The cover slide below links to my presentation on how San José can utilize the technology of library material “vending machines,” which I have coined the library lending machine, or the LLMa (pronounced “llama”)!
Note: This is a completely hypothetical plan, as I do not currently work for the SJPL and therefore do not have a clear picture of the actual process/entities involved in getting such projects approved. However, the data and research presented in this slide deck are real.
Going through the Pew research and AI readings in the Hyperlinked Environments module, I kept thinking back to one line from danah boyd’s “What World Are We Building?” from the previous module:
“[T]oday’s technology is valued — culturally and financially — based on how much it’s used by the most privileged members of our society.”
This is the case with AI, as it has been used by employers to screen applicants, by large tech companies to serve as the new reference desk, and, perhaps most egregiously, by the government to identify and arrest suspects. This is problematic because AI hiring tools can perpetuate racism (Bommasani et al., 2026), Google’s AI overview provides inaccurate content and sources that don’t corroborate the information (Mickle et al., 2026), and people of racial minorities have been incorrectly identified and wrongly arrested because of facial recognition technology (Liang, 2026).
AI also affects women and men differently. In a 2025 report, the UN estimated that women are 2–3 times as likely to be in the jobs at greatest risk of being replaced by AI, especially in high-income countries (Gmyrek et al., 2025, p. 43–44). Research has also shown that women are less likely to use AI, not necessarily due to lack of access, however, but due to other factors such as perceived usefulness, institutional support, social legitimacy, and trust/privacy/risk concerns (Cranney et al., 2025).
Some argue that the fix is to ensure equal access to AI. After all, awareness of AI in everyday activities correlates to levels of education, income, and internet use, per Pew research (Kennedy et al., 2023). Cranney et al.’s conclusion was most concerned with increasing women’s usage of AI so they don’t fall behind in their careers and so that they can participate more in AI development. When asked about AI during the Fall 2025 “Ask Me Anything,” then-director of the SJSU iSchool Anthony Chow also said, “It’s our job to really debunk any fears about AI,” though the fears he emphasized were more about not knowing how to use new tools (Winslow, 2025, 00:24:25–00:27:08).
The issue is much more complex, especially when public attitudes toward AI in the U.S. have become increasingly negative throughout the years despite increased usage: data privacy is a major concern; majorities of Americans have low confidence in both government regulation and corporate responsibility (Tyson & Kikuchi, 2023; Kennedy et al., 2025; Gottfried et al., 2026). Though these are just sentiments, we’ve already seen concrete ways AI has perpetuated systemic oppression, in the first paragraph. These issues will not go away once everyone uses AI. These issues are not for librarians to “debunk.”
Honestly, I don’t know what role libraries can play beyond fostering community and literacy. But I do know that literacy goes beyond simply knowing how to use a tool. In the meantime, I hope that we can help the public think more critically amidst all the misinformation and slop that AI has helped proliferate (PBS, 2025) and find ways to decentralize our technological needs.
