For Episode Four of the Dewey Decibel podcast, host Phil Morehart and a staff of reporters recap the American Library Association's (ALA) 2016 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Orlando, Florida, highlighting the celebrity interviews, staff and member conversations, and exhibit hall action for those librarians who attended, those who could not, and any listeners who may have wondered what kinds of programming and people you'll find at Annual. Sociology professor, author, and political analyst Michael Eric Dyson sits down with American Libraries Senior Editor George Eberhart for an energetic, poetic interview about discovering literature, hip-hop, the Obama presidency, gun control, and “reaching young people where they are.” The Pulse nightclub shooting, which happened two weeks before Annual, was much on the minds of organizers and attendees. ALA's then-chair of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table Peter Coyl speaks to AL Senior Editor Amy Carlton about how the Saturday morning memorial came together, the importance of remembering victims as individuals, and how civil rights pioneer US Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) came to participate. ALA Editions Marketing Coordinator Rob Christopher reveals to Samantha Imburgia, ALA Publishing’s associate editor for e-learning solutions, what really goes on at the ALA Store, from bestselling books to setup and tear-down to author signings. Plus, AL Associate Editor Terra Dankowski provides roving dispatches from the convention center.

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

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