The impact of grassroots community campaigns on public

library closures in the UK

By John MowbrayCo Author: Professor Hazel Hall

Acknowledgements to research supervisor:David McMenemy

Twitter: @jmowb_napier

Structure of the paper

• Research context• Research question and aims• Literature review• Research methods• Findings & discussion• Conclusion• References

• Any questions?

Research context

• Between 1st April 2014 and

19th January 2015 241

libraries were:

1. Closed

2. Earmarked for closure

3. Handed over to community groups

• Grassroots community campaigns

have been fighting decisions

of local authorities Anti-cuts protester in Gloucester © Photo by: Quisnovos (2010) Web: https://goo.gl/R8rPHaLicense: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/legalcode

Research question and aims

What impact have grassroots community campaigns had on

public library closures in the UK?

• To explore the nature of grassroots community campaigns, and the activities they have engaged in

• To explore the scope and nature of local newspaper coverage which relates to the closure of public libraries, and how grassroots campaigns are represented in the coverage

Literature review

Grassroots activism

– Non-violent protest is favoured in public opinion

– Can lead to more extreme forms of protest

– Lobbying campaigns also effective

– Have a significant impact on legislators

– Social media is a cheap and effective means of recruiting support

Bergen, 2009; Neumayer & Raffl, 2008; Zunes, 1999

Media influence

– “Reinforcement theory”, “agenda setting”, and “framing” by news outlets highlighted in media theory

– National news reports on recent library closures focus on celebrities and “nostalgia” themes

– Regional press circulation dwindling, yet still cited as considerable influence on public

Fletcher (2011); Jernigan & Wright (1996); McCombs (2004); Scheufele, (2006)

Methods

Strand 1: Cross-sectional design

• Survey questionnaire

• Snowball sampling

• Distributed electronically via “Library Campaign” online directory

• 57 campaign groups contacted

• Aimed at library campaigners across UK

• Quantitative with qualitative element embedded (open-text responses)

Strand 2: Comparative case studies

• Local newspaper reports in Newcastle upon Tyne and Lincolnshire

• Quantitative content analysis– Frequency, words, and prominence of articles counted

• Qualitative content analysis– Coding manual applied for line-by-line analysis of sub-sample

• Accessed online - LexisNexis

• 6 month time period analysed from proposed closures

Findings: survey questionnaire

Questionnaire response

• 68 respondents

• 24 local authority areas represented

• Lincolnshire most represented area (n=16)

Profile of library campaigners

• 60% of respondents female

• 44% 60 years and over

• 34% previous experience of grassroots activism

• 53% founding members of local campaign group

• 38% use libraries weekly

Reasons for involvement

‘I live in an area where there are very few public facilities (…) the small outreach library was an important community hub’

‘I couldn’t have obtained my MBA without the local library’

‘I was worried that if I didn’t do it, nobody would and I could not let that happen’

‘I cannot bear bullies (…) their plans smacked of bullying and not listening’

Barriers to library campaign groups

‘Lots of people were keen to get involved at a very superficial level, but ultimately the running of the campaign fell to too few individuals, who

suffered “burn out”’

‘Too many people believing that “austerity” is a “necessary evil”, not challenging the narrative…’

‘Pig ignorant councillors’

Findings: Comparative case studies

Local newspapers inNewcastle upon Tyne &

Lincolnshire

Scope of regional newspaper coverageMonthly no. of articles: Newcastle upon Tyne

Newspaper Nov-12 Dec-12

Jan-13

Feb-13 Mar-13

Apr-13 TOTAL

Evening chronicle 23 6 11 11 2 - 53

Sunday Sun 2 1 2 3 - - 8

The Journal 10 2 7 10 3 - 32

TOTAL 35 9 20 24 5 - 93

Scope of regional newspaper coverageMonthly no. of articles: Lincolnshire

Newspaper Jun-13 Jul-13 Aug-13 Sep-13 Oct-13 Nov-13 TOTAL

Boston Standard - 1 1 1 1 - 4

Bourne Local 2 8 2 2 2 3 19

Gainsborough Std - 1 2 - - 1 4

Grantham Journal 1 1 - 3 1 - 6

Horncastle News - 4 1 3 4 17

Lincolnshire Echo 6 13 19 10 4 6 58

Louth Leader - 1 3 2 1 - 7

Market Rasen Mail 1 4 2 2 1 3 13

Skegness Std - 2 2 1 1 1 7

Sleaford Standard 1 1 2 - 1 2 7

Spalding Guardian - 3 2 3 - 1 9

TOTAL 11 39 36 29 15 21 151

Other key findings

• Total combined word count over 6 month period– Newcastle upon Tyne: 49,454– Lincolnshire: 52,903

• Total combined word count per individual actors FOR closures– Evening Chronicle: 740– Lincolnshire Echo: 835

• Total combined word count per individual actor AGAINST closures– Evening Chronicle: 3,617– Lincolnshire Echo: 2,957

Other key findings (2)

• Library campaign activities featured:– Evening Chronicle: 77% of articles– Lincolnshire Echo: 62% of articles

• Library advocacy:– Evening Chronicle:73% of articles– Lincolnshire Echo: 69% of articles

• Library professional advocacy– Evening Chronicle: 7% of articles– Lincolnshire Echo: 23% of articles

Conclusion

• Grassroots campaigns supported by loyal, seasoned and adept library campaigners

• Local newspapers overwhelmingly support plight of public libraries and showcase actions of campaign groups

• Local authority decision makers equally determined to follow through with closure proposals

ReferencesAnstice, A. (2015). Latest: Numbers. (Public Libraries News), Available at: http://www.publiclibrariesnews.com/, [Accessed

19th June 2015].

Bergan, D. E. (2009). Does grassroots lobbying work? A field experiment measuring the effects of an e-mail lobbying campaign on legislative behavior. American Politics Research, 37(2), 327-352.

Fletcher, K. (2011). What do we stand to lose? Discourses on public library cuts: an analysis of media representations of public library campaigns. MA, University of Sheffield, UK.

Jernigan, D. H., & Wright, P. A. (1996). Media advocacy: lessons from community experiences. Journal of Public Health Policy, 306-330.

McCombs, M. (2013). Setting the agenda: The mass media and public opinion. John Wiley & Sons.

Neumayer, C., & Raffl, C. (2008). Facebook for global protest: The potential and limits of social software for grassroots activism. In Prato CIRN 2008 Community Informatics Conference: ICTs for Social Inclusion: What is the Reality.

Scheufele, D. A. (1999). Framing as a theory of media effects. Journal of communication, 49(1), 103-122.

Zunes, S. (1999). The role of non-violent action in the downfall of apartheid. The Journal of Modern African Studies, 37(01), 137-169.

Any questions?

Blog site:www.johnmowbray.org