer stars evading taxes and state-sanctioned doping in the Olympics, to companies giving lip-service to social responsibility while gouging customers, Stern said Nov. 18 at a forum about business ethics and leadership hosted by Columbia Business School... “It’s too easy,” he said. “Every company has a head of corporate responsibility, you form a foundation, you give all your employees Friday off to do charity, blah, blah, blah. Then you fix prices at a business association meeting.” He took aim at Facebook, which said it has misreported how many people view its ads, and allowed the spread of fake news on its platform. The directors of venture-capital backed companies need to speak up, he said. “Where are the boards?” he said."
Pittsburgh's smart city efforts include autonomous driving, open data, and renewable energy; TechRepublic, 11/18/16
Teena Maddox, TechRepublic; Pittsburgh's smart city efforts include autonomous driving, open data, and renewable energy:
"Pittsburgh is the home for CMU and it has helped with the push to add new technology. Pittsburgh is partnering with the university to serve as an urban lab for CMU's research and development. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between CMU and the city serves as a formal partnership to allow CMU to try new tech around Pittsburgh without undergoing a lengthy approval process, similar to how the city is able to send maintenance crews out to do small projects without first seeking funding, Peduto explained... The city has formed partnerships with county and universities to create an open data platform. Pittsburgh is providing the public with real-time data about crime, emergency calls, building permits, or anything else being measured."
Friday, November 18, 2016
Jonathan Nolan Responds To That Westworld Location Theory; Slashfilm.com, 10/17/16
Peter Sciretta, Slashfilm.com; Jonathan Nolan Responds To That Westworld Location Theory:
Minor spoilers re "Westworld" plot themes [Kip Currier: Viewers of Season 1 of the popular new HBO series "Westworld"--a reimagined reboot of the 1973 film, based on Michael Crichton's eponymous novel--have increasingly seen the protect-at-all-costs value of Westworld's Intellectual Property, as well as privacy concerns. Showrunners Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy Nolan touch on these issues below:] "In regards to the computer terminals where the Delos staff communicate to their loved ones back home, [Lisa Joy Nolan] says: Regardless of where they are, the park is very, very vast, and you don’t rotate home often. You don’t have open communication where you can just pick up a phone. Even senior people have to go to the coms room – because [the park is] protecting their intellectual property. We’re hoping to paint a portrait of the culture of the corporation. [Jonathan] Nolan (who was a showrunner on Person of Interest, a series about a computer system that could analyze all forms of public and private data to predict the future) seems to be very interested in the aspect of big brother looking in on our communications. As for how it relates to Westworld, he says the Delos corporation wants to protect its intellectual property and the privacy of the park’s guests: In Westworld, the value of the park is all in its intellectual property, it’s all in the code. So regardless of the park’s location, they would be extremely careful with that code and making sure its virtually impossible to smuggle it out of the park. And there’s the privacy of the guests – you’re not going to have a good time in Westworld if somebody is Instagramming your activities. I’m amazed [th]at [sic] Las Vegas has survived the Instagram age. In episode 2, when the guests come in, we don’t see this, but we assume these guys have cell phones that they’re not allowed to bring in the park. We very much think this is a path where culture may be going – that we’ll get over-exposed and sick of the interconnectedness of our lives that we’ll hunger for places [that offer disconnected privacy]. We’ll hunger for a moment where we can go back toward having some privacy."
Thursday, November 17, 2016
Cuomo, Stung by a Scandal, Offers Ethics Reforms; New York Times, 11/16/16
Vivian Yee and Jesse McKinley, New York Times; Cuomo, Stung by a Scandal, Offers Ethics Reforms:
"Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced on Wednesday a set of ethics reforms that would affect the State Legislature, the State University of New York, the City University of New York and his own office — all of which have been soiled within the last year by corruption scandals and allegations of slipshod management. Mr. Cuomo, a Democrat, announced that he would appoint a procurement officer to review all contracts and agreements involving state funds “with an eye towards eliminating any wrongdoing, conflicts of interest or collusion,” a clear nod to the revelation this fall that three of his former aides and advisers had orchestrated a yearslong bribery and bid-rigging scheme in which lucrative state economic development contracts were steered to a few favored developers. All three, along with several development executives, have pleaded not guilty to federal corruption charges."
