Yesterday, New Scientist published a plan by PR firm Dezenhall Resources detailing how traditional science publishers could turn government opinion against open-access journals.
There’s nothing wrong with employing a famously tough PR firm, but the memo reveals that Dezenhall recommended sidestepping the real issues around peer review and the business model that powers it, in favor of “rhetorical campaign points” about Big Government and scientists’ hypocrisy.
The memo notes that the key issue is that “publishers are trying to protect their businesses and the integrity of the research they publish.” Yet, two of Dezenhall’s example messages focused on government “censorship” and “nationalization” of science. No one really believes, on either side, that government is taking over science publishing....
Posted by
Peter Suber at 9/21/2007 10:35:00 PM.
The open access movement:
Putting peer-reviewed scientific and scholarly literature
on the internet. Making it available free of charge and
free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.
Removing the barriers to serious research.
I recommend the OA tracking project (OATP) as the best way to stay on top of new OA developments. You can read the OATP feed on a blog-like web page or subscribe to it by RSS, email, or Twitter. You can also help build the feed by tagging new developments you encounter.
