Too hot for the Library: access to films with sensitive content

This thesis explores decisions on access to collections with sensitive content through a case study analysis of the library principles and archival practices applied to the films from the Youth Film Distribution Center (YFDC). These films are overseen by the Reserve Film and Video Collection at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center. The Reserve Film and Video Collection has been the principal circulating audiovisual department for The New York Public Library since the 1950s. The objective of this thesis is to explore processing decisions for films with sensitive content (e.g. films promoting negative stereotypes of their subjects or featuring violent or sexually explicit content). The thesis offers an historical overview of the Youth Film Distribution Center and outlines the processing decisions surrounding levels of access for the YFDC title Seeing (1972).