Since we only cover news related entirely to manga or anime once a week at Siliconera, I tend to focus on what I feel are the most “crucial” stories that are generated throughout the week. The ones that you could probably read exclusively and still come away a pretty good idea of what’s going on in those industries.
An unfortunate side effect of this is that a lot of the recent news has been painting a picture of “gloom and doom” and little else. Now, while one certainly can’t argue with the fact that manga has seen better days, personally, I like some good news mixed with my bad.
That’s why I’m going to urge everyone to take a quick look at this fascinating write-up on the New York Times website about the Queens Library and how a common love for manga amongst its young regulars — all of whom wear their otaku badges with pride — is helping kids of all nationalities and cultures come together as a single group. And how, in the face of budget cuts, the library is collaborating with these same kids to help itself make smart decisions and pull through.
These collaborations begin with meetings about what series to stock on library shelves and go all the way toward discussing plans for a manga newsletter, interviews with fictional characters, and eventually, the library’s own manga series.
