[Libs-Or] Multnomah County Library's Intellectual Freedom Newsletter – November 2025

[Jennifer Keyser]

 Dear Oregon Library Community,

The November edition of the Intellectual Freedom Newsletter from Multnomah
County Library is now available (PDF version attached). We have added a new
section to the newsletter: Book recommendation from the Intellectual
Freedom Committee. You will find the usual mix of articles on IF topics,
plus the AI Spotlight. If you crave more news, there is always the ALA IF
Blog <https://www.oif.ala.org/> that rounds up a variety of articles.

Thanks for all you do to support intellectual freedom!

Rights, Responsibilities & Reactions
Multnomah County Library's Intellectual Freedom Newsletter
November 2025

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IFC Book Recommendation:

Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It
<https://multcolib.bibliocommons.com/v2/search?query=enshittification&searchType=smart>

by Cory Doctorow

When we think about threats to intellectual freedom, what often comes to
mind are efforts to censor certain information or points of view. Doctorow
highlights a more subtle (yet pervasive) form of censorship: tech companies
manipulate our access to ideas, information, and people; not in order to
primarily promote any particular point of view, but to increase profits.

The author argues that big tech companies operate as monopolies whose
customers have no good alternatives to their services. Rather than focusing
on aiding people in making the connections they ensure that we spend more
time looking at the ads and products that generate income for them.

Doctorow's arguments are clear and often humorous. And he discusses
possible solutions for this particular threat to intellectual freedom.

Check out the book talk hosted by the Internet Archive
<https://archive.org/details/cory-doctorow-2025> with Cory Doctorow (60
min). See also, this recent blog post from Asimov’s Addendum on the limitations
of AI in improving the internet searches
<https://asimovaddendum.substack.com/p/are-llms-the-best-that-they-will>
(16 min).

------------------------------

Intellectual Freedom News

Author Sarah Weinman offers praise for librarians
<https://lithub.com/in-praise-of-librarians-in-dangerous-times/> as they
navigate a shifting and challenging landscape (Literary Hub, 8 min). The
New York Times highlights how rural libraries struggle
<https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/us/politics/rural-libraries.html> with
current political and economic changes (9 min). A new study calls out the
deeper impacts of book bans
<https://www.uri.edu/news/2025/11/access-denied-how-banning-books-reduces-reading-volume-and-achievement/>
(5 min). access

The New York Times showcases how bookshops serve as a refuge for ideas
<https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/05/world/europe/russia-bookstores-refuge-censorship.html>
in Russia as government censorship continues to impact publishers and
sellers (New York Times, 8 min). Related, a look at how censorship occurs
at the publication level
<https://www.spiked-online.com/2025/10/16/the-book-burners-have-taken-over-the-publishing-house/>
with sensitivity to readers and editors (12 min). censorship

The movie ratings board seeks to be more transparent
<https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/18/movies/movie-ratings-sex-violence-drugs.html>
with how they assign a specific rating to films (New York Times, 7 min). In
Texas, the book-rating law has been blocked and deemed unconstitutional
<https://www.texasaft.org/government/sboe/judge-strikes-down-texas-book-rating-law-but-censorship-battles-in-schools-persist/>
(Texas AFT, 5 min). censorship

In New York, a new extreme ban for access to materials for people who are
incarcerated
<https://www.rochesterfirst.com/news/local-news/we-just-think-its-cruel-ny-detention-facility-first-to-ban-book-deliveries-to-detainees/>
has been implemented (WROC, 8 min).  access, censorship

In Idaho, the book censorship law
<https://www.courthousenews.com/idaho-book-censorship-law-bothers-ninth-circuit/>
is being reviewed as unconstitutional (Courthouse News Service, 5 min).
While in Massachusetts laws are being introduced to counteract book
removals from school libraries (Boston Globe, 5 min) censorship, legislation

Surveillance cameras have become more prevalent in the public sphere
<https://futurism.com/future-society/flock-cameras-police-surveillance>,
but the data may not be accurate or lead to false accusations (Futurism, 4
min). The New Republic provides a deeper dive into one company enabling
surveillance
<https://newrepublic.com/article/202565/flock-safety-police-surveillance-dystopia>
in cities across the U.S. (9 min). During a presentation at Portland State
University, journalist Micah Lee provides a deeper dive into technofascism
<https://micahflee.com/practical-defenses-against-technofascism/> (33 min).
privacy

Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office tackles smishing texts
<https://www.mcso.us/news-information/mcso-warns-community-about-smishing-text-message-scams>
claiming to be from the local sheriffs or police and that there is an
arrest warrant (2 min). For more, see the Federal Communications
Commission's page on smishing
<https://www.fcc.gov/avoid-temptation-smishing-scams> (2 min). information
literacy

Roblox is in the news due to the rollout of new age verification tech
<https://www.cnet.com/tech/gaming/roblox-rolls-out-age-verification-requirement-for-chat-amid-child-safety-criticism/>
to support child safety (6 min). Wired looks at how phone numbers on
WhatsApp served as a key to one of the largest data leaks
<https://www.wired.com/story/a-simple-whatsapp-security-flaw-exposed-billions-phone-numbers/>
(11 min). access, privacy