Saturday, November 12, 2016
Murder (or not) at the Library of Congress?; Washington Post, 10/31/16
David Post, Washington Post; Murder (or not) at the Library of Congress? :
"In any complex organization, it’s crucial for senior management to be unified in their understanding of the organization’s mission and how that mission can best be accomplished. It seems fairly basic that any new leader is entitled to expect, at a minimum, that all of the members of her management team actually want to be part of the organization — that they see a future for themselves and their staffs in the organization. In the academic world, where I spend most of my time, everyone expects a new university president to make major, senior-level personnel changes when he or she takes the helm. Sometimes those changes come quickly — as when there is a sharp divergence of views on a matter central to the shape and identity of the institution. Sometimes they come more slowly, as time reveals more subtle conflicts or incongruities between a given administrator’s approach to his or her job and the new president’s vision for the future of the institution. Always, however, personnel changes come. They’re a normal and healthy part of institutional evolution, even if they produce some short-term disorientation. We’ll likely never know the details of Pallante’s departure from her job. I’ll go out on a limb and suggest that the logical explanation is probably the actual one."
Monday, November 7, 2016
New Era for Disability Rights; Inside Higher Ed, 11/7/16
Carl Straumsheim, Inside Higher Ed; New Era for Disability Rights:
"Disability studies scholars and legal experts say lawsuits like Dudley’s against Miami represent a shift in activism, where high-profile cases help raise awareness about the challenges facing students in an increasingly digital world. More than two decades after the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 was signed into law, advocacy groups are pushing to clarify how it and other laws that prohibit discrimination against people with disabilities apply to technology that at the time seemed like science fiction but now has become reality. At the same time, those and other groups are pushing for new legislation, keeping one eye on the upcoming process to rewrite the Higher Education Act... Jonathan S. Fansmith, who works in government relations for ACE [American Council on Education], said in an interview that the associations are looking for a middle ground with regulations that ensure core university functions -- registering for classes, paying tuition and so on -- are accessible to anyone but don’t stifle university research output. “We want to do the right thing here,” Fansmith said. “We want to do it the right way. We want to have cognizance of a process that’s thoughtful, deliberate and can actually be achieved so you don’t get schools that say, ‘Look, this is going to be so costly, so burdensome.’”"
Thursday, November 3, 2016
Pittsburgh City Council pushes forward on confidentiality measure; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 11/3/16
Adam Smeltz, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Pittsburgh City Council pushes forward on confidentiality measure:
"Pittsburgh City Council forged ahead Wednesday with plans that could cost members triple-digit fines for leaking confidential details from closed-door meetings. Council members voted 7-1 to advance comprehensive revisions for their own operating rules, setting up the 15-page proposal for a final vote Monday. Dissenting Councilwoman Darlene Harris lashed out against potential fines that could reach $500 for members who breach attorney-client privilege, saying the idea amounts to “a gag order.”"
Conspiracy Theories Run Amok Over Copyright Office Executive Changes; Techdirt, 11/2/16
Mike Masnick, Techdirt; Conspiracy Theories Run Amok Over Copyright Office Executive Changes:
"...[S]ome folks who support ever more draconian copyright immediately jumped on all sorts of conspiracy theories about how this was really Google somehow firing Pallante, including one site that directly had that as a headline. To anyone who actually had knowledge of what was going on, this made no sense. Hayden is not connected to Google in any way. This is just out and out tinfoil hat conspiracy theory territory from people who see "Google" behind any policy they dislike. It seemed rather obvious that, like just about any new CEO of an organization, Hayden was clearing out some senior staff for a variety of reasons. And there was a pretty obvious big reason why Hayden would like to reassign Pallante: she has been directly and publicly advocating for Congress to move the Copyright Office outside of the Library of Congress. If you came in to run an organization and one of your direct reports was going over your head to try to transfer an entire division somewhere else, it's likely you'd fire that person too. It's kind of a management 101 thing. Over the past week, in talking to a few people at the Library of Congress, or close to it, this is the basic story that came out. Hayden didn't feel comfortable with Pallante publicly advocating against the Library of Congress, and used her role as the boss to remove her from that position. Others seem to be discovering the same thing. A report at Publisher's Weekly notes that the conspiracy theories are bunk:"
A Copyright Coup in Washington; Wall Street Journal, 11/2/16
Wall Street Journal; A Copyright Coup in Washington:
"Ms. Hayden is now looking for a copyright office successor, and don’t be surprised if she chooses someone whose experience includes time at Google. This is reason enough for Congress to take a look: If the position is open to political influence, then the register should be politically accountable—and report to elected officials, not the nation’s librarian. Perhaps these are all coincidences and Ms. Hayden merely botched a personnel dispute. But she now has an opening to install a register friendly to Google, and anyone tempted to write off the Pallante dispute as bureaucratic squabbling should remember: The company’s goal is to defenestrate laws that protect property. The guarantee to own what you create is the reason entrepreneurs take the risks that power the economy—a reason guys like Larry Page and Sergey Brin start Google."
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