A communication system approach to the problem of public library legitimacy

Abstract

Public library systems intersect with both public and private spheres of social life, but how they negotiate public legitimacy and private influence remains a mystery. To better understand this problem, this study adopts a communication system approach. Using qualitative content analysis, this study examines data from three US public library systems. This study analyzes how private actors communicate with and through public library systems by parsing the signals into components: transmitter, receiver, medium, and message. The resulting signals form two dimensions: the Public Sphere dimension, where private actors govern, legitimate, and use the library, and the Private Sphere dimension, where private actors exchange personal services and exert economic power. A view of public and private signals in interaction reveals how public legitimacy is threatened and how public library systems can mitigate these threats. This study reveals how public/private conflicts in public libraries arise and how they might be resolved.