Scholarly Publishers Select Theme Resonating in Time of Fake News
New York, NY—In a time when the public’s trust in facts and knowledge is waning, the Association of American University Presses (AAUP) has chosen “#LookItUP: Knowledge Matters” as the theme for this year’s University Press Week. University Press Week (UP Week) runs from November 6 through November 11.
“University presses publish the most important scholarship in every field, from politics and journalism to science and religion,” said AAUP Executive Director Peter Berkery. “Facts, knowledge, and expertise are our lifeblood, and the increasing number of people questioning their validity is highly disturbing. Knowledge does matter, expertise does matter, and we want to promote these truths as much as possible.”
In his keynote to the AAUP 2017 conference in June, veteran journalist Dan Rather declared that “we all must be—and you are—vigilant in renewing our compact with books and deep thoughts…[university presses] offer the antidote to alternative facts and the assault on reason, and do it authoritatively and elegantly.”
The sixth annual UP Week takes place the week of November 6. AAUP will host online celebrations of this year’s theme via a blog tour and a new #ReadUP Medium channel. Partners such as Ingram, NetGalley, and Baker & Taylor will also mark the week online through special messages and marketing.
Celebrations will take place in real life as well. Panels that focus on this year’s theme are planned at two major fall literary festivals: the Texas Book Festival and the Boston Book Festival. University presses also are teaming with brick and mortar bookstores, libraries, and other venues in cities and towns across the U.S. to bring the “#LookItUP” theme to the reading public. For example, in New York City, Book Culture will host a panel about publishing with university presses on November 8. And over 30 university presses will take part in an “Indies First” campaign orchestrated by the America Booksellers Association during UP Week.
A full run-down of UP Week events online and offline can be found at http://www.universitypressweek.org/, which will be updated as more are added in the coming weeks.
University presses publish approximately 14,000 books each year, including reprints. 143 presses belong to the Association, and 10% of that number are university presses based abroad.
“These ideas—that knowledge matters and expertise is something to be respected—are universally of concern to our membership,” AAUP President Nicole Mitchell said. “We believe that in choosing this year’s theme for University Press Week, we’ll be able to make more people around the world aware of our work and its value in a free society.”
Formally established in 1937, AAUP is an organization of nonprofit publishers whose members strive to advance scholarship through their offerings. The Association’s mission is to assist its members through professional education, cooperative services, and public advocacy. They educate by offering training programs and workshops, by holding specialized and general annual meetings, and by aggregating and distributing industry information. The Association’s cooperative services expand their members’ reach and efficiency. And the organization advocates by promoting the value of university presses both within and outside the university community and by acting as members’ collective voice on matters of free speech, academic freedom, copyright, and other core issues. You can learn more at http://www.aaupnet.org/.
Media Contact: Angela Baggetta
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