Discussion: "Book Banning and the Culture Wars" | September 14

Thursday, September 14
4:30 p.m., Neilson Browsing Room

In a time where an assortment of media is readily available to anyone with an internet connection, what drives the desire for censorship and book banning? Author, professor, and Smith College alumna Emily Knox ’98 will explore this question and more at her discussion “Book Banning and the Culture Wars,” on Thursday, September 14, 2023 at 4:30 p.m. in the Neilson Browsing Room.

Knox, whose most recent book titles include Foundations of Intellectual Freedom, Book Banning in 21st Century America, and Foundations of Information Ethics, will address how the removal, relocation, and restriction of books has become a popular practice among certain populations. Join the discussion of how censorship such as book banning is intimately tied to how one understands the practice of reading, as well as its effects on character development and behavior.

Emily is an associate professor in the School of Information Sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her research interests include information access and intellectual freedom and censorship. She is a member of the Mapping Information Access research team. Her most recent book, Foundations of Intellectual Freedom (ALA Neal-Schuman) won the 2023 Eli M. Oboler Prize for best published work in the area of intellectual freedom. Her previous book, Book Banning in 21st Century America (Rowman & Littlefield) is the first monograph in the Beta Phi Mu Scholars’ Series.

Emily serves on the board of the National Coalition Against Censorship and the Friends of the Smith College Libraries Executive Committee. She is also editor of the Journal of Intellectual Freedom and Privacy. She has been featured by National Public Radio, The Washington Post, Time, and Slate for her expertise in intellectual freedom, censorship, and book bannings. More information about Emily.

This event is sponsored by: Friends of the Smith College Libraries, the Smith College Office of Alumnae Relations and Development, and the Smith College Department of Government.

Contact

Mary Irwin, mirwin@smith.edu
Friends of the Smith College Libraries