information and to communicate with the public concerning the
library's provision of Internet access. At this meeting, the
Board learned for the first time of complaints about children
being exposed to pornography that was displayed on the library's
Internet terminals.


In late January to early February of 2000, the library
installed privacy screens and recessed terminals in an effort to
restrict the display of sexually explicit Web sites at the
library. In February, 2000, the Board informed the library staff
that they were expected to be familiar with the South Carolina
obscenity statute and to enforce the policy prohibition on access
to obscene materials, child pornography, or other materials
prohibited under applicable local, state, and federal laws.
Staff were told that they were to enforce the policy by means of
a "tap on the shoulder." Prior to adopting its current Internet
Use Policy, the Board adopted an "Addendum to Current Internet
Use Policy." Under the policy, the Board temporarily instituted
a two-hour time limit per day for Internet use; reduced
substantially the number of computers with Internet access in the
library; reconfigured the location of the computers so that
librarians had visual contact with all Internet-accessible
terminals; and removed the privacy screens from terminals with
Internet access.
Even after the Board implemented the privacy screens and
later the "tap-on-the-shoulder" policy combined with placing
terminals in view of librarians, the library experienced a high
turnover rate among reference librarians who worked in view of
Internet terminals. Finding that the policies that it had tried