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Today in books and publishing: Fighting censorship of a book about lesbian moms; Israel fights against book discounts; where are the stay-at-home dads in kids' books; you will covet this book-tent.

Censorship of a picture book. Debate continues over In Our Mothers' House, a book by Patricia Polacco about a lesbian couple that was put behind checkout counters in elementary libraries in Utah's Davis School District. (The book now require a parent's permission slip to be checked out.)The Kids' Right to Read Project, which is a combined effort of the National Coalition Against Censorship and the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, wrote to Superintendent Bryan Bowles, as did the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah earlier this week, to say that restricting access to the book"diminishes the education value of the library whose primary role is to allow students to make choices according to their own interests, experiences, and family values" and is likely unconstitutional.

"Federal courts have consistently concluded that the First Amendment protects student access to books in their school libraries, free from limits based on the administrations disagreement with the viewpoints expressed in the books," said John Mejia, legal director of the ACLU of Utah.

"From what we know of the districts removal of the book, we have serious concerns that the district may have fallen short of these protections."

A committee of seven teachers, administrators, and parents voted (6-1) to keep the book off shelves on April 30 because, they said, it didn't align with curriculum standards, "because state law dictates that curriculum cannot advocate homosexuality."A librarian cast the lone no vote. Bowles has reportedly been in conversations with the ACLU. On the up side, remember what happens with censored books? They tend toonly get more popular. [Salt Lake Tribune]

Elsewhere: Why so few stay-at-home dads in kids' books? [The Globe and Mail]

Israeli authors are fighting against book discounts offered by the county's two main bookstore chains, Steimatzky and Tzomet Sfarim,"claiming the price slashing [as low as $6 a book as opposed to catalogue prices ranging $15 or $20] has cut into their royalties." They've gotten Netanyahu and government ministers to support them, and "the parliament is expected to approve a bill enshrining the limits." In France, Germany, and Mexico, similar laws have been passed. [Fox News]

Y.A. appeal for urban youth.Hoping to get more kids to read, Saddleback Educational Publishing is banking on the Urban Flip Book seriesby Stephanie Perry Moore, who co-wrote the boy's books in the series with her husband, former NFL player Derrick Moore. The series is about high school cheerleaders and football players (it's inspired byFriday Night Lights)and is written at a third-grade reading level. "'Many of our struggling learners are African American, Latino, ethnically diverse, so it's important to connect with all of them and show them there are books about them, about the families they're a part of, the friends they have, the environments they're used to,' said [Saddleback's Arianne] McHugh, whose company publishes 100 books each year for middle- and high-school students that marry tween and teen content with a first- to fourth-grade reading level, as well as supplemental educational material written at lower reading levels than the curriculum."[Los Angeles Times]

Google Play books are now available in Germany.That means Google's online bookstore is expandingit's also in Australia, Canada, Italy, the UK, and the U.S. Surely, there will be more. [Engadget]

Art with books: Here is some beautiful book carving byGuy Laramee. And here is the $769 book tentyou didn't even know you needed. You are welcome.

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The Censorship of a Book About Two Moms; Israel Battles Book Discounts

SELECTIVE CENSORSHIP- Study finds criticism is accepted well but any suggestion of collective action is a no-no

WHEN Barack Obama visited China in 2009, the American leader made it a point to publicly declare himself "a big supporter of non-censorship" and said that criticism made him a better president.

"I think that the more freely information flows, the stronger the society becomes, because then citizens of countries around the world can hold their own governments accountable," he said. "They can begin to think for themselves."

Implicit in his remarks was the assumption that Chinese censors try to stamp out criticisms of the government and Communist Party.

Well, a new study by Harvard University casts doubt on that supposition. The study, which investigated "the most extensive effort to selectively censor human expression ever implemented", declares that the purpose of the Chinese censorship programme "is not to suppress criticism of the state or the party".

Censorship of social media in China, it turns out, is by no means a blunt instrument. Instead, it is finely tuned, with censors across the country allowing critical viewpoints of the government and of government officials.

"Posts with negative, even vitriolic, criticism of the state, its leaders and its policies are not more likely to be censored," the study, led by Professor Gary King of Harvard's department of government, concluded.

"Negative posts do not accidentally slip through a leaky or imperfect system. The evidence indicates that the censors have no intention of stopping them."

Even more surprisingly, the study concludes that the Chinese government is pretty evenhanded when it censors the Internet, deleting "views that are both supportive and critical of the state".

The primary goal of censorship, it turns out, is to restrict "the spread of information that may lead to collective action", even action that is not directed against the government or, indeed, is not overtly political.

Read the rest here:
Beijing works the Internet to its advantage

A looming land grab for internet governance by the United Nations' International Telecommunications Union (ITU) could spell a drastic change for governments and internet service providers alike.

