The old saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words,” has never been truer. In an age when home video can “go viral,” reaching millions of viewers, the opportunities for using outlets like Google Video for promotional purposes are vast.

Here is an example of how the American Library Association has used Google Video to promote libraries and literacy. This video was shot this year at the ALA’s Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia to promote the Youth Media Awards.

To learn more about Google Video please visit http://video.google.com/. - Contributed by Macey Morales, Manager, Media Relations, ALA Public Information Office

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Chu selected to present 2008 Dr. Jean E. Coleman Library Outreach Lecture
CHICAGO - Dr. Clara M. Chu, an associate professor at the Department of Information Studies, UCLA, will present the 2008 Dr. Jean E. Coleman Outreach Lecture for the American Library Association’s Office for Literacy and Outreach Services (OLOS) at ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim, Calif. More …

AASL announces scholarship recipient
CHICAGO - The American Association of School Librarians (AASL), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), is pleased to announce that Charisse Nicole Byers has been awarded the 2008 School Librarian’s Workshop Scholarship. Ms. Byers will receive the award at the AASL Awards Luncheon during the 2008 ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim, Calif. More …

ALA Office for Diversity honors Dr. Clara M. Chu
CHICAGO - The American Library Association (ALA) Office for Diversity is pleased to announce that Clara M. Chu is the recipient of the Achievement in Library Diversity Research honor. The Office for Diversity began designating this honor in 2004 as part of its ongoing support for the dissemination of library-based diversity research. More …

Día Celebrated in nation’s Capitol
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Ken Salazar (D-Colo.) and Congressmen Rubén Hinojosa (D-Texas) and Mike Honda (D-Calif.) were joined by local children on April 30 to honor El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children’s Day/Book Day), also known as Día, an annual celebration of children, families, cultures and reading. Pat Mora, award winning children’s author and founder of Día, joined them for the event in the U.S. Capitol. More …

Susan J. Beck RUSA President 2009-2010
CHICAGO-Susan J. Beck is the new president-elect of the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA). She will begin her term as president-elect in July 2008 and will assume the presidency in 2009-2010. More …

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A video produced by the American Library Association (ALA) Public Information Office features an interview with Cathleen Bourdon, the ALA’s associate executive director, Communications and Member Relations.
Bourdon, who is responsible for the ALA’s Member and Customer Service Center, Chapter Relations Office, International Relations Office, Library/Knowledge Management, Office for Research & Statistics, Public Programs Office, Public Information Office (PIO), Office for Library Advocacy and Membership Development, discusses the four goals of a plan to improve communications between the ALA and its members. The plan is based on a member survey.
The four goals deal with:
• Improvements to the ALA Web site.
• Speeding up the time of response to member questions.
• Helping staff understand how to respond to member inquiries.
• Strengthening staff commitment to member services.

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This week, several U.S. Senators and Representatives celebrated Día de los Niños/Día de los Libros in the Russell Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill.

Full coverage of the event on Capitol Hill can be found at the ALA Washington Office’s blog, District Dispatch.

Día de los Niños/Día de los Libros, known as Día, is an annual celebration  of children, families and reading that culminates every year on April 30. The celebration emphasizes the importance of advocating literacy for children of all linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

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Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith has a second life in public service announcements (PSAs) featuring him as spokesman Step Up to the Plate @ your library®.

In these PSAs, also available in Second Life, Smith discusses the Step Up to the Plate program and the value of libraries. - Contributed by Megan Humphrey, Manager, Campaign for America’s Libraries

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ALA Diversity Office extends deadline for research grant proposals
New issues brief examines public library Internet connectivity
Ozzie Smith PSAs now available in Second Life

Division News

New ACRL title: Copyright Policies - CLIP Note #39
ACRL Announces New Title: Information Literacy Instruction Handbook
2008 ALSC National Institute Registration now open
LAMA AND IIDA announce winners of the library interiors competition
LAMA Diana V. Braddom Fundraising Scholarship deadline announced
Registration opens May 1 for 2008 LITA National Forum
Hyun-Duck Chung and Amy Van Scoy receive Emerald Research Grant
Eleonora Dubicki receives an Emerald Research Grant Award
YALSA announces Teens’ Top Ten Nominations
YALSA seeks teen book groups for YA Galley and Teens’ Top Ten
YALSA honors teen contest winners, chooses 2009 theme
Celebrate reading for the fun of it with YALSA’s Teen Read Week^TM, Oct. 12 - 18

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Have you ever planned a press conference? Macey Morales, media relations manager for the American Library Association’s Public Information Office, provides a few tips on how to coordinate a press event.

