AI-generated children's book & SLJ's review - please excuse cross-posting
Hi library land, At a recent MetroNet Youth Services meeting, we discussed whether our libraries have policies or procedures related to purchasing AI-created materials. One library shared that they had selected a title that turned out to be AI-generated and of very poor quality. We at FCL realized we had also purchased this same title after seeing a positive School Library Journal review from September that rated it "highly recommended," without disclosing that the author was AI-generated. When our copies arrived shortly after this discussion, we confirmed what Baldwin Public Library had reported: the illustrations were flawed, and the text contained factual errors. The title is Factology: Greek Myths (ISBN 9781787081796). We have since removed the title from our collection, and I reached out to SLJ for clarification about their review process. After multiple emails and calls, I received two responses from their Editorial Director, Hallie Rich. I requested that that specific review be flagged on their site, and that future reviews clearly indicate when materials are fully or partially authored by AI. Ms. Rich shared that SLJ will be looking at their procedures but relies on publishers to self-disclose AI authorship and that "the material itself met our selection criteria." As many of us begin developing AI-related collection policies, it seems prudent to be aware that SLJ is not currently flagging AI-generated materials in their reviews. If you would like to see the full response from SLJ, I'm happy to share; please contact me off-list. Hope you are faring well in these times, Kristel Sexton (she/her) Head of Children's Services// FCL Farmington Hills Email: kristel.sexton@farmlib.org<mailto:kristel.sexton@farmlib.org> Tel: (248) 848-4319? Web: www.farmlib.org<file://fhbackup/commondirs/FCL/Marketing/FCL%20Brand/2022%20Branding/Email%20Signature/www.farmlib.org> Farmington Community Library | One Library, Two Locations [cid:image001.png@01DC942A.048E8AA0]FCL Farmington Hills | 32737 W. 12 Mile Rd.<https://www.google.com/maps/place/Farmington+Community+Library/@42.4979744,-83.3730966,17z/data=!4m12!1m6!3m5!1s0x8824b08d1fa19999:0x4e9c20fb69ee1f0f!2sFarmington+Community+Library!8m2!3d42.4979705!4d-83.3709079!3m4!1s0x8824b08d1fa19999:0x4e9c20fb69ee1f0f!8m2!3d42.4979705!4d-83.3709079> FCL Farmington | 23500 Liberty St.<https://www.google.com/maps/place/Farmington+Community+Library/@42.4643366,-83.3801262,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x8824b109dd4d9ad1:0x6cb213da27fb502c!8m2!3d42.4643327!4d-83.3779375>
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Kristel Sexton