Report: “How Digital Age Has Forced Hong Kong’s Libraries and Librarians to Change Ways They Get Us To Read”

From The South China Morning Post:

When did you last pick up a printed book? For more than 31 per cent of Hongkongers, the answer is: at least a year ago.

This finding was revealed in a survey carried out by the Hong Kong Publishing Professional Society, which questioned 2,063 of the city’s residents.

Those who said they are regular online readers often look at news and commentaries, or browse their social media feed when they read on the internet. Only 12 per cent of these respondents said they read electronic books (e-books).

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“We carried gramophone records a long time ago,” Melinda Lee Mei-ling, chief librarian of the special duties unit at Hong Kong Public Libraries, says.

“As audio-visual materials became popular in later years, we started carrying VCRs [videocassette players], and then CDs and DVDs. We had to upgrade our players accordingly.”

The internet and digital transformation now underway might seem to some people to be an obstacle to reading, but Lee believes the web can be a tool to boost reading if used in the right way.

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See Also: Hong Kong Public Libraries Website ||| Hong Kong Public Libraries Electronic Resources

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