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Traditional library practice defined intellectual freedom issues very narrowly and relegated them to public and school libraries. But then in 1987 the FBI began visiting academic libraries. In an effort to uncover what they suspected to be subversive gathering of information and recruiting of operatives by foreign agents, FBI agents pressured library staff to disclose the reading habits of “suspicious looking foreigners” and asked to see circulation records.
這是以前隱私權的保護與否的議題

While written regulations and policies are necessary in all academic libraries, they are only part of promoting and protecting intellectual freedom. It is equally important that librarians and staff be well-trained and knowledgeable about the principles of intellectual freedom. It is important that prospective library employees understand that academic libraries can be “uncomfortable”-in terms of the ideas contained in much of the information that is purchased, cataloged, or exhibited on computer terminals. Staff should always be protected from any illegal workplace activity, but the library’s contents are most likely constitutionally protected.