After the violence in Newtown — and really, any violent mass shooting these days — it didn’t take long before pundits were blaming violent video games for the violence. As happened with comic books in the 1950s, video games have…
Category: Features
How You Can Report a Library Challenge to ALA
Like CBLDF, the American Library Association’s Office of Intellectual Freedom is a resource that librarians can call upon for help when facing a book challenge. The OIF maintains a confidential database of information about library challenges, which helps them identify…
Pennypacker & The Pussycat: Political Cartoon Censorship in 1903 Pennsylvania
A recent snippet in Comic Book Resources’ column “Comic Book Legends Revealed” brought to our attention a 1903 tale of attempted cartoon censorship and political intrigue in Pennsylvania. We’ve found some more background info in an article by Steven Piott…
President Recommends Yet More Research on Video Games, Violence
Yesterday, President Obama issued his list of recommendations for Congress and executive actions he plans to take in order to address gun violence in the United States. As anticipated, video games received only a minor mention in the 13-page document,…
Jennifer L. Holm Talks CBLDF
CBLDF was delighted last week to announce that celebrated children’s author Jennifer L. Holm was joining our Board of Directors, and Holm took a moment out of her busy schedule to talk to Graphic Novel Reporter‘s John Hogan about CBLDF…
Frequently Challenged Alexie Novel Stays on District Reading List
Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is no stranger to library and school challenges, and it survived another one this week in the author’s home state of Washington. The West Valley School District Instructional Materials Committee…
Veep’s Violent Media Debate Leading Nowhere
This week, President Obama is expected to issue a list of recommendations for Congress and executive actions that he may take in an attempt to prevent mass shootings similar to the one that happened in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14.…
Utah School District Returns Book to Library Shelves
Thanks to a Utah mother and the ACLU of Utah, In Our Mothers’ House, a children’s book featuring a racially diverse family led by lesbian parents, is back in the Davis, Utah, elementary school library without restriction. Earlier this year,…
Move by Tucson School Board May Mean Overturn of Book Ban
Last week, the Tucson school board voted to rescind an objection to “culturally relevant coursework” as part of a plan to desegregate district schools. The move means that the district’s acclaimed Mexican American Studies program may be reinstated, and with…
Rockefeller Bill Dead, But Not For Long
When the 112th session of Congress ended on January 2, another thing ended with it: Jay Rockefeller’s (D – WV) bill mandating that the National Academy of Sciences investigate the effect of violent video games on children. However, like any…