Library news

• New Research Database: Introducing ProPublica’s 527 Explorer

  18-06-2024 20:23
  From ProPublica:Each year, people and companies contribute hundreds of millions of dollars to tax-exempt political organizations in an effort to influence elections nationwide. These organizations, commonly known as 527s after a section of the tax code, can raise unlimited sums for political spending. Today, ProPublica is releasing a database that will allow journalists, researchers and others to more easily search 527s’ finances and find patterns.
  It’s a wide-ranging trove of d
  
  Read more

• NLM Board of Regents presents Regents Awards for Scholarship or Technical Achievement

  13-03-2026 18:48 via nlm.nih.gov
  Official websites use .gov A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
  
  Read more

• Video Recording of Yesterday’s Research Libraries UK (RLUK) Forum: “Research Library Strategy For Imagined Futures: The ARL/CNI Futurescape AI Experience”

  05-03-2026 15:38
  From Research Libraries UK:
  Throughout the second half of 2025, the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) and the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) held a series of workshops for research library leaders on using the Futurescape Libraries AI Toolkit—a modular resource for integrating the ARL/CNI AI Scenarios into institutional strategy and planning work.
  Judy Ruttenberg, who leads ARL’s Advocacy & Public Policy and Scholars & Scholarship programs, and Catherine Stee
  
  Read more

• At the University of North Carolina, “AI Powers Research Into Film’s Past”

  02-03-2026 20:47
  From the UNC College of Arts and Sciences:More than a decade ago, Carolina film historian Martin Johnson stumbled upon an archive documenting more than 10,000 forgotten films at the Library of Congress.
  The collection contained an index of films made in the span of just six years, 1915–1920, but held a dizzying amount of data to sift through, even for a seasoned film researcher.
  “I could have spent months going through the microfilm and looking at these several hundred thou
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Final Report Available: Five University Libraries (UC Davis, Cornell, Ohio State, University of Michigan, and Rutgers) Collaborate on Mass Book Digitization Pilot Project

  27-02-2026 02:28
  From a UC Davis Library Post:
  During 2023-2025, UC Davis, Cornell University, Ohio State University, University of Michigan, and Rutgers University coordinated to contribute scholarly content in two topic areas to the Google Books project. This content is then contributed to the HathiTrust Digital Library.
  The two topics, bees & insect pollinators and Puerto Rico, met a number of criteria for testing the effectiveness of being more intentional:Books and serials on these topics
  
  Read more

• New From Allen Institute For Artificial Intelligence (Ai2): Understanding Usage and Engagement in AI-Powered Scientific Research Tools: The Asta Interaction Dataset (preprint)

  26-02-2026 16:04
  The preprint linked below was recently shared on arXiv.
  Title
  Understanding Usage and Engagement in AI-Powered Scientific Research Tools: The Asta Interaction Dataset
  AuthorsDany Haddad, Dan Bareket, Joseph Chee Chang, Jay DeYoung,  Jena D. Hwang, Uri Katz, et al. 
  Source
  via arXiv
  Abstract
  AI-powered scientific research tools are rapidly being integrated into research workflows, yet the field lacks a clear lens into how researchers use these systems in real-world settings. We present
  
  Read more

• New Analysis From Clarivate: “Highly Cited Researchers: Key Trends 2015-2025”

  26-02-2026 13:27
  From Clarivate/Institute for Scientific Information:Last year, the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) released an interactive visualization highlighting trends in the Highly Cited Researchers lists from 2014 to 2024. Following strong engagement from the academic community, we are pleased to share an updated version incorporating data from the 2015-2025 lists.
  Key insights from a decade of data
  Below are some headline findings from the Highly Cited Researchers 2015-2025 lists. Explor
  
  Read more

• New Report From IFLA: “Weak Signals: Emergent and Potential Trends Shaping the Future of Libraries”

  25-02-2026 14:30
  From an International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Releases   Blog Post:IFLA’s new Weak Signals Report brings together insights into developments across our field that have the potential to become trends in future. Created by recipients of our Emerging Leaders’ Grants at WLIC2025, it draws on ideas and experiences shared at our annual congress last year in Astana, Kazakhstan.
  IFLA’s 2024 Trend Report is a tool available to the l
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Book Chapter (preprint): Responsible Intelligence in Practice: A Fairness Audit of Open Large Language Models for Library Reference Services

  25-02-2026 00:02
  The preprint linked below was recently shared on arXiv.
  Title
  Responsible Intelligence in Practice: A Fairness Audit of Open Large Language Models for Library Reference Services
  Authors
  Haining WangIndiana University School of Medicine
  Jason ClarkMontana State University 
  Angelica PeñaSan Leandro Public Library
  Source
  via arXiv
  DOI:  10.48550/arXiv.2602.18935
  Abstract
  As libraries explore large language models (LLMs) as a scalable layer for reference services, a core fairness qu
  
  Read more

• An “Enhanced” Version of the ESAC Registry Now Online: “A Community-Driven Step Forward For Transparency In Open Access Publishing Agreements”

  24-02-2026 20:18
  From the ESAC Blog:
  The OA2020 and ESAC communities mark a new phase in the evolution of the ESAC Registry—a shared, library-driven infrastructure documenting open access publishing agreements between libraries, consortia, and publishers.
  Built by practitioners to strengthen transparency and shared insight across a rapidly evolving publishing landscape, the Registry documents how libraries worldwide have translated shared principles into operational practice—embedding open publi
  
  Read more

• Journal Article: “Academic Journals’ AI Policies Fail to Curb the Surge in AI-Assisted Academic Writing”

  24-02-2026 20:08
  The journal article linked below was published today by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
  Title
  Academic Journals’ AI Policies Fail to Curb the Surge in AI-Assisted Academic Writing
  Authors
  Yongyuan HePeking University
  Yi BuPeking University
  Source
  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS)Vol. 123 | No. 9 (e2526734123)
  Abstract
  The rapid integration of generative AI into academic writing has prompted widespread pol
  
  Read more

• Research Paper (preprint): Everyone’s Using It, But No One is Allowed to Talk About It: College Students’ Experiences Navigating the Higher Education Environment in a Generative AI World

  23-02-2026 16:25
  The research paper (preprint) linked below was recently shared on arXiv.
  Title
  Everyone’s Using It, But No One is Allowed to Talk About It: College Students’ Experiences Navigating the Higher Education Environment in a Generative AI World
  Authors
  Yue FuInformation School, University of Washington
  Yifan LinInformation School, University of Washington
  Jessica WangInformation School, University of Washington
  Sarah TranInformation School, University of Washington
  Alexis HinikerInformatio
  
  Read more

• Journal Article: Data as a New Research Publication Type: What Could Be The Role Of Research Libraries as Service Providers?

  19-02-2026 15:22
  The article linked below was recently published by LIBER Quarterly.
  Title
  Data as a New Research Publication Type: What Could Be The Role Of Research Libraries as Service Providers?
  Authors
  Mari Elisa KuusniemiUniversity of Helsinki
  Susanna NykyriTampere University
  Source
  LIBER  QuarterlyVol. 36 No. 1 (2026)DOI: 10.53377/lq.19415
  Abstract
  This article examines the evolving role of research libraries in supporting the recognition of datasets as legitimate academic outputs through data publis
  
  Read more

• Report: “In Digital-First Era, NJ Librarians Demand More Affordable E-Books”

  18-02-2026 14:56
  From the New Jersey Monitor:
  New Jersey librarians and lawmakers who joined forces to fight book-banners a few years ago have a new target: publishers whose restrictive e-book licensing agreements have shrunk digital access for library users.
  [Clip]
  Such practices would become a violation of New Jersey’s consumer fraud law under a bill Sen. Andrew Zwicker (D-Middlesex) introduced last month. Zwicker led the push in 2024 to limit book bans in public schools and libraries
  
  Read more

• Project Results From COMET: “Unlocking Author-Affiliation Metadata For All of arXiv”

  17-02-2026 17:35
  From a COMET Blog Post:
  The COMET team is pleased to share results from an exciting line of work we have recently completed, focused on unlocking author-affiliation metadata from preprints. Specifically, we have trained a small, open-weight large language model (LLM) that achieves state-of-the-art performance on author-affiliation extraction for arXiv works. With this approach, we have for the first time produced open author-affiliation metadata for the full arXiv corpus as of December 2025, ena
  
  Read more

• Legislation Roundup: Iowa Bill Advanced Monday Would Remove Library Exemptions From Obscenity Restrictions; Controversial Library Book Policy Bill Clears First Reading in Wyoming House

  17-02-2026 13:39
  Iowa
  Iowa Bill Advanced Monday Would Remove Library Exemptions From Obscenity Restrictions (via The Gazette)Exemptions from restrictions on obscene materials would be lifted from Iowa public libraries under legislation advanced by state lawmakers Monday.
  The bill, Senate File 2119, would repeal a section of Iowa code that provides exemptions from restrictions on obscene materials that currently applies to public libraries, which supporters of the legislation argue allows minors to access in
  
  Read more

• New Issue of Library Trends (74.3): Data Literacy: Navigating the Shift from Hype to Reality

  16-02-2026 14:47
  Here’s the table of contents for the latest issue of Library Trends (Volume 74, Number 3, February 2026).
  The issue is titled, “Data Literacy: Navigating the Shift from Hype to Reality” and was edited by Ben B. Chiewphasa.
  From the IntroductionThe 74 (3) issue of Library Trends examines the intersection of technological hype and practical reality in librarianship through the lens of data literacy. It tells the story of how evolving information ecosystems are reshaping
  
  Read more

• International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Releases Marrakesh Monitoring Report 2026

  14-02-2026 18:17
  From the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA):
  128 countries are now signed up to the marrakesh treaty, which removes unnecessary copyright barriers to the creation of and access to books and other materials in accessible formats for people with print disabilities. but how far have they aligned their national laws with the treaty’s goals?
  The Treaty was agreed in Marrakesh 2013, and is a landmark in terms of its focus on the interests of users, namely pe
  
  Read more

• Report: Alabama Senate Approves Bill Allowing Firings Of Library Board Members

  11-02-2026 20:48
  Media Roundup
  Alabama Library Board Members Can Be Removed Without Cause Under Senate-Approved Bill (via AL.com)The Alabama State Senate on Tuesday passed a bill allowing local officials to remove library board members without cause.
  The bill was approved with 26 ayes, four nays and one abstention after discussion from Democrats who opposed the bill.
  Sen. Chris Elliott’s bill allows library board members to be removed without cause with a two-thirds majority of the appointing body, usually
  
  Read more

• Preprint Roundup: Campus AI vs. Commercial AI; The Impact of LLMs on Online News Consumption and Production; Semantic Search at LinkedIn; & More

  11-02-2026 14:57
  Here are several new or revised preprints posted on arXiv that might be of interest.An Analysis of the Effects Of Open Science Indicators on Citations in the French Open Science Monitor
  Authorship Drift: How Self-Efficacy and Trust Evolve During LLM-Assisted Writing
  Campus AI vs. Commercial AI: Comparing How Students and Employees Perceive their University’s LLM Chatbot vs. ChatGPT
  Modelling and Classifying the Components of a Literature Review
  Paper Copilot: Tracking the Evolution of Peer
  
  Read more

• Scholarly Publishing: Silverchair Launches Discovery Bridge MCP (Model Context Protocol)

  10-02-2026 17:40
  From a Silverchair Announcement:Silverchair, the leading independent technology partner for scholarly publishers, announced the launch of the Discovery Bridge, leveraging Model Context Protocol (MCP) to connect end-users to scholarly content directly through AI assistants while maintaining institutional access controls and opening new licensing opportunities.
  [Clip]
  The Discovery Bridge integrates with existing AI assistants including ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude, allowing researchers to sear
  
  Read more

• Report: “Could Artificial Intelligence Save Endangered Archives? A Kenyon College Cohort Aims to Find Out”

  09-02-2026 17:00
  From The Ohio Newsroom:“[Archives] are crumbling and disappearing and we are losing our history,” said Katharine Elkins, humanities professor at Kenyon College.
  Deteriorating archives are endangering historical documents across the country. A group of students and faculty at Kenyon College, in rural north central Ohio, believes artificial intelligence could be the key to rescuing them.
  Kenyon is one of 23 research teams being funded by the Schmidt Sciences’ Humanities and
  
  Read more

• Internet Archive Adds Searchable Access to Archived Pages From the CIA World Factbook

  08-02-2026 16:01
  Mark Graham at the Internet Archive tells us that searchable access to more than 18,000 archived pages from the CIA World Factbook found in The Wayback Machine’s collection are now available online via this interface.Thanks Mark! Thanks Internet Archive!
  See Also: More Searchable Collections via The Wayback Machine
  The post Internet Archive Adds Searchable Access to Archived Pages From the CIA World Factbook appeared first on Library Journal infoDOCKET.
  
  Read more

• Journal Article: “What Undergraduate Students Need to Know and Actually Know About Generative AI”

  07-02-2026 17:14
  The article linked below (full text) was published today by Computers and Education: Artificial Intelligence.
  Title
  What Undergraduate Students Need to Know and Actually Know About Generative AI
  Authors
  Sina RismanchianUniversity of California, Irvine
  Eesha Tur Razia BabarUniversity of California, Irvine
  Shayan Doroudi|University of California, Irvine
  Source
  Computers and Education: Artificial IntelligenceDOI: 10.1016/j.caeai.2026.100554
  Abstract
  In November 2022, the release of ChatGPT sparked
  
  Read more

• Marco Rubio No Longer Serving as Acting Archivist of the United States

  06-02-2026 14:07
  From Politico:
  Marco Rubio is no longer serving as the acting archivist of the United States, relieving the Trump administration official of one of several roles, a spokesperson for the National Archives and Records Administration confirmed to POLITICO.
  Rubio — who serves as interim national security adviser in addition to his duties as secretary of State — delegated his authority to James Byron, who will continue to serve as senior adviser to the archivist, according to NARA General
  
  Read more

• Digital Collections: Newly Digitized Papers Shed Light on WWII Internment

  05-02-2026 18:18
  From the Stanford Report
  Stanford University Libraries have digitized the Kazuyuki Takahashi papers, an “extraordinary collection” of letters and photographs that expand the historical record of wartime incarceration in the United States.
  Kazuyuki Takahashi (3rd row, second from left) poses with the Stanford Japanese Student Association, 1941. Like Kaz and Soyo Takahashi, Stanford history Professor Yamato Ichihashi (1st row, second from right) and his wife, Kei, were also incarcerate
  
  Read more

• AP: “CIA Ends Publication of Its Popular World Factbook Reference Tool”

  05-02-2026 13:06
  From the Associated Press:Capture From Feb. 1, 2026; via The Wayback Machine
  Close the cover on the CIA World Factbook: The spy agency announced Wednesday that after more than 60 years, it is shuttering the popular reference manual.
  The announcement posted to the CIA’s website offered no reason for the decision to end the Factbook, but it follows a vow from Director John Ratcliffe to end programs that don’t advance the agency’s core missions.
  First launched
  
  Read more

• AP: “CIA Ends Publication of it’s Popular World Factbook Reference Tool”

  05-02-2026 13:06
  From the Associated Press:
   Close the cover on the CIA World Factbook: The spy agency announced Wednesday that after more than 60 years, it is shuttering the popular reference manual.
  The announcement posted to the CIA’s website offered no reason for the decision to end the Factbook, but it follows a vow from Director John Ratcliffe to end programs that don’t advance the agency’s core missions.
  First launched in 1962 as a printed, classified reference m
  
  Read more

• Research Paper: Synthesizing Scientific Literature with Retrieval-Augmented Language Models

  04-02-2026 19:23
  The paper linked below was published today by Nature. It discusses the work by Ai2 and the University of Washington on OpenScholar (now part of Asta), a specialized retrieval-augmented language model (and easily accessible research tool available online) we’ve been posting about here since it launched in late 2024.
  Title
  Synthesizing Scientific Literature With Retrieval-Augmented Language Models
  Authors
  Akari Asai, Jacqueline He, Rulin Shao, Weijia Shi, Amanpreet Singh,
  
  Read more

• Journal Article: Synthesizing Scientific Literature with Retrieval-Augmented Language Models

  04-02-2026 19:23
  The paper linked below was published today by Nature. It discusses the work by Ai2 and the University of Washington on OpenScholar (now part of Asta) that we’ve been posting about  around here since it launched in late 2024.
  Title
  Synthesizing Scientific Literature With Retrieval-Augmented Language Models
  Authors
  Akari Asai, Jacqueline He, Rulin Shao, Weijia Shi, Amanpreet Singh, Joseph Chee Chang, Kyle Lo, Luca Soldaini, Sergey Feldman,&nb
  
  Read more

Follow @NewslockLibrary on Twitter!