Judith Krug Totally Explained

Everything about Judith Krug totally explained

Judith Fingeret Krug is a United States librarian. She has been the Director of the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom

since 1967. She has held the post of Executive Director of the Freedom to Read Foundation

since 1969. She received her B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh, where she studied political theory. In 1964, she earned her M.A. at the Graduate Library School of the University of Chicago. She has held positions in various Chicago libraries-including Reference Librarian at the John Crerar Library and Head Cataloger at the Northwestern University Dental School Library. Before assuming her present duties in the Office for Intellectual Freedom

, Mrs. Krug was the research analyst for the American Library Association. In addition, she also sat on the 2006 panel of judges for the PEN/Newman's Own Award, which recognizes the First Amendment as it applies to the written word.

Participation in other organizations

In addition to her professional responsibilities, Mrs. Krug is Vice-President of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, chair of the Board of Directors of the Center for Democracy and Technology, chair of The Media Coalition

, vice-chair of the Internet Education Foundation

, and a member of the Advisory Board of GetNetWise

. She previously served on the Board of Directors of the Fund for Free Expression, the Board of Directors of the Illinois Division of the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Bar Association’s Commission on Public Understanding About the Law, and the Advisory Council of the Illinois State Justice Commission.

Awards and honors

Awards and honors received by Mrs. Krug include the Irita Van Doren Award, presented in 1976 by the American Booksellers Association for her many contributions to the cause of the book as an instrument of culture in American life; the 1976 Harry Kalven Freedom of Expression Award, presented by the American Civil Liberties Union to the Office for Intellectual Freedom

of the American Library Association; the 1978 Robert B. Downs Award

for her outstanding contribution to the cause of intellectual freedom in libraries; the 1983 Carl Sandburg "Freedom to Read" Award, presented by the Friends of the Chicago Public Library; the 1984 Open Book Award, presented by the Minnesota Civil Liberties Union

; the 1985 President’s Award of the Minnesota Civil Liberties Union

; the 1990 Intellectual Freedom Award of the Illinois Library Association

; the 1994 Ohio Educational Library Media Association

/SIRS Award for Intellectual Freedom; the 1995 Freedom to Read Foundation

Roll of Honor Award; and the 1998 Joseph W. Lippincott Award

for distinguished service to the library profession.
In May 2005, Mrs. Krug received an honorary doctorate, Doctor of Humane Letters, from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Writing and speaking

Mrs. Krug is a noted speaker and author in the area of intellectual freedom; her articles on this subject have appeared in national library and education journals.

Public policy positions

She has strongly opposed the notion that libraries ought to censor the material that they provide to patrons. She has said: "We know that there are children out there whose parents don't take the kind of interest in their upbringing and in their existence that we'd wish, but I don't think censorship is ever the solution to any problem, be it societal or be it the kind of information or ideas that you've access to."
She has particularly opposed the use of filters and other technical measures to restrict Internet sites that can be accessed from library computers. "Blocking material leads to censorship. That goes for pornography and bestiality, too. If you don't like it, don't look at it ... Every time I hear someone say, I want to protect the children, I want to pull my hair out."
She has supported laws and policies protecting the confidentiality of library use records. When a Florida librarian reported to the police, shortly after the 11 September 2001 attacks, that one of the attackers had been using the Delray Beach public library (although Florida law guarantees confidentiality to library patrons), Mrs. Krug was one of the few people to criticize the action, saying "I would have felt better if she'd followed the Florida law."

Critical responses

Groups that favor restricting access to pornography and other content they deem inappropriate have strongly criticised Mrs. Krug's stands on these issues. For example, in The Internet and the Seduction of the American Public Library Helen Chaffee Biehle strongly criticises Krug and the ALA for their positions that librarians shouldn't act as the representatives of parents and society by restricting access to content, particularly for children. (External Link

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