Aptar Pharma Acquires Device Technology Assets of SipNose

With book banning and legislative attacks on the freedom to read continuing to surge across the country, the American Library Association announced today that it tracked a stunning 1,269 "demands to censor library books and resources" in 2022, the highest number of attempted book bans since ALA began compiling data about censorship in libraries more than 20 years ago, and nearly double the record-shattering 729 challenges recorded in 2021. In a release, ALA officials said the challenges involved a record 2,571 unique titles—a stunning 38% increase from the 1,858 unique titles targeted for censorship in 2021. Once again, the vast majority of works challenged were written by or about members of the LGBTQIA+ community and people of color; 58% of reported challenges targeted works in schools and 41% targeted materials in public libraries.

The Association of American Publishers (AAP) today released its StatShot report for June 2020 reflecting reported revenue for all tracked categories, including Trade (consumer publications), K-12 Instructional Materials, Higher Education Course Materials, Professional Publishing, and University Presses. Total revenues across all categories for June 2020 were approximately $1.4 billion, a decline of 4.1% as compared to June 2019. Year-to-date sales were $5.7 billion, a decline of 4.2% as compared to the same period last year. Trade sales were up 24.4% year-over-year, coming in at $700.3 million. Year-to-date (January-June 2020) Trade sales were $3.6 billion, an increase of 2.8%, as compared to the same period in 2019.

A union representing 6,000 rail workers, said its members have voted against ratifying the tentative contract that was brokered between rail companies, unions and the Biden administration in September. The Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen is the second union to reject the White House-brokered agreement. Earlier this month, the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division of the Teamsters rejected the tentative contract over frustration with compensation and working conditions, with the biggest issue being a lack of paid sick days. The unions that voted down the agreement have vowed to continue negotiations at least until Nov. 19, when a strike could potentially occur, although the timeline is uncertain.