What’s in a Name? Exploring identity in the field of library journal publishing

Abstract

INTRODUCTION This paper explores the variability in self-identifying practices of academic libraries engaged in journal publishing and hosting activities. We were interested in how libraries characterized their efforts in this area and looked at whether there is an unspoken threshold for differentiation with respect to publishing-support naming conventions. METHODS Using the Library Publishing Directory, in-depth interviews, and a more widely circulated follow-up survey, the research team examined service offerings, divisions of responsibility, funding, terminology, and semantic associations within publishing, both as an active practice and as an advertised service. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION We aimed to tease out whether there was any sort of tipping point, or inferred rules, around when an institution chose to call the activity either publishing or hosting. We found no particular service, set of services, funding structure, or division of labor that obviously influenced the use of a particular term. Rather than noting a divide between publishing and hosting, participants spoke of both a spectrum and a tiering of work and support, though all emphasized that these models did not describe the quality of the work produced. This paper also discusses how use of the term library publishing creates additional ambiguity in naming practices, and considers some implications for library staff newly immersed in scholarly publishing work.

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“…46 One method of reducing costs is to offer a limited set of services compared to larger or more established publishers. Services lacking in library publishing programs often include copyediting, typesetting, publication management, and marketing 47 -tasks that are usually pushed onto editors, authors, or other volunteers.…”

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“…Sonya went through a number of definitions of journal publishing and her conclusion was that libraries are doing publishing work by any of these definitions. For any library publishers out there struggling with their self-identification, a useful source is Appleby et al (2018).…”

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“…This model aligns well with libraries' role as OA advocates, and also allows them to pursue more logistically complicated projects and publications that appeal only to a very niche audience. Whyte Appleby et al (2018) noted that many libraries characterize their publishing activities as "hosting services," particularly those that predominantly deal in gray literature, data, ETDs and other informal content.…”

“…Library publishing services launched solely by the library rarely provide the time-intensive services that represent the hallmarks of traditional scholarly publishing, including typesetting, marketing, graphic design, and print production and distribution. The level of service provision varies widely across the field, a trend that has given rise to questions about the distinction between hosting and publishing, or what Whyte Appleby et al (2018) termed the "publishinghosting spectrum" (10). On the other hand, publishing services launched jointly by libraries and presses lend legitimacy to the initiative and provide a more robust suite of services.…”