A Fistful of Headings: Name Authority Control for Video Recordings

Lower DVD costs and increased patron demand have led to more video recordings in library catalogs. With long lists of cast and crew, these catalog records are more detailed than many books. For institutions requiring authorized name headings, both personal and corporate, heavily detailed catalog records for video recordings can be burdensome. Not all libraries that contribute original cataloging records to utilities such as OCLC are authorized to create corresponding authority records. A recent survey asked a sample of catalog librarians of video recordings in different types of libraries about their viewpoints and workflows in the context of authority control.