Public Agenda: Long Overdue

I want to believe everything in this report. I'm struggling, though, because it reads like a paid advertising supplement.

At first I felt shallow for thinking that: it's unfair, I thought, to discount a study's content just because of its form - because Public Agenda decided to fill it with stock photos, slick graphics, and high-level summaries in eye-catching print. In fact, I appreciate it when people make things inviting to read. But then the science behind the survey started distracting me. I've never done formal coursework in survey design, but the questions in this one seemed biased to elicit pro-library responses. Since I'm in an LIS program maybe I should appreciate the support, but I feel that a more frank and less friendly analysis would be much more valuable.

Even so, there were some reasonable learning points for libraries. People want libraries to remain "free" services, to focus on the needs of the young and disadvantaged, and to provide access to computers and government information.