The aim of this bachelor thesis is to examine the different discourses related to freedom of expression linked to collec-tion development that can be identified in and around the public library field. Questions posed in this study are: What discourses can be found and how do they interact? How is the public library’s mission described in relation to freedom of expression and collection development within each dis-course? Which subject positions are visible in the debate? The theoretical starting-point is Ernesto Laclau’s and Chantal Mouffe’s discourse theory. The used method is discourse an-alytic, but since Laclau and Mouffe provide no explicit step by step method how to use their theory, we have had to find inspiration in other discourse analytic papers. 38 articles from library journals and daily newspapers were analyzed. The re-sult of the analysis reveals three discourses: a libertarian dis-course, a profession-centred discourse and a reflexive dis-course. From a professional point of view selection, based on professional considerations, is a necessity since no public li-brary is able to stock everything. From a libertarian perspec-tive, the public library’s mission is to serve the public with-out any censorship filters. The main position in the reflexive discourse is that freedom of expression is negotiated in dia-logue with vulnerable groups to ensure a public library for all. Based on the result of the analysis we draw the conclu-sion that the interpretations of laws and guidelines differ within the public library discourse. We therefore propose a clearer national coordination on collection development strat-egies.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:hb-827 |
| Date | January 2015 |
| Creators | Bilting, Lars, Holmudd, Carl |
| Publisher | Högskolan i Borås, Akademin för bibliotek, information, pedagogik och IT, Högskolan i Borås, Akademin för bibliotek, information, pedagogik och IT |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
| Relation | Kandidatuppsats i biblioteks- och informationsvetenskap vid Institutionen Bibliotekshögskolan ; 2015:36 |
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