美国公共图书馆在美国文化中具有特殊地位。上世纪初,钢铁大王、慈善家安德鲁·卡内基实施他在全国范围内捐献建造1650所公共图书馆的计划,目的在于保证“穷困阶层的人们接受教育并改善其境遇”。据美国官方2002年统计,全美公共图书馆总数超过9000所,且几乎全部接通了互联网,80 American Public Libraries have a special place in American culture. At the beginning of the last century, King Carpenter, the great philanthropist, implemented his plan to donate 1650 public libraries across the country in order to ensure that “people in the under-privileged classes receive education and improve their situation.” According to the official statistics of the United States in 2002, the total number of public libraries in the United States exceeded 9,000, and nearly all of them were connected to the Internet. 80