In a now-deleted opinion piece at Forbes, economics professor Panos Mourdoukoutas wrote that public libraries are outdated and wasteful, and that they should be replaced by Amazon bookstores.
One of Mourdoukoutas’ main arguments was that libraries are a waste of taxpayer money. In the article, Mourdoukoutas wrote, “At the core, Amazon has provided something better than a local library without the tax fees. This is why Amazon should replace local libraries. The move would save taxpayers money and enhance the stockholder value of Amazon all in one fell swoop.”
He says this in the face of facts. According to the Harris County Public Library in Texas, countless studies have shown that libraries more than pay for themselves. In Texas, for every tax dollar spent on public libraries, $4.64 is returned back to the economy. As a professor of economics, you would think that Mourdoukoutas would be able to wrap his brain around this.
These inflammatory statements enraged librarians everywhere, who quickly took to social media using the hashtag #LibrariansofTwitter to voice their opposition:
1/ My mother was a Librarian, and you are a simpleton.
In addition to what @vernaausten and others here have perfectly stated, many books, periodicals, recordings, microfilms, etc are still not digitized.
Amazon doesn't offer local knowledge & Genealogical assistance…
— AnneTheWriter (@AnneTheWriter1) July 23, 2018
2/ Amazon also doesn't sponsor local special-interest seminars & clubs, or activities & workshops for teens & adults.
Amazon doesn't offer English-language classes & ESL groups to help immigrants better their lives.
— AnneTheWriter (@AnneTheWriter1) July 23, 2018
3/ And most importantly to every child & parent…
Amazon does not offer a hands-on experience– a treasure-trove of tactile learning, and a buffet of books, puzzles, videos, & experiences– for little kids to explore with their own hands & eyes.
— AnneTheWriter (@AnneTheWriter1) July 23, 2018
4/ Studies have shown that kids who are given lots of experiences with paper books, learn to read & develop a deeper love of reading, far more than children who are given primarily a cell phone or iPad to read on. (Ebooks tend to be ignored in favor of games.)
We NEED Libraries!
— AnneTheWriter (@AnneTheWriter1) July 23, 2018
Many are poking fun here, but this is the same attitude that's led to the decimation of school libraries in poor communities. People decided, "Oh, we have Google and shiny screens now so we don't need libraries/librarians." But guess who still has school libraries? Rich kids.
— sue doherty (@suead) July 23, 2018
Do Amazon employees have the same type of training as librarians, library assistants, library associates, or library clerks? Not necessarily. Even the best trained Amazon worker can fall short of the skills and offerings of a library’s staff.
— JGronli (@JGronli) July 22, 2018
Will they loan out books to local nursing homes?
Offer faxing services?
Will there be Reference Librarians on staff?
Will they offer local teens a chance to earn their Community Service Hours for school?— AverageJoeMama (@AverageJoeMama) July 22, 2018
After being annihilated by the surprisingly savage Librarian Twitter, Forbes caved and deleted the article. A Forbes spokesperson said the following:
“Forbes advocates spirited dialogue on a range of topics, including those that often take a contrarian view. Libraries play an important role in our society. This article was outside of this contributor’s specific area of expertise, and has since been removed.”
Perhaps this whole thing started because Mourdoukoutas was shushed in the library as a kid and never really got over it.
