Rethinking Libraries in the Digital Age

Archived video from June 8, 2015

John Palfrey

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation along with Friends of the Miami-Dade Public Library, and the Miami-Dade Public Library System cordially invite you to “Rethinking Libraries in the Digital Age” with John Palfrey, Knight Foundation board chair and author of “BiblioTech: Why Libraries Matter More Than Ever in the Age of Google.”

Even in the age of Google and e-readers, libraries today matter more than ever to communities, says author and national thought leader John Palfrey. In fact, communities need libraries to ensure that information is free and accessible to all – not just stored in the privately owned cloud – and to provide staff that help navigate ever-growing online information sources. They can also serve as a public space that connects people, opportunities and new ideas. Yet to thrive amid strained budgets, libraries need to act quickly to innovate and adapt in the digital era. As public, school and academic libraries ponder their futures, Palfrey will talk about his new book “BiblioTech,” and ways to chart a bright future for these institutions so essential to U.S. democracy.

This event is a part of Miami’s continuing community conversation on the future of libraries, which began in fall 2013 with the Mayor’s Blue Ribbon Taskforce on Miami-Dade Public Library System and continued in September 2014 when Knight Foundation brought library experts to Miami from across the country to share their experiences in library innovations in the 21st century.