A Handbook for Media Librarians

Media librarians - information workers employed by media organizations such as broadcasters and publishers of newspapers, magazines and websites - often seem to have a low profile in both the information profession and among their employers. Academic, legal and public librarians are often intrigued to discover that some of their peers work for the same people who provide their television programmes and daily newspaper. Yet, media companies, producing vast quantities of content in an increasing variety of formats, need people both to help them fill up column inches, pages or hours, and to organize this content afterwards so that it can be found again. Although unlikely to be called 'librarian' - 'researcher', 'media manager' or 'information manager' are more likely titles - information professionals continue to carry this task out for media organizations throughout the world.This practical handbook, the only one of its kind, explores the issues of central importance facing media librarians, archivists, cataloguers and researchers in their working lives. With chapters contributed by frontline practitioners who have experienced the problems for themselves, it covers: media libraries in the 21st century; managing intranets; picture libraries and librarianship; cataloguing television programmes; managing online subscriptions; legal issues for news databases and archives; regional libraries: a survivor's guide; and, swimming upstream in a media library.Media librarians often have little time for professional development activities. Questions like 'What resource should I buy?', 'Shall I let this user borrow this item?', 'Is it ethical for me to answer that question?' and 'How can I describe this footage?' set policy and precedent every day. This book condenses and synthesises this invaluable knowledge to equip media librarians to face the challenges of today's information world. It will also be essential reading for students of librarianship and information studies, and on other media-related courses.