However, misguided or not, the union's motivations are far from a desire to annex the internet, observers say.

Representatives from 193 nations will convene in Dubai this December to redefine the scope of the ITU's International Telecommunications Regulations (ITR) treaty, a set of principles governing global telecommunications interconnects and cost structures last re-negotiated in 1988.

The treaty currently covers operational, regulatory, economic and legal concerns in telecommunications, including things as banal as the 'accounting principals' behind interconnection fees.

But the ITU intends to update the treaty to account for the biggest single change since its negotiation: the global spread of the internet.

The regulations, primarily aimed at traditional voice networks, were developed well before the advent of Skype, and before VoIP as a technology began eating into the core voice revenue stream telcos traditionally relied upon.

According to iiNet's chief technology officer. John Lindsay, new delivery models have given the "old world" of government-owned telcos an impetus to fight back.

"The ITU would love to make the messy unregulated world of VoIP and online content go away," Lindsay told iTnews.

Though seen by countries and some ISPs as an attempt by the ITU to 'fix' the problem, Lindsay said it is also the one the union initially created.

"The ITU can be thanked for sky-high global roaming charges, high international voice terminating access prices, and codifying the Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing plan," he said.

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Censorship vs economics in battle for internet control

Schools Coalition, ACLU of Utah express concerns to superintendent.

Controversy in the Davis School District over limiting student access to a book about a lesbian couple raising a family continued Thursday, when a national anti-censorship group asked school officials to reconsider a recent decision to place the picture book In Our Mothers House behind counters in elementary libraries.

The Kids Right to Read Project, a joint effort of the New York-based National Coalition Against Censorship and the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, wrote to Superintendent Bryan Bowles.

"Parents who object to the book could easily supervise their childrens reading choices," the groups said, but restricting the access of others "diminishes the education value of the library whose primary role is to allow students to make choices according to their own interests, experiences, and family values."

The American Civil Liberties Union of Utah on Tuesday sent a similar letter to Bowles, stating that the decision to limit access to the book by author Patricia Polacco is likely unconstitutional.

"Federal courts have consistently concluded that the First Amendment protects student access to books in their school libraries, free from limits based on the administrations disagreement with the viewpoints expressed in the books," said John Mejia, legal director of the ACLU of Utah.

"From what we know of the districts removal of the book, we have serious concerns that the district may have fallen short of these protections."

The districts decision to keep the book behind the counter followed an April 30 meeting during which a seven-member committee determined it isnt aligned with district curriculum standards. The committee of teachers, administrators and parents voted 6-1 to keep the book off shelves, with Bountiful High librarian Trudena Fager casting the dissenting vote.

District spokesman Chris Williams said the decision was made because state law dictates that curriculum cannot advocate homosexuality.

Concerns about the book surfaced in January, after the mother of a kindergarten student at Windridge Elementary in Kaysville became upset when her child checked out the book and brought it home. The mother and her husband took their concerns to elementary school officials, according to Williams.

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Anti-censorship group joins conversation about book limitation in Davis County

Schools Coalition, ACLU of Utah express concerns to superintendent.

Controversy in the Davis School District over limiting student access to a book about a lesbian couple raising a family continued Thursday, when a national anti-censorship group asked school officials to reconsider a recent decision to place the picture book In Our Mothers House behind counters in elementary libraries.

The Kids Right to Read Project, a joint effort of the New York-based National Coalition Against Censorship and the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, wrote to Superintendent Bryan Bowles.

"Parents who object to the book could easily supervise their childrens reading choices," the groups said, but restricting the access of others "diminishes the education value of the library whose primary role is to allow students to make choices according to their own interests, experiences, and family values."

The American Civil Liberties Union of Utah on Tuesday sent a similar letter to Bowles, stating that the decision to limit access to the book by author Patricia Polacco is likely unconstitutional.

"Federal courts have consistently concluded that the First Amendment protects student access to books in their school libraries, free from limits based on the administrations disagreement with the viewpoints expressed in the books," said John Mejia, legal director of the ACLU of Utah.

"From what we know of the districts removal of the book, we have serious concerns that the district may have fallen short of these protections."

The districts decision to keep the book behind the counter followed an April 30 meeting during which a seven-member committee determined it isnt aligned with district curriculum standards. The committee of teachers, administrators and parents voted 6-1 to keep the book off shelves, with Bountiful High librarian Trudena Fager casting the dissenting vote.

District spokesman Chris Williams said the decision was made because state law dictates that curriculum cannot advocate homosexuality.

Concerns about the book surfaced in January, after the mother of a kindergarten student at Windridge Elementary in Kaysville became upset when her child checked out the book and brought it home. The mother and her husband took their concerns to elementary school officials, according to Williams.

Continued here:
Anti-censorship group joins debate about book restricted in Davis County