Staff in Print: Karen E. Coyle. Coyle’s Information Highway Handbook

CDL staff member Karen Coyle’s book provides background information on the social impact of our travels along the information highway, from the Information Society to the Information Economy; on the policy questions surrounding intellectual property, censorship, and privacy; and on the question of universal access.  Based on a series of her essays, Karen’s book exposes the major tensions and issues that are arising as we move from analog to digital in our communications and business transactions.

Included for each topic area are excerpts from key documents that have shaped the debate: the 1993 “Agenda for Action,” which defined the National Information Infrastructure; the Department of Commerce “White Paper” on copyright; the Benton Foundation’s position on universal service; and the Voter’s Telecommunications Watch on the Communications Decency Act.

Written for the American Library Association, the book also addresses the role of libraries in relation to the “new information order.” Coyle’s Information Highway Handbook was listed in Library Journal’s list of  “The Year’s Best Professional Reading” in the June 15, 1998 issue.  It was one of six books listed in the “Information Technology” category.