National Digital Public Library Gets One Step Closer to Reality

Is it possible to create a National Digital Library?

The question is not particularly new, spurred by the results of Google Books, and already implemented to some degree by projects like HathiTrust, the "shared digital repository" that already has dozens of university partners. But the question received a new formulation, and a fresh commitment, this past weekend at Harvard. Robert Darnton, Harvard's chief librarian, convened what the Chronicle of Higher Education calls "a group of 42 top-level representatives from foundations, cultural institutions, and the library and scholarly worlds." The group issued a statement endorsing what it called a "Digital Public Library of America" that assembles the collections of archives, museums, and universities across the country.