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Academy Award-winning actress, author and honorary chair of National Library Week  Julie Andrews kicked off the 50^th anniversary of National Library Week in Los Angeles.

Andrews spoke about National Library Week and the value of libraries and librarians before an audience gathered at ArcLight Cinema in Hollywood for an event with the Los Angeles-based Wonder of Reading.  Joining her on stage were Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Dick Cook, Chairman of the Walt Disney Studios, who Andrews honored for his work with Wonder of Reading, a nonprofit organization that renovates and stocks Los Angeles public elementary school libraries. - Contributed by Megan Humphrey, manager, Campaign for America’s Libraries

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April is the month when the American Library Association celebrates National Library Week. For one of the ALA divisions, the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), April is also School Library Media Month.

To help celebrate School Library Media Month, the association has made public service announcements (PSAs) available to school library media specialists. The PSAs feature  Carmen Agra Deedy, award-winning author of “Martina the Beautiful Cockroach: A Cuban Folktale.”

Information about the PSAs is available at the AASL’s blog. The blog also contains tips on getting the PSAs aired on local radio stations. - Contributed by Melissa Jones, AASL communications specialist, and Steve Zalusky, manager of communications, ALA Public Information Office.

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ALA releases third annual State of America’s Libraries report

Libraries of all kinds celebrate the 50th anniversary of National Library Week, as library use and popularity continue to grow

PIO blog features ALA President Roy, Executive Director Fiels discussing the state of America’s libraries

ALA President-elect Rettig to host advocacy planning session

ALA celebrates National Library Week in Second Life

NLW on ALA Island: “version 2” of Second Life campus launches

Julie Andrews kicks off National Library Week in Los Angeles

Zhou wins award for promoting equality in library profession

Gaming and Libraries Update: Broadening the Intersections

Division News

AASL seeks presenter proposals for 2009 ALA Annual Conference

Definition of Digital Preservation Announced

Molly Raphael receives Arthur Flemming Civil Rights Award

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This week marks the release of ALA’s third annual State of America’s Libraries report. It is a complex and lengthy collaboration that requires contributions from many ALA staff members and member leaders. Beginning last fall, I began to ask colleagues to identify library trends, key data and accomplishments for the report. In a time-constrained environment like ours, those contributions require extra time and effort. Thank you to all who contributed to the report.

This is the first year in which we have developed video and audio interviews related to the State of America’s Libraries report and National Library Week.  The interviews with ALA President Loriene Roy, Executive Director Keith Michael Fiels, Denise Davis, director of the Office of Research and Statistics, Jenifer Grady, director, ALA-APA, on National Library Workers Day and related issues and Julie Walker, director, AASL, on school libraries, provide additional insight into this year’s trends, data and activities. - Contributed by Mark Gould, Director, ALA Public Information Office

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Jenifer Grady, director of the American Library Association’s Allied Professional Association (ALA-APA), talks about her association and the annual celebration of National Library Workers Day, which is held in conjunction with National Library Week. This year, National Library Week takes place April 13-19. National Library Workers Day is held April 15.

To listen, click here - Contributed by Steve Zalusky, Manager of Communications, ALA Public Information Office

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To help kick off National Library Week (April 13-19, 2008), Julie Andrews will appear at an event with The Wonder of Reading in Los Angeles this Sunday, the first day of National Library Week.  

She’ll appear at The Wonder of Reading’s Explore-A-Story fundraiser, which features celebrity readers, children’s book authors and illustrators and family activities, and offer remarks about libraries and National Library Week.