AI Spotlight

404 Media looks at how AI is supercharging the war
<https://www.404media.co/ai-is-supercharging-the-war-on-libraries-education-and-human-knowledge/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter>
on libraries and human knowledge (12 min). disinformation

A copyright scholar provides a deep dive into the ripple effects of recent
AI lawsuits
<https://matthewsag.com/copyright-winter-is-coming-to-wikipedia/>: (7 min).
Another copyright lawsuit involving AI has been settled
<https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-industry-news/universal-music-group-announces-settlement-with-udio-1236414023/>resulting
in a collaboration between Universal Music Group and an AI music generation
platform (Hollywood Reporter, 5 min). copyright

A policy update from OpenAI highlights the faulty output of its
product and places
responsibility on users
<https://buttondown.com/maiht3k/archive/openai-tries-to-shift-responsibility-to-users/>
to figure out if the response is reliable (Mystery AI Hyper Theater 3000, 4
min). Related, The New York Times examines issues around who is responsible
for use of AI in a recent defamation case
<https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/business/media/ai-defamation-libel-slander.html>
(9 min). information literacy, disinformation, ethics

Here are some insights on AI in terms of use and work: The Washington Post
analyzed how people use chatbots
<https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/11/12/how-people-use-chatgpt-data/>
(10 min). Tim O’Reilly argues for AI as a tool, not a worker
<https://asimovaddendum.substack.com/p/jet-planes-for-the-mind> (Asimov’s
Addendum, 19 min). Wired highlights the pitfalls of relying on AI
<https://www.wired.com/story/ai-agents-are-terrible-freelance-workers/> to
do freelance work (6 min). The Guardian provides an insider look at AI
with alarms
raised by AI workers
<https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/nov/22/ai-workers-tell-family-stay-away>
(11 min) and a profile of human trainers
<https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/sep/11/google-gemini-ai-training-humans>
(14 min).

An expansive look at the application of AI through the lens of safety and
risk, see the latest update to the International AI Safety Report
<https://internationalaisafetyreport.org/> from the AI Security Institute.
Electronic Frontier Foundation offers a discussion of AI
<https://archive.org/details/this-title-was-written-by-a-human> that
grapples with changes brought on by the use of AI ranging from ethics,
privacy and more (65 min). ethics, privacy

These articles offer critical takes and delve into bias, disinformation and
other limits of AI: The Conversation looks at AI poisoning
<https://theconversation.com/what-is-ai-poisoning-a-computer-scientist-explains-267728>
(4 min). MIT Technology Review examines the AI hype as a conspiracy theory
<https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/10/30/1127057/agi-conspiracy-theory-artifcial-general-intelligence/>
(x min). Related, Tech Policy identifies 4 types of political deepfakes
<https://www.techpolicy.press/scrutinizing-the-many-faces-of-political-deepfakes/>
(x min). Scholar Renée DiResta unpacks how bias and disinformation can
unfold with AI-powered tools
<https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/11/right-wing-attack-wikipedia-bias-musk-cruz/684886/>
(Atlantic, 12 min). Read the calls from scholars and researchers to reject
“uncritical adoption" of AI in academia
<https://www.bloodinthemachine.com/p/cognitive-scientists-and-ai-researchers>
(Blood in the Machine, 8 min). Go further with this look from The Verge on
how AI lacks the depth and dynamic of understanding language
<https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/827820/large-language-models-ai-intelligence-neuroscience-problems>(12
min). information literacy, disinformation

Although geared toward tech developers, read the key takeaways
<https://alltechishuman.org/all-tech-is-human-blog/ai-literacy-for-social-impact-with-vilas-dhar>
from this recent talk by All Tech Is Human that reframes AI literacy in
societal terms instead of as a tech skill (6 min). information literacy

Go deeper with these recent books on AI:

   -

   Empire of AI <https://multcolib.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S152C2610418>
   by Karen Hao
   -

   Rewiring Democracy
   <https://multcolib.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S152C2768510> by Bruce
   Scheiner and Nathan Sanders
   -

   If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies
   <https://multcolib.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S152C2660901> by Eliezer
   Yudkowsky and Nate Soares


------------------------------

Additional Resources

ALA Intellectual Freedom Blog: https://www.oif.ala.org A blog dedicated to
intellectual freedom issues, and includes the Intellectual Freedom News
<https://www.oif.ala.org/category/intellectual-freedom-news/> –a weekly
roundup of IF related articles

Oregon Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Toolkit
<https://libguides.osl.state.or.us/iftoolkit/home> (published February 8,
2022). A range of tools and resources relating to IF challenges and
policies created by the OLA Intellectual Freedom Committee.

Rights, Responsibilities & Reactions is a monthly roundup of Intellectual
Freedom News compiled by the Multnomah County Library Intellectual Freedom
Committee. We welcome suggestions at lib.ifc at multco.us.

*Jennifer Keyser *(she/her)
*Policy Coordinator Librarian*
Monday - Friday
971-429-4699
Multnomah County Library
multcolib.org

[image: Copy of MultCoLib_2LineLogo_252px_RGB.jpg]

  [image: All are welcome here. Multnomah County.]
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