Christina K. Pikas is a science and engineering librarian in a special library as well as a doctoral student in information studies.
In case you can't read this screenshot of an e-mail (source, via), I'll quote it for you:
"Are you on a first name basis with the librarian? If so, chances are, you're spending too much time at the library. What you need is fast, reliable research you can access right in your office. An all it takes is West(tr)."
This is so much B.S. glasses and all. West, is of course, part of Thomson Reuters (the real evil empire is revealed) and they and Reed Elsevier's Lexis-Nexis divide up most of the legal information money.
Chemistry vendors are known for trying an end-run around the librarian, but usually they're a bit more slick. This is just so wrong - particularly when they market how they'll help you raise your visibility and make your ROI clear in your organization.
Update 8/26: But wait, there's more. Eli Edwards mentions other recent issues with West. First they cut off free printing services to Puerto Rico (they have since reinstated) and then they refused to participate in AALL's price list. Bravo to AALL for refusing sponsorship from West.
Information Science
Comments
As you can imagine, this ruffled a few feathers in AALL, which was already having a bit of a tiff with West over criteria for sponsorship of events.
A representative from Thomson Reuters apologized on the law-lib listserv...
http://listproc.ucdavis.edu/archives/law-lib/law-lib.log0908/0199.html
Posted by: Jenny Reiswig | August 24, 2009 11:37 PM
...
I've always been on a first name basis with all my librarians. it makes it so much easier when you want to find something, or need help with research...
Posted by: Lab Rat | August 25, 2009 2:16 AM
It's a nice apology but I can't help wondering if it's the library/librarian relationship managers who are sorry and maybe not the rest of the corporation. Thanks for providing the link.
Posted by: Christina Pikas
| August 25, 2009 6:45 AM
So... West thinks this will help them against, say, RECAP and other crowdsourced legal material? Really?
Idiots. They're cutting off their own nose to spite their face. Without the law librarians, the lawyers will cut 'em off in a red-hot minute to save costs.
Posted by: Dorothea Salo | August 25, 2009 10:09 AM
A librarian here at MPOW remembers when DIALOG decided they would market to the end user and changed all of their stuff to reflect this new policy. Heh. well that didn't work out as planned, either!
Posted by: Christina Pikas | August 25, 2009 10:20 AM
Hint to West: Attorneys don't have time to read ads or listen to your marketing pitches. If you want to get your foot in the door, you have to market to the librarians. Congratulations on alienating the people who make the purchasing decisions.
Posted by: Tracey | August 25, 2009 10:30 AM