Lary, 'Electronic Journals: Challenges for the Information Profession', LIBRES v4n04 (December 31, 1994)
URL = http://hegel.lib.ncsu.edu/stacks/serials/libres/libres-v4n04-lary-electronic

LIBRES: Library and Information Science Research Electronic Journal
ISSN 1058-6768             December 31, 1994 Volume 4 Issue 4
Quarterly                                   LIBRE4N4 LARY
_____________________________________________________________

Electronic Journals: Challenges for the Information Profession

by

Marilyn Lary
Dalton College

     Electronic journals....are they really the wave of the
present and the promise of the future?  Two or three years ago
electronic journals were unique, interesting phenomena which were
being created for very special interests.  Today, there seems to
be a plethora of them, spread over the spectrum of human
knowledge, general and very specific, examining issues important
to large and small groups of online surfers.  What are the
implications of this fast-growing, mostly professionally-oriented
vehicle?

     For academic librarians who seek tenure, electronic journals
are a two-edged sword.  One may use such journals for
professional contributions; may identify, network and develop
fine professional relationships; may expand one's professional
expertise; may discover appropriate information in previously
unexplored areas.

     But, if publication in "referred" journals is an expectation
of tenure-seeking librarians, what position do most electronic
journals hold?  How many of them are refereed and, if not, is
publication in them less valuable than in The Library
Quarterly?

 Should one publish two to three articles in an
electronic journal per year or concentrate on one article in
Library Journal, or Library Trends, or in one of the Haworth Press
serials?

     Is the content of electronic journals so undirected that the
report of a statistically-based experimental study is
inappropriate for inclusion?  Or is the content so specific that
information of interest to all would be lost to many who do not
peruse that specific area: i.e. map librarians, archival
managers, public service staff.   Of course, electronic journals
are both these things, more and less, as are traditional
publications.  But, their increasing availability, their relative
accessibility and their ease of use contribute to their
increasing popularity.  And their contribution to the profession,
as well as to professional development and mobility, needs to be
addressed.

     Much criticism has been levelled at the profession's
traditional publications. It is often said:  editorial boards
accept articles primarily from directors of large (usually
university) libraries and most often publish materials from
library-information graduate faculty;  the literature has been
dominated by the "movers and shakers" of ALA; editors help their
friends to join the ranks of those publishing.  Without a contact
in high places, newcomers to the literature have no chance to be
published.  The really well-respected publications accept nothing
but statistical, research-based articles; nuts and bolts
information has no value and no place in professional literature.
The criticism and complaints go on.

Electronic journals, it seems to me, offer an immediate
opportunity for the information profession to recognize the
legitimacy of providing for many different professional needs
through publications, electronic or otherwise. Isn't it time we
identified those various needs, defined the various levels of
information that is needed (theoretical, nuts and bolts,
informational, even inspirational), and codified the value of
these levels to our profession's growth and to our own
professional development?  There is an opportunity here to
identify the type of emerging literature which the profession
needs.  Let the complaints cease and the work begin.


       Library and Information Science Electronic Journals

Acqnet [Acquisitions Librarians Electronic Network]

ALA News

ALA Washington Online Newsletter

ALCTS Network News [Assn. for Library Collections & Technical
Services]

Citations for Serial Literature

Coalition for Networked Information

College & Research Libraries Newsletter

Conservation OnLine

Current Cites

Federal Information News Syndicate

Hott Off the Tree

Information Retrieval List Digest

Info Sys [Electronic Newsletter for Information Systems]

Issues in Science & Technology Librarianship

Learned Information NewsWire

LIBRES [Library & Info. Sci. Research Electronic Conference]

ITA Newsletter [Library and Information Technology Association]

Library & Info. Science Research Electronic Journal

Library of Congress Cataloging Newsline

Journal of Academic Media Librarianship

Network News

Newsletter on Serials Pricing Issues

PACS News [Public Access Computer Systems]

PACS Reviews [Public Access Computer Systems]

Electronic journals from university libraries:

Texas Woman's Univ: Data Entries

Univ.of Calif:       Broadside
 @ Santa Cruz

Univ. of Calif:      DLA Bulletin

Univ. of Va:         LIBRA