Review of the 13th International Conference on Grey Literature
by Peggy Garvin, Senior Contributing Editor DocuTicker, 9 Dec.'11
http://www.freepint.com/go/b540508
"I was fortunate to get to attend the Thirteenth Annual Conference on Grey
Literature (GL13) in my own town of Washington, DC, on 6-7 December 2011.
The GL13 conference attracted about 100 attendees from around the world, all
involved in grey lit studies and practice. It was a busy, thought-provoking
two days of presentations, poster sessions, tours and networking.
Most people outside of the library science field, it is safe to say, have
never heard the term "grey literature." Agreeing on the best definition
seems to be a central issue even within this specialty. Successive grey lit
conferences have worked on developing consensus definitions. Grey Literature
Network Service (GreyNet), the GL13 organiser, describes it on their website
as "multiple document types produced on all levels of government, academics,
business, and [other organizations] in electronic and print formats not
controlled by commercial publishing i.e. where publishing is not the primary
activity of the producing body."
Conference proceedings, working papers, and government reports are typical
examples of grey literature. GreyNet has a much lengthier list, Document
Types in Grey Literature. (Those savvy in the linked data sphere maybe
interested in the typology of grey literature developed by the Czech
Republic's National Technical Library and presented as a poster at GL13.)
Obscure as the term may be, the internet and social media have exposed a
much broader audience to grey literature; a possible contributing factor: It
is often free of charge and readily available online, in relation to "white"
or commercially published content locked behind a paywall. Global online
networks are changing the audience and also the processes. In science, for
example, specialised social media channels have replaced the archaic system
of shipping working papers and reviews back and forth. Research is
communicated to more scientists, faster, than ever before.
As we rapidly adopt new forms of recording information, the academy may need
to keep asking, "is this grey lit"? Data sets are not new but sharing them
is in the spotlight this year, and it seemed to me that perfect consensus
had not been reached on whether data sets fall into the grey lit category.
Presenters also touched on the development of online social media and in
what forms it might be considered "grey literature."
What I found most interesting is that many of the attendees work with
science information or in academia, where new questions are as important as
new answers. One follows the other. Just a few of the questions in grey
literature management today: What is the copyright status of grey literature
around the world? How do we measure the quality of grey literature that is
not peer-reviewed? How can priceless, distributed collections of printed
grey literature reach an international audience that seeks information
remotely, online? No doubt these topics will get more treatment at GL14, to
be held in Rome."
GreyNet International
Grey Literature Network Service
Javastraat 194-HS
1095 CP Amsterdam
Netherlands
T/F +31-(0)20 331 2420
Email: info@greynet.org
Url: http://www.greynet.org
"GreyNet is dedicated to Research, Publication, Open Access, and Education
in the field of Grey Literature"
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