The Wonder of Reading http://www.wonderofreading.org/ is a nonprofit that works with public elementary schools and works to expand and renovate their libraries, oversee the purchase of new books, train volunteers to work one on one with struggling readers, and provide schools with ongoing literacy programs.

Julie Andrews is the honorary chair of National Library Week. Visit the National Library Week Web page (www.ala.org/pio/nlw) to link to the TV and radio public service announcements that Ms. Andrews recorded for use by libraries. The PSAs can be embedded into your Web site or blog – just follow the instructions on the page or contact PIO (pio@ala.org) if you need assistance.

There’s also a print PSA that can be used in newsletters or ads (free customization available!), and you can order a broadcast version of the TV PSAs. - Posted by Megan Humphrey, manager, Campaign for America’s Libraries

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The latest interview from Visibility @ your library features Denise Davis, director of the ALA’s Office for Research and Statistics.Her office is a contributor to the ALA’s State of America’s Libraries Report, which receives its annual release in April. Davis talks about some of the results of a 2007 study her office conducted of library services and programs developed for non-English speakers. The study provided new information on the effectiveness of services, barriers to library use and the services used most frequently by non-English speakers. To listen, click here. - Contributed by Steve Zalusky, Manager of Communications

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ALA president urges support for final CCF fundraising challenge
ALA President Loriene Roy applauds swift action to restore full access to U.S.funded health database POPLINE
ALA leaders praise Washington state support for school libraries
National Library Week celebrates 50th anniversary
Roger E. Levien named as OITP Fellow
ALA-APA names 30 leaders as its Angels
Why are library staff important? See the (NLWD) Stars
Carolyn Brodie named Scholastic Library Publishing Award winner
NEH, ALA announce We the People Bookshelf awards for 3,000 libraries
Step Up to the Plate @ your library launches in Mobile, Ala.

Division News

Capstone Publishers host Networking Reception
at 2008 AASL Fall Forum
ACRL names visiting program officer, accepts legislative advocate applications
Public Library Association 12th National Conference draws thousands to Minneapolis
Horth will speak at LAMA President’s Program
Malafi receives Dun & Bradstreet Public Librarian Support Award 
Silva, Gwinn win 2008 WrestleMania Reading Challenge

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Tomorrow I will be getting on a plane to head south for the launch the Step Up to the Plate @ your library program in Mobile, Alabama. We’ve been working with the Baseball Hall of Fame, the Mobile Bay Bears, a local minor league team, and the library media specialists at Baker High School to plan two Friday launch events. In the morning, program spokesperson and Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith will be at the Baker High School library to talk about the program, and later that evening, Ozzie, Jeff Idelson from the Hall of Fame, Jana Barber, a media specialist from Baker, and Val Thomson from the Mobile Public Library will be recognized on field during a pre-game event with the Mobile Bay Bears, the local minor league team. It’s the team’s opening weekend, so it should be a full house. Photos to come!

This is the third year of the program and our partnership with the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Step Up to the Plate encourages baseball fans to test their knowledge of baseball trivia while improving their literacy skills. Season three of the program is a whole new “ball game,” celebrating the 100th anniversary of the song “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.” To enter, people of all ages are encouraged to use the print and electronic resources available at their library to answer a series of trivia questions designed for their age group (10 and under, 11-13, 14-17 and 18 and over) and inspired by the iconic song.

One grand-prize winner will win a trip for two in October to the Hall of Fame’s World Series Gala event in Cooperstown, N.Y., including a behind-the-scenes tour!

So, what does it mean that the program is launching? If you go online now to http://www.ala.org/baseball and click on “how to enter,” you’ll see that the program’s trivia questions have been posted. People can enter in two ways: either online or print a playbook to submit their answers by mail.

If you want to let people in your community know about this program, go to the program Web site and click on “How librarians can get involved.” After a short registration process, you’ll be taken to a page that has a toolkit with programming ideas and sample press materials and program logos. The toolkit also details how librarians can win prizes.

If there are additional tools you’d like to see added, let us know.  Posted by Megan Humphrey, manager, Campaign for America’s Libraries

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John Ames Humphry/OCLC/Forest Press Award

Bogle-Pratt International Library Travel Fund winner announced

Step Up to the Plate @ your library ® swings into action

ALA releases ground-breaking study on library service to new Americans

ALA, NEH bring “Soul of a People” grants to libraries

Winners selected for Great Stories CLUB grants

AASL Executive Director featured on PIO blog 

Division News

School Library Media Month kicks off with Carmen Agra Deedy event

AASL’s 2008 Fall Forum endnote speaker named

New licensed institute kicks off at Annual Conference

AASL’s President’s Program to discuss intellectual freedom

New ACRL Assessment Immersion program

ALSC Goes West for 2008 Institute

ASCLA designs President’s Program about the Universal Library

Antioch Public Library is selected for the ASCLA/KLAS/NOD Award

AIA/ALA Library Buildings Award seeks jury nominations

Jewell inaugural recipient of Coutts Award for Innovation in Electronic Resources Management

Margaret Stieg Dalton receives RUSA Isadore Gilbert Mudge Award

James Madison University receives Gale Cengage Learning Award 

Ka-Neng Au receives RUSA Dun & Bradstreet Award acknowledging service to minority business communities

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Walker discusses issues addressed in the ALA’s upcoming State of America’s Libraries Report, which is being released as part of National Library Week (April 13-19), and touches on such topics as School Library Media Month, the role of school libraries and library media specialists and important legislative initiatives. - Contributed by Steve Zalusky, Manager of Communications, Public Information Office

Click here to listen.

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First Lady Laura Bush Discusses Post–White House Agenda in Exclusive Interview with American Libraries

http://alfocus.ala.org/videos/interview-first-lady-laura-bush

Polls open in American Library Association election

Harriet Henderson receives 2008 Sullivan Award

Julie Andrews featured in Visibility @ your library

Promote Woman’s Day heath initiative through May 11

Division News

ALSC Heads West for 2008 National Institute

Carmen Agra Deedy lends her voice to School Library Media Month

“Little Miss Sunshine” star brightens School Library Media Month

LAMA seeks “Best of Show” award entries

LITA Web manager named

LITA Acquisitions Editor named

LITA offers three workshops in Anaheim

RUSA offers funding for reference research

WrestleMania Reading Challenge finalists in Orlando this week

YALSA and readergirlz distribute 10,000 books to pediatric hospitals for Support Teen Literature Day

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In case you hadn’t heard, Academy Award-winning actress and author Julie Andrews is the Honorary Chair for this year’s National Library Week.  Isn’t it exciting to have such a cultural icon representing libraries?

Ms. Andrews lent her image for use in a print PSA that ALA is pitching to national publications.  If you haven’t already seen it, you can catch the PSA in April issue of O, The Oprah Magazine, now on stands.  It also appeared last month in issues of Entertainment Weekly and AARP Bulletin (with a circulation of 22,840,177!), and lots of other publications have slotted space for April.  

Want to use this PSA locally?  You’re in luck.  It’s available for free download from the National Library Week Web page.  You can download it as is or get it customized at no cost by our designer, Larry.  Visit the National Library Week page for information.

Last October, Ms. Andrews also donated her time to record television and radio PSAs. You can download the radio spots at no charge to use locally and use the television PSAs on your library’s Web site.  You can also order a broadcast-quality tape using this order form (MS Word).

On the same day, she shared her thoughts on libraries.  

She also appeared with her daughter at an event at the ALA Annual Conference in Washington, D.C.

I was lucky enough to be able to attend the taping of the PSAs.  We received a call that she was going to be in New York to shoot another project, and she offered the use of the camera crew at no charge.  It’s a little nerve-wracking to walk into a small hotel suite with Julie Andrews.  The whole taping lasted about twenty minutes, but during that time, she was just the person you’d want her to be: gracious, generous and incredibly professional.  Posted by Megan Humphrey, manager, Campaign for America’s Libraries

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