You don't look like a librarian : shattering stereotypes and creating positive new images in the Internet age

Librarian stereotypes have persisted for generations, yet their practical impact has rarely been studied. How pervasive are such stereotypes in the digital era, how are they changing, and how do they affect our daily work, our careers, and the future success of the profession? What can we do to defeat tired old perceptions and create positive new images?

• Acknowledgements p. vii
• About the Webpage p. ix
• Foreword, by Elizabeth Burns p. xi
• Introduction p. xv
• Chapter 1 Stereotypes? What Stereotypes? p. 1
• Popular Perceptions p. 9
• We're More Than Our Stereotype p. 12
• Chapter 2 Pop Culture and Librarians p. 19
• Books p. 21
• Comics p. 32
• Movies p. 50
• Music p. 56
• Television p. 60
• Advertising p. 67
• Toys and Tees p. 71
• Other Stuff p. 75
• Chapter 3 Breaking the Stereotype p. 79
• Today's Librarians p. 80
• Librarians and Groups That Break the Stereotype p. 106
• Chapter 4 Thoughts on the Future p. 117
• Changing Roles p. 118
• Changing Skill Sets p. 121
• Virtual Worlds p. 123
• Community Spaces p. 127
• Now What? p. 132
• Appendix A You Don't Look Like a Librarian: Librarians' Views of Public Perception in the Internaet Age p. 135
• Appendix B Where's the Librarian? Patrons' Views of Public Perception in the Internet Age p. 157
• References and Other Resources p. 169
• Websites p. 179
• About the Author p. 189
• Index p. 191