Earlier this month Jim Welch who writes Jim’s 2.0 Blog wrote a post called: How many banned books have you read?
Starting with rumors that Republican VP Candidate Sarah Palin asked her local librarian about book censorship, he moves to some fascinating lists. First is the American Library Association’s list of most challenged books. According to the site:
A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt …read more

Within the family of bloggers that is the b5media business channel, the latest cross-group activity is what we’re calling The Odd Couple posting challenge. Two bloggers get to post their reaction to a statement. I’m partnered with Rachel at Behind the Buzz and our challenge is:
Should the government monitor content on the internet as closely as it does content for television and radio?
Ugh! No! Get all governments out of all content! Since it’s probably to late to get governments out of television and radio, let’s at least keep them out of the content of the internet.
What this …read more

As long as we’re talking about Banned Books Week it seems appropriate to publish the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution’s Bill of Rights:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

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Thanks to Bryan Catherman, Iraq vet who blogs at The Hopeless Writer, I’m reminded that it’s Banned Books Week (9/29 -10/6). His post lists the top 100 books that were either banned or challenged in the 20th Century.
This list, put together each year by the American Library Association, serves to remind all of us that some people don’t believe in freedom of speech. According to their site, the most challenged book in 2006 was “And Tango Makes Three,” an award winning children’s book by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell.
A challenge is defined as: a formal, written complaint, filed with a …read more