The purpose of this Master’s thesis is to study how the comics have been evaluated and debated in the Swedish library press from 1960 to 1999. Have they been seen as something good or something bad? What arguments have been put forward against them or in their defense? What kinds of development can be seen over time? The point of doing this, is of course that evaluation always plays a crucial part in library work. By studying how a "new" medium or art form has been evaluated in the past, we can hopefully gain a greater understanding of how today’s newcomers should best be treated. Theoretically, this thesis is grounded in Bourdieu’s theory about cultural distinctions. Content analysis has been used as the basic method, and complemented with a study about the positions from which different persons write about comics. In other words it's a basically statistical study, but great care has been taken not to forget the individual texts’ specific content and context. The results show that the acceptance for comics has increased since the sixties, but at the same time the interest in comics seems to have lessened. In the nineties, very few texts in the library press concerned themselves with these. The common understanding, at least among comic readers, that the libraries into the eighties were massively hostile towards comics, is proven wrong though. Much of the criticism against comics seems to have been grounded in a fear of what bad comics could do to the children, and a broadly speaking ideological criticism has been dominant. But at the same time it's obvious that general cultural and political tendencies has worked in the comics’ favour. / Uppsatsnivå: D

The purpose of this Master’s thesis is to investigate the criticisms of the Swedish library education 1990-2005. By studying four different magazines, we tried to find the various opinions. The years investigated are 1990 to 2005. We have studied articulated opinions, not all opinions, in four library journals. In 1993, the education was transformed towards a more academic line, why we want to explore the discussions shortly before and during this change. Noticeable concrete changes during this time are an increased number of education sites, more technology and less practise.Research questions: 1. In what themes of opinions has criticism, for or against the new library education, been presented in library journals during the period 1990-2005? 2. What themes have been dominating this period?3. What differences in these themes are found in relative importance over the 16 years?4. Which are the most interested parties in the survey during this period of time? We read the magazines and sorted the criticism into themes and put them together to get a pattern of the discussions. We find representatives from associations to be the most active interested party, then educators. The pattern of opinions reveals the following: the new education can lead to several various types of employment, not just in libraries. Other opinions debated were if the education is relevant and if practise is necessary. The theme of distance education is discussed most frequently in the beginning of our period and the gender issue in the end. / Uppsatsnivå: D

The aim of this thesis is to examine how the identity of the public librarianwith regard to reading is manifested in the library field. The approaches thatare taken to reading and readers are examined as well as the consequencesdifferent approaches might have. The empirical material is based on 93articles published in Swedish library journals. The theoretical andmethodological starting point is discourse analysis. The application ofdiscourse analysis according to Michel Foucault’s hypotheses reveals threediscursive formations regarding the professional identity of public librarianswithin the framework of reading promotion: The public librarian asguarantor of democracy is related to the public library's original mission offostering, cultivating and educating citizens. The librarian is expected tomake “proper literature” available to the general public. The public librarianas personal trainer highlights a trend in the library field of equating readingwith sports where the librarians are expected to win non-readers by recruitingpotential readers through sporting activities. The librarian is described as apeppery and spirited coach with the task of making readers out of nonreaders.The public librarian as caregiver of the soul emphasizes the librarianas an empathetic and caring supervisor with therapeutic expertise. The twoformer formations emphasize masculine reading. The relation between thelibrarian and the reader can be considered in terms of power. The librarianrepresents an institutionalized controlling power. The reader emerges aspassive and becomes an object of the librarian's mission, good will andexpertise and whose job it is to labour for the well-being of both theindividual and society in general. Through discourse analysis according toErnesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe it is made visible that thereis a strong emphasis on a narrow understanding of “reading” and “literature”.The concept of “the book” has a wider significance, however, and includesnot just books in printed form, but also books in digital format. When itcomes to masculine reading the understanding of “reading” and “literature”tends to be broadened. The utilitarian aspect of reading is articulated. In orderto improve reading “quality literature” is required, “lower literature” shouldprimarily be seen as a stepping stone to “advanced” and “fine” literature. / Program: Bibliotekarie

In this thesis we have examined opinions of the social web in Scandinavian Library journals. Our interest lies in aspects about the social web, and above all about Library 2.0. The central question is how this new technology, a growing digitalization, and a social web that focuses on interactivity and participation affects opinions about libraries. We have investigated opinions about Library 2.0, with respect to three different dimensions: The role of the library in society, power/hierarchy and knowledge. The method used in this thesis is idea analysis using these dimensions as analytical instrument. As theoretical framework we have used Douglas Raber’s (1996) three different strategies for public libraries, and the way in which librarians choose to meet the challenges of a changing society: The conservative response, the populist initiative and the social activism. Our main findings are:- The most enthusiastic Library 2.0-supporters are found in the field of social activism. They have a deeply democratic view, and they believe that “sharing is caring”. “Radical trust” is another important expression as is “the wisdom of the crowd”.- On the other hand, some Library 2.0-supporters are found in the populist initiative. They propose that change is the only constant and want to adapt to the market. For such scholars, the most important word is “usefulness”.- Those included in the conservative response is often sceptical about Library 2.0. They are not principally against new ideas such as interactivity, but they maintain that librarians’ authority should be protected, and they find books and reading to be the most important part of Library services.

The role of the library is changing to meet the demands of a technology-driven society. Yet the impact of new media, such as e-books, has not always been viewed favourably. The aim of this thesis has been to map the debate that took place between 2010 and 2015 concerning the status of e-books within the public library system. The study focused on several key areas: attitudes expressed within Swedish library press; the issues raised within discussions; aspirations and concerns of participants; and how opinions changed over time. The 99 issues of Biblioteksbladet, Biblioteket i Samhälle, and Framsidan published during the years of study constituted the source material. Computerised content analysis targeted keywords: e-, elektronisk, and digital. Results were logged chronologically, and coded to record any opinion expressed in relation to e-books: either positive, negative, or neutral. Raw data analysis was enhanced by the critical theories of LIS-professor Kristen Drotner. Her concept of media panic describes the emotional reactions professionals experience in response to new forms of media and technology. This was used to assess whether criticisms of the new medium were part of an emotional response. The results of our analysis suggest a cycle of debate that only partially fit Drotner's concept of media panic: initial discussions focused on technical considerations, the debate intensified and moved to economic concerns and the changing role of the library as the rate of e-book loans proliferated. The final years of study were characterised by calls for national co-operation regarding the implementation of e-books.