Bommasani, R., Bana, S. H., Creel, K. A., Jurafsky, D., Liang, P. (2026, May 26). AI hiring tools can yield racial bias and systemic rejection. Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI. https://hai.stanford.edu/news/ai-hiring-tools-can-yield-racial-bias-and-systemic-rejection
boyd, d. (2016, January 25). What world are we building? Data & Society: Points. https://medium.com/datasociety-points/what-world-are-we-building-9978495dd9ad
Cranney, K., Delecourt, S., & Konin, R. (2026, May). Global evidence on gender gaps and generative AI over time [working paper]. Harvard Business School. https://www.hbs.edu/ris/Publication%20Files/25-023_be8fb517-3dd5-40aa-97f9-4e42e1c8e6ff.pdf
Gmyrek, P., Berg, J., Kamiński, K., Konopczyński, F., Ładna, A., Nafradi, B., Rosłaniec, K., Troszyński, M. (2025, May). Generative AI and jobs: A refined global index of occupational exposure [working paper]. International Labour Organization. https://www.ilo.org/sites/default/files/2025-05/WP140_web.pdf
Gottfried, J., Bishop, W., Anderson, M., Faverio, M., Park, E., & McClain, C. (2026, June 17). Americans and AI 2026: Chatbots, smart devices and views on impact. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2026/06/17/americans-and-ai-2026-chatbots-smart-devices-and-views-on-impact
Kennedy, B., Tyson, A., & Saks, E. (2023, February 15). Public awareness of artificial intelligence in everyday activities. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2023/02/15/public-awareness-of-artificial-intelligence-in-everyday-activities
Kennedy, B., Yam, E., Kikuchi, E., Pula, I., & Fuentes, J. (2025, September 17). How Americans view AI and its impact on people and society. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2025/09/17/how-americans-view-ai-and-its-impact-on-people-and-society
Liang, G. (2026, May 30). In the image of injustice: A critical examination of AI, surveillance, and systemic racism in the United States. Race and Justice. https://doi.org/10.1177/21533687261455743
Mickle, T., Metz, C., Freedman, D., Terol, T. M., & Collins, K. (2026, April 7). How accurate are Google’s A.I. Overviews? New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/07/technology/google-ai-overviews-accuracy.html
PBS. (2025, October 23). What is ‘AI slop’ and how does it affect users? https://www.pbs.org/newshour/classroom/daily-news-lessons/2025/10/critics-warn-of-ai-misinformation
Tyson, A., & Kikuchi, E. (2023, August 28). Growing public concern about the role of artificial intelligence in daily life. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/08/28/growing-public-concern-about-the-role-of-artificial-intelligence-in-daily-life
Winslow, B. (2025, September 3). FA25 Director’s Ask Me Anything [YouTube video]. https://youtu.be/b9w1yBe7PsU
In “The Healing Power of Books: Using Reading to Address Social and Emotional Needs,” Jessica Klinker describes how books serve as both mirrors and lenses, showing readers both themselves and others. I agree with this wholeheartedly, as this idea has been a major through-line in various stages of my life. Because I grew up moving around, I learned to recognize differences between cultures at a young age, and because books were my constant, I was able to further practice the skills of stepping into other people’s shoes. This is what led me to major in Narrative Studies in college and then teach reading and writing to middle- and high-school students. It is also how I ended up in bookselling and then chose to pursue an MLIS. Especially in this time of increasing isolation and the loss of third-spaces, it is more important than ever that we build and practice empathy, and I believe that stories are a great way to achieve this.
However, I would venture to say that it’s not just books that are healing—though Klinker brings up audiobooks, e-books, large print, and languages, we can also engage with stories through other media, including but not limited to movies, theatre, TV shows, and even video games. 
(I hesitate to use the word “consume” here because the purpose of engaging with stories should not be simply to intake a certain amount, but to meaningfully interact with them instead.) I feel like this shift can be seen in how we no longer listen to the radio because we now have other technology, but we get our news through other formats and we still listen to podcasts through our smartphones. Though fewer people are reading physical books, more formats of storytelling have cropped up, and the fact that libraries now have whole DVD collections, video game collections, and even partnerships with streaming platforms such as Kanopy reflects this. Access and choice are important, as Klinker points out, and it is for this reason that we must remember to think beyond just the printed word.
Back in 2016, Facebook was by far the most popular social media platform in the United States (Greenwood, Perrin, & Duggan, 2016), and it was a critical tool in the information landscape of the time, as the older course readings demonstrate through their frequent mentions of it (Stephens; 2016, p. 10; 2019, p. 23). In the decade since, however, social media and the information landscape have drastically changed. Though Facebook is still used by many, TikTok was one of the most-used platforms among U.S. teens in 2025, with 61% of teens using it daily (Faverio & Sidoti, 2025), and an increasing number of adults are using it as well (McClain & Eddy, 2026). As a result of TikTok’s popularity, other platforms such as Instagram and YouTube have also joined in on hosting vertical short-form videos, and the four most-used and fastest-growing social media platforms now are YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok (Gottfried & Park, 2025). Since so much of our attention is now dedicated to short-form videos, marketing strategies have shifted from simply posting static text posts or graphics to promote their offerings, to generating lip-syncing videos or even skits in hopes of landing on people’s for-you pages. It therefore makes sense for libraries to join in on creating video content, to reach the teens that they have struggled to reach (Casey & Savastinuk, 2007, p. 62) , as well as anyone else the content resonates with. This has led to the #LibraryTok hashtag, which could be a great tool in both reaching the “long tail” (p. 64) and changing the public’s perceptions of libraries (i.e., it’s not just books!).
Sure, the top posts on #LibraryTok do include #BookTok creators visiting libraries, and some posts from libraries are more book-centric, but many videos show audiences what libraries are like and what they offer. Trends function a bit like templates, allowing libraries to make their own versions of videos about seeing James Patterson books in every section, or the frustrations of patrons dog-earing books, or forgetting how to spell, or needing to sing the alphabet when shelving. Participating in #LibraryTok is a great way to give your library personality, especially since it shows the faces of and helps build personal connections with the real people working there (Stephens, 2016, p. 27). People can now interact with librarians even when they are not at the library. Milwaukee Public Library, in fact, was so successful with their TikTok account that viewers from outside the U.S. have traveled specifically to the library (Arata, 2026).
One, however, can subsequently argue that such content might not reach the people in the library’s own communities, especially since social media feeds are now more algorithmic and discovery-based, showing fewer posts from local accounts we actually follow, so why invest the time and effort into making videos the local community might not even see? After all, it requires extensive planning, consistent posting, and ethical considerations, and, as one LibGuide puts it, it “may be the hardest platform to target individual groups of users” (PALNI, 2026). Making regular video content might not be feasible for every library, but I do find #LibraryTok to be beneficial to all libraries. I had seen Milwaukee Public Library’s posts before I started my MLIS, and I have non-librarian friends who have shared non-local #LibraryTok posts with me because it showed up on their feeds. Because #LibraryTok videos can have such a far reach, I am hopeful that it can help change the general public’s perception of libraries from simply being quiet bookstacks to being fun places where you can talk to librarians about more than just books.
References
Arata, H. (2026, January 8). Behind the scenes with Milwaukee Public Library’s TikTok. Programming Librarian. https://programminglibrarian.org/articles/behind-scenes-milwaukee-public-librarys-tiktok
Casey, M. E. & Savastinuk, L. C. (2007). Library 2.0: A guide to participatory library science. Information Today.
Faverio, M. & Sidoti, O. (2025, December 9). Teens, social media and AI chatbots 2025. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2025/12/09/teens-social-media-and-ai-chatbots-2025
Gottfried, J. & Park, E. (2025). Americans’ social media use 2025. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2025/11/20/americans-social-media-use-2025
Greenwood, S., Perrin, A., & Duggan, M. (2016, November 11). Social media update 2016. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2016/11/11/social-media-update-2016
McClain, C. & Eddy, K. (2026). 8 facts about Americans and TikTok. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/03/02/8-facts-about-americans-and-tiktok
PALNI. (2026). Social media: Best practices: TikTok. https://libguides.palni.edu/social_media/overview
Stephens, M. (2016). The heart of librarianship: Attentive, positive, and hopeful change. ALA Editions.
Stephens, M. (2019). Wholehearted librarianship: Finding hope, inspiration, and balance. ALA Editions.
Hello all! My name is Anita, and I go by they/she pronouns. I am based in the San Jose area, and my professional background is in education, graphic/UX design, and bookselling. I am currently a volunteer for the Organization for Transformative Works. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, playing video games, hoarding craft materials, and writing fanfiction.
Though my chosen career pathways have more to do with information and data, I am a firm believer that libraries are centers of not just knowledge but connection. As someone who grew up in multiple countries and speaking different languages, I have particular interest in how we empathize with those beyond our immediate social and cultural groups.
I am also interested in how technology has shaped our relationship with information—my CYOA-style discussion posts in prior courses such as Reference/Information Services, Information Literacy, and Information Architecture tended to focus on how Google, other major tech companies, and LLMs have influenced our information behaviors. I look forward to exploring this topic further in this course!
Currently reading: Babel, by R. F. Kuang
Currently playing: Pokopia
A selfie taken while showing my partner around Taipei last Thanksgiving:
