Censorship of educational research databases
Since around 2016, political groups that are aiming to ban books from libraries and schools are also using political and legistlative pressure against the research databases to which libraries subscribe to give students access to educational electronic resources.
A research database is a collection of resources, often -- but not always -- text-based, that are either selected or written by the company that publishes the database. For example, Britannica School is an online encyclopedia, written by the editorial staff of Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. for use in schools, whereas a database like Gale In Context: Middle School brings together newspaper and magazine articles, books, and more from a variety of popular and academic publishers. Overall, the purpose of research databases is to have resources that will help users answer research questions. As a result, a user who -- for example -- wants to understand the history of socialism in the United States might expect to find sources representing the John Birch Society, the Socialist Party of America, and everything in between. Furthermore, database companies offer many different products, in part to provide for the variety of patrons different kinds of libraries -- such as K-12 school, college, and public libraries -- would need; they generally diversify these databases further by age of user, especially among their various products for K-12 school settings.(Source: False Witness)
No, libraries aren't in the porn biz:
Exact reasons for dropping the lawsuit?
Lawsuit cost consortium at least $35K and many hours -- did not go to library services
(In a response by David Rothman): some of items challenged in Chery Creek School District as "obscene" came from TIME -- no EBSCO official admitted to hosting obscene content: "lie"
Sentinel: Conservative law firm files suit (https://sentinelcolorado.com/metro/conservative-law-firm-files-suit-against-educational-database-that-allegedly-provided-access-to-porn-in-cherry-creek-schools/)
Omaha-based law firm free counsel to mostly pro-life clients filed lawsuit in Arapahoe District Court against EBSCO on October 10, 2018 -- Matt Heffrom, lawyer from Thomas Moore Society
Aledged that EBSCO included pornography for children
Aurora couple Drew and Robin Paterson -- late 2016 "easily" returned pornographic links -- regularly protesting EBSCO at school board meetings --> Chery Creek dropped EBSCO
after only a few clicks
Sentinel: Cherry Creek schools ditches EBSCO student database after prolonged complaints about accessible porn
Boston Globe: EBSCO accused of including smut
Matthew Heffron --Thomas Moore
False Witness
2017 OIF got first-ever challenge to database: EBSCO
As of writing, spread to almost a dozen other states
--some schools just shut down EBSCO without much analysis, Others offowed their policies and retained it bc does nto break policies
--challenges used language from NCOSE (formerly Morality in Media) -- was faith-based at founding in 1962, now many web filter companies
--Dirty Dozen: 2017 and 2018 include EBSCO (also Amazon, Amnesty International, and various popular social media companies): "EBSCO....
-- NCOSE conflates pornography and obscenity (only second is a legal term)
--“Explora, Science Reference Center, Literary Reference Center, and other products, provide easy access to hardcore pornography sites and extremely graphic sexual content. Innocent searches provide pornographic results. Via a system that bypasses school Internet filters, EBSCO brings the dark world of XXX to America’s elementary, middle, and high school children” (NCOSE 2018d).
--Mounted attack through Social Media (esp Facebook) -- goal:grab media attention
--Responded to Intellectual Freedom Blog Post with long explanation and a lot of it is untrue --"generally false"
*Used word "obscene" to describe, but no obscentiy charges brought against EBSCO becasue legal term and claim not supportable (ME: actually trying to change that definition now)
Reviewed top 100 search terms across the country, no pronographic terms
Most people searching o=pornographic terms probably adults
EBSCO usually purchased at state level for K-12
Content, like magazines in grocery stores may sometimes contain discussion of human sexuality
BUT not purpose or focus
inflamatory and alarmist attacks
ALA OIF not aware of any reports of minsor seeking or finding illegal or even pornographic content through EBSCO
Colorado Sun: Protecting kids from porn? Assulting free speech?
librarians accused of purposefully peddling online porn to kids
lawsuit did not alledge that EBSCO was carelessly allowing materials to slip through, but that deliberately promulgating porn; CLiC complicit
Dismissed in late Feb, 2019 -- Heffron claimed planning to find others of the 55,009+ schools with EBSCO and bring more suits
Spread to Indiana and Utah
Dirty Dozen includes United Airlines and Netflix
Public libraries have to protect everyone's rights to content -- so some of their databases might contain material aimed at adults, but not include pornography
Washington Post: States aim to limit book titles students can search for (new book bans)
republican lawmakers nationswide proposing legistlation target library databases abd library management technology
Enacted already in Utah and TN, bill in Nebraska -- unprecidented
"epidemic of sexual content"
ties to book banning -- race, racism, history, sex and gender identiy
access content behind paywalls
CIPA goes back to 2000 Pres Clinton -- requires schools to filter if they want federal $ for tech
CIPA + 1974 Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) -- protect studetns online privacy -- forced library databases providers to exclude pornography and other content (me: if there was any... really!!)
Colorado lawsuit -- parents claimed they found articles with links to sexual content when using their teenage daughter's EBSCO acct
--NCOSE also conducted their own search after that and claimed they found links
EBSCO never got reports of ss using linnks to access porn, but did full reassessment in response to NCSCO
--cleaned up some issues (link creation technology); gave individual schools control tools
then, Utah and Nicholeen Peck (https://www.standforthefamilyconference.org/schedules/speakers/nicholeen-peck/; https://famousmormons.net/famous-mormon-authors/nicholeen-peck-mormon-author-bbc-star/)
found pornography "after 45 minutes of searching"
--such as, picture of a woman in her underwear
Utah cancelled access to EBSCO for all 650,000 students--officials reviewed allegations, upped filters
Unanamous vote in Utah Education and Telehealth Network Board to restore -- exec director noted they have not been able to replicate
March 16, 2021 voted in and signed Utah bill
WaPo reports not seem to be inspired by particular reported incedents of kid's encountering anything
Albrecht (NE) was concerned after demonstration from a grandmother (blogger???) --bill failed in 2021, 2022.....
UT: Travis Seegmiller sponored bill 2021 regulating datbaases -- did not provide examples
Parents have different definitions of what is pornography
Lincoln Journal Star: Bill aims to block nebraska students from (https://omaha.com/news/state-and-regional/govt-and-politics/bill-aims-to-block-nebraska-students-from-accessing-obscene-materials/article_b6112308-89db-11ec-818f-ab066774e1e5.html)
Marilyn Asher https://nebraskavoterguide.com/candidates/marilyn-arant-asher searched databases and found items that she beleives are porngraphy
--searching through "links and databases"
Work with Sen Joni Albrecht of Thurston -- LB1213 (2022)
--Albrecht says it is her priority
Also not heard of anyone accidentally encountering this type of content
NE law would require blocking and filtering of databases, though not other open-web content
--set up individual accounts for each student
--give parents access to their studetns' account
--otherwise, lose contract with state; could be sued by parent or students
Neither Albrecht noe Asher knew of a time when students have encoutnered this type of source
Asher: few clicks away from thge home page; through a link in an article
"Sometimes you have to go quite a ways to find it"
--Asher was also looking at databases for the general public, not K-12
Also, all public schools and half of private schools in the state use filters; often school-provided devices have filters
Matt Heffron helped craft LB1213 -- hope it will become model legistlation