by Sydni Meyer, Esther Jackson, Kathryn Pope and Emily Schmidt
In honor of National Libraries Week in the United States, we consider one of our lesser known librarians-turned-FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, who honed his understanding of information and its varied uses while working at the Library of Congress (article and book). “Hoover spoke about how important his library training was in his professional career. He wrote in 1951, that his library job had ‘trained me in the value of collating material. It gave me an excellent foundation for my work in the FBI where it has been necessary to collate information and evidence.’” (article; FBI website archive)
Laura Bush, married to former President George W. Bush, was also a librarian, working in school libraries after obtaining her Masters of Library Science. While she was the First Lady of the United States, the USA PATRIOT Act (Patriot Act) was signed into law after September 11, 2001. Section 215 of the Patriot Act allowed for library records to be seized by the Federal Government. Because librarians couldn’t state whether or not their records had been seized, many displayed signs that stated “The FBI has not been here,” which could be removed if a visit was paid.
Perhaps in honor of how far we’ve come, or maybe because today’s library workers either experienced the immediate aftermath of the Patriot Act or were professionally trained in a post-Patriot Act world, librarians consider digital privacy to be a foundational way in which users can mindfully manage how and where their information flows.
In our academic work, scholars consciously create information for others to engage with. However, information flows in less intentional ways as well. For example, data brokers (including some library vendors), may collect information from users’ devices and monetize or weaponize that information. User information bleed might occur through browser tracking, websites tracking users as they navigate the web, or SMS message interception.
The American Library Association (ALA) states that:
The right to privacy – the right to read, consider, and develop ideas and beliefs free from observation or unwanted surveillance by the government or others – is the bedrock foundation for intellectual freedom. Privacy is essential to free inquiry in the library because it enables library users to select, access, and consider information and ideas without fear of embarrassment, judgment, punishment, or ostracism. A lack of privacy in what one reads and views in the library can have a significant chilling effect upon library users’ willingness to exercise their First Amendment right to read, thereby impairing free access to ideas. True liberty of choice in the library requires both a varied selection of materials and the assurance that one’s choices are not monitored.
Librarians can’t control all of the information that flows to and from users’ devices. Part of our work is therefore to help educate users on what they can do to protect themselves from information bleed. A vital organization that we’d like to highlight this National Library Week is the Library Freedom Project (LFP), which centers many of its educational materials on topics related to digital privacy, online security, and a democratic and open internet ecosystem.
While the project of protecting your digital privacy is never done, we hope you’ll take some time at the end of this week to check out some free resources provided by LFP:
As we close out the 2025 National Library Week, watch this space for information about Privacy Office Hours held by your friendly library staff, and consider the ALA’s request to contact your members of Congress by phone or email and ask them to protect federal library funding.