The academic publishing industry

Beverly Yuen Thompson

Chapter 9 in How To Write an Academic Journal Article in the Social Sciences, 2026, pp 106-117 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter provides a macro-perspective on the academic publishing industry, now that the aspiring author will become a member of this community. Originally, journals were published by scholarly societies, providing a network for the academic departments across the nation. Like other sectors of the publishing industry, increasing expenses related to producing hardcopies was a challenge. This led to the corporate conglomerates buying up journals until the global industry was in the hands of only five dominant corporations. Peer review has been the gold standard for scientific inquiry, but the changing financial dynamics and growth of the industry may erode these standards. The industry is already facing challenges: predatory journals, ethical erosion, artificial intelligence, and the inability to block bad science and bad actors from contributing to the scholarly outflow. The industry does not have a further mechanism for quality control.

Keywords: Academic publishing industry; Global scholarship; Academic journals; Publishing (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035366620
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