Introduction Peer review stands as the cornerstone of academic publishing. It’s the gatekeeper, the quality control mechanism that (well, ideally) separates sound scholarship from the dubious or flawed. Yet, despite its importance, the process is plagued by challenges: sluggish turnaround times, a lack of transparency, the administrative burden on journals, and the ever-present problem of … Read more
Answering a question like “What is the Future of Article Processing Charges (APCs)?” is essentially asking for a crystal ball reading of the entire scholarly publishing industry, which, as we all know, is rarely a quiet place. The world of academic publishing is in constant flux, primarily driven by the irresistible force of the Open … Read more
Introduction The global publishing landscape is a complex, ever-shifting tectonic plate, and right now, the most significant movement is emanating from the East. We’re talking, of course, about Chinese publishing. It’s no longer just a niche market for foreign rights directors to dabble in; it’s a colossal, technologically advanced, and increasingly influential powerhouse that’s reshaping … Read more
Introduction The academic publishing world has long been dominated by the Global North: think of those large, commercial, and often wildly profitable publishing houses headquartered in North America and Western Europe. This dominance has created a landscape where the knowledge, research questions, and institutional contexts of the Global South—a term generally encompassing countries in Africa, … Read more
Introduction The staid, centuries-old world of academic publishing is being aggressively prodded into the future, and one of the most intriguing characters doing the prodding is Perplexity AI. This isn’t just another shiny new chatbot; it’s a new kind of “answer engine” that is fundamentally challenging the traditