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Weekly News Digest
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January 14, 2025 — In addition to this week's NewsBreaks article and the monthly NewsLink Spotlight, Information Today, Inc. (ITI) offers Weekly News Digests that feature recent product news and company announcements. Watch for additional coverage to appear in the next print issue of Information Today.
CLICK HERE to view more Weekly News Digest items.
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hoopla Digital Rolls Out Creativebug BingePass for Crafters
hoopla Digital added a new BingePass in partnership with Creativebug, which “provides users unlimited access to thousands of arts and crafts classes taught by experts, making crafting accessible at any time and any place.” The press release notes, “Through the Creativebug BingePass, library patrons can access high-definition video classes taught by top designers and artists to learn how to paint, draw, sew, knit, throw a DIY party and more. Courses are as brief as five minutes or as long as several hours, and are available as both pre-recorded lessons and virtual events.” Patrons get free, unlimited access to Creativebug for a week with this BingePass. hoopla Digital now offers more than 30 BingePasses to public libraries.For more information, read the press release.
ALA Issues Statement on Providing Help to LA Libraries Affected by the Fires
On. Jan. 13, the ALA executive board issued a statement about the Los Angeles fires, which reads in part:The ALA has reached out to offer support to the California Library Association. We urge everyone to join us in supporting those impacted by these devastating wildfires. Here are a few ways you can help: - Donate money to local relief efforts and to the ALA Disaster Relief Fund for damaged or destroyed libraries. We will work with the ALA Chapter to distribute funds.
- Volunteer your time to local libraries and organizations mobilizing to assist those in need.
- Advocate for policies and funding that ensure libraries can continue their critical work during and after disasters.
Together, we can reinforce our communities’ resilience. Libraries are pillars of support in times of need. Let us work united in our commitment to ensure that our libraries, schools, universities, and museums remain strong and accessible for all. For more information, read the press release.
LA Libraries Responding to the Fires
Skye Patrick, county librarian and CEO of LA County Library, posted a message of solidarity, sharing what visitors to any library branch can access (Wi-Fi, phone chargers, restrooms, FEMA forms, etc.) and offering links of resources to visit. “Our website provides an updated directory of our library locations that are open and ready to welcome customers. Our Digital Library is available 24/7, offering access to eBooks, audiobooks, and other virtual resources,” Patrick adds.University of Southern California (USC) Libraries shares, “Librarian Clarissa Moreno has created a Los Angeles Wildfires Assistance & Resources research guide to serve members of the USC community affected by the ongoing Los Angeles-area fires. The guide—a work in progress—centralizes information about available resources, including Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) assistance, shelter locations, pro bono mental health services, and much more.” LibLime details the LA area cultural institutions that have been damaged and discusses the implications for preservation. “For two days starting Sunday, Jan. 12, the Federal Emergency Management Agency [FEMA] opened centers in eight L.A. County libraries to help victims of the fires apply for government aid, housing help and other resources,” Los Angeles Daily News reports. “Employees from FEMA and the U.S. Small Business Administration filled out applications for people, answered questions and offered resources to those who lost their houses in the Palisades and Eaton fires.” Los Angeles Times offers a guide (subscription may be required) to residents dealing with the dust and ash from the fires. All Los Angeles Public Library branches “will be offering free masks while supplies last. Check online for branch address and hours; it’s encouraged you call ahead to check on supply inventory.”
Taylor & Francis Integrates Its eBooks Platform With GetFTR
Ebooks from Taylor & Francis are now available via GetFTR. “Whilst many publishers working with GetFTR already include eBook content in their entitlement checks, Taylor & Francis is the first to implement GetFTR entitlement checking specifically for books hosted on a separate platform,” the press release notes. “Taylor & Francis eBooks and journals are hosted on independent dedicated sites but registered under the same Crossref account, so this new development has required additional DOI-based logic to distinguish between content types. Now when researchers discover Taylor & Francis content through GetFTR, entitlement requests for journal articles are routed to the journals site, Taylor & Francis Online, while requests for eBooks are directed to the Taylor & Francis eBooks platform. This is the first time GetFTR has developed such a solution, paving the way for similar integrations in the future.”For more information, read the press release.
California State University Adopts AI Student Engagement Platform From Clarivate
Three California State University (CSU) campuses have agreed to become early adopters of Clarivate’s AI-powered student engagement solution, Alethea. “In this phase of the multi-campus partnership, Alethea will be implemented at Cal Poly Pomona, Cal State LA and Cal State San Bernardino,” Clarivate shares. “Alethea flips the script on the use of AI, guiding students to the core of their course readings, helping them distill takeaways and prepare for effective class discussion, all while promoting academic integrity through responsible use of AI. Additionally, Alethea features the AI-powered Instructor Assistant which enables educators to easily generate effective questions that bring reading assignments to life. Alethea seamlessly integrates into existing learning management system workflows.”For more information, read the press release.
SirsiDynix Provides Details on Its Acquisition by Harris Computer
SirsiDynix shared that Harris Computer acquired it on Dec. 24, “ringing in an exciting new era of long-term growth and possibility.” The sale “allows SirsiDynix to continue operating as a stand-alone business while gaining a robust array of new financial and technological resources.” SirsiDynix executives Eric Keith and Bill Davison are hosting a 45-minute online conversation on Jan. 15 at 11:30 a.m. EST. Those interested are encouraged to register.For more information, read the news item.
Cengage Group Purchases Science Technology Company Visible Body
Cengage Group acquired Visible Body, “a leader in interactive, 3D models and software for the sciences.” The press release shares, “This acquisition enhances Cengage Group’s science offerings across its portfolio, providing new mediums and interactive experiences for learners to engage and deepen their understanding of science concepts.” Visible Body’s resources, including its 3D models, will be integrated into Cengage Group’s Anatomy & Physiology textbook in the spring, with integration into science courses for higher ed and K–12 later in 2025. “Cengage Group is also evaluating further opportunities to add Visible Body’s models across the company’s portfolio.”For more information, read the press release.
Cabells Integrates Its Predatory Journal Data Into Third Iron's LibKey Ecosystem
Cabells announced the following:Cabells has been at the forefront of efforts to combat predatory publishing, providing researchers and librarians with trusted tools to identify and avoid journals that undermine scholarly integrity. … In an exciting step forward, Cabells has teamed up with Third Iron to integrate our predatory journal data into the LibKey ecosystem, further empowering mutual subscribers to navigate the publishing landscape with confidence … [and] offering users clear and actionable insights into the credibility of the sources they encounter. … This collaboration represents a leap forward in combating predatory publishing. By embedding Cabells’ data directly into LibKey’s user-friendly interface, researchers can easily make informed decisions about their sources, strengthening research efforts and supporting the mission to uphold the credibility of scholarly communication. For more information and to sign up for the Jan. 23 webinar demonstrating the integration, read the blog post.
Perspectives on the (Likely) End of the Net Neutrality Debate
“A federal appeals court struck down the Federal Communications Commission’s net neutrality rules, ending a 20-year push to regulate internet service providers like a public utility,” NPR reports. “A U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Cincinnati on [Jan. 2] ruled that the FCC did not have legal authority to reinstate the landmark net neutrality rules. … Democrats [are] on the side of so-called net neutrality in an effort to hold ISPs more accountable for providing fast, safe and reliable internet for all. … [T]he FCC aimed to make ISPs accountable for outages, require more robust network security, protect fast speeds, and require greater protections for consumer data.”“In their decision, the judges noted that different administrations have gone back and forth on the issue,” the BBC notes. “But they said the court no longer had to give ‘deference’ to the FCC’s reading of the law, pointing to a recent Supreme Court decision that limits the authority of federal agencies to interpret laws, a decision that critics expect will be used to weaken regulation in the years ahead.” Yahoo! Finance looks at how the appeals court ruling ties into the recent Loper Bright Enterprises v. U.S. Secretary of Commerce decision, stating, “The net neutrality case offers the latest example of how the Supreme Court’s landmark 2024 Loper Bright ruling could upend actions taken by all sorts of agencies across Washington, D.C.” The Register says: At the heart of this matter is that the FCC, under the Biden and Obama administrations, believed it was able to interpret existing US telecommunications law to issue its net neutrality rule, which the courts would have to respect. Opponents argued the regulator did not have that authority, that it was an overreach of power, and that the Loper Bright ruling means the FCC’s reading of the law can be overridden by judges. Investopedia offers a good explainer on the history of net neutrality and potential winners and losers when there’s no regulation of ISPs. Forbes provides four “major economic and legal policy implications [from the decision] that may well interest the Trump Administration.” Scientific American interviewed David Choffnes, director of the Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute at Northeastern University: “‘We can always keep collecting data, keep observing what’s happening, go to our representatives, tell them that this matters and find a solution,’ he says. For a start, Choffnes and some of his colleagues have created an app named Wehe, which anyone can download to test for net neutrality breaches. It has been used to perform more than 2.5 million tests since 2017.” SFGATE.com reports on Jan. 13 that “with the decision, California notched a victory in its fight with the GOP. The regulatory rollback won’t touch the Golden State, because it has the ‘gold standard’ for state net neutrality laws. … Trump’s first administration sued to block the California law but couldn’t knock it off the books before President Joe Biden took office. A coalition of industry groups tried next, but was stymied in 2022 by an appeals court.” SFGATE.com continues, “Industry groups’ and conservatives’ excitement over the ruling is an early signal of what’s to come in Trump’s second presidency, according to Chris Witteman, formerly senior counsel for the California Public Utilities Commission. … ‘It’s a celebration for them, because it’s massive deregulation,’ Witteman said. ‘... If you want to put this in the larger context, we’re moving to an era where the administrative state will not function anymore. And this is what they want.’”
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Brandi Scardilli
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