A secondary school in Greater Manchester used artificial intelligence to censor books in its library, including George Orwell's 1984, Stephanie Meyer's Twilight, Michelle Obama's Becoming, and Nicholas Sparks' The Notebook. The school earmarked almost 200 books for removal from its library that were deemed 'inappropriate'. The school librarian was put under a 'safeguarding' investigation, leading to her resignation, for allowing the books in the library.
The school used AI to generate summaries justifying why each book was not suitable for pupils. The school admitted in a document that the reasons given for the censorship had been written by AI, stating that although the categorisation was generated using AI, it considered this classification to be broadly accurate. Specific examples included a graphic novel version of 1984, where an AI-generated summary warned of themes of torture, violence, and sexual coercion.
Twilight was listed due to mature romantic themes, sexual tension, and violence involving vampires and werewolves. Michelle Obama's Becoming was listed due to racism and political themes. The fate of all 200 books on the removal list remains unclear, as does whether AI played a role in initially selecting them for censorship.
I was absolutely gobsmacked. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
The purge began in November 2025, when the headteacher demanded the removal of Laura Bates' nonfiction title Men Who Hate Women, an exposé of incel culture. The headteacher thought Men Who Hate Women was inappropriate due to exposure of misogynistic beliefs, even though it was kept in a special section for older pupils. The librarian was asked to remove any book that was 'not written for children', had 'themes that could be upsetting to children', and those that were 'inappropriate or constitute a safeguarding risk'.
The school reported the librarian to the council as a safeguarding risk due to introducing 'inappropriate' books, with a threat of gross misconduct proceedings. According to Daily Mail - News, the librarian described being shocked by the situation. The outcome of the council report and any misconduct proceedings has not been disclosed.
Index on Censorship would not reveal the name of the librarian or the school, due to her being vulnerable. The case was exposed this week by the school librarian, who spoke to Index on Censorship on condition of her anonymity. The specific reason why Nicholas Sparks' The Notebook was listed as inappropriate remains unknown.