I agree with much of it, but I was rather hoping some very coordinated and
lovely librarian would do it (in a "the joke's on you; I'm good at this"
kind of way). The point about the preponderance of female librarians is well
taken, although my (librarian) brother mentioned last night that he's gotten
the note several times, with requests that he apply, anyway! :)
I have to admit that I toyed with the idea briefly, and while there were
several reasons I wouldn't do it, one of the most compelling was the
prospect of explaining this to my managing attorney...
Kate
Kate Dixon, Law Librarian
New York State Defenders Association
kdixon@nysda.org
-----Original Message-----
From: Amy Hale [mailto:ahale@sdcll.org]
Sent: Friday, January 12, 2001 11:46 AM
To: 'law-lib@ucdavis.edu'
Cc: Storck, Mariann
Subject: Re: Inside Edition Offer
I believe Ms. Storck has an excellent point. While I realize that being a
Las Vegas showgirl is probably a lot of hard work physically, I am not sure
that it is much of a mental challenge. Maybe it is- I don't know as I have
never been a Las Vegas showgirl.
But this "switch" seems more than a little irritating. It is exactly this
kind of proposal which perpetuates the stereotype that a librarian is a
mousy, ugly, shy person and the idea of her becoming a Las Vegas showgirl
would be incredibly humorous and bizarre and therefore would make great
"infotainment." It is certainly not news in any sense of the word. Another
stereotype that is perpetuated with this kind of proposal is the one that
says all librarians
are female. Both these stereotypes are harmful and degrading to the
profession.
I suppose the show is just looking for some shock factor, considering that
the show itself is not a paragon of journalisitic integrity. If it were a
show like "60 Minutes" who wanted to do a "day-in-the life" segment, then I
think I'd be a bit more supportive as they would highlight a particular job
and show what a rigorous job it is. In our case, it's a rigorous mental job.
In the case of a showgirl, it's probably a rigorous physical job to keep in
shape.
But something like Inside Edition is akin, in my mind at least, to the "Who
Wants to Marry a Millionaire" show done by FOX. I know that some librarian
somewhere will probably sign up for this silly travesty because they get an
all expenses paid trip to Las Vegas and get to be on television. But I
sincerely hope said librarian doesn't then pretend that she was doing this
"for the greater good of the profession." We all saw what happened to Dana
Conger and I
say she got exactly what she asked for.
Just my two cents on a rainy Friday.
Amy
"Storck, Mariann" wrote:
> Good Morning,
> I have been thinking about yesterday's message re Inside Edition's search
for a librarian to switch places with a Las Vegas Showgirl to dispel the
stereotypical image of librarians. I am surprised that this group, which is
so contentious when it comes to librarian qualifications and who is or isn't
a "librarian", hasn't asked AALL to write a letter of protest to Debra
Norville asking her why she thinks a Las Vegas Showgirl can do the job of a
librarian.
>
> Just something that crossed my mind . . .
> Have a great weekend!
> Mariann Storck
> Legal Information Specialist
> Department of Justice
> U.S. Attorney's Office
> 1225 Seventeenth Street, Suite 700
> Denver, CO 80202
> 303-454-0225
> FAX: 303-454-0403
> mariann.storck@usdoj.gov
-- __________________________________ Amy Hale Janeke (619)531-4437 Reference Librarian (619)238-7716 (fax) San Diego County Public Law Library ahale@sdcll.org http://www.sdcll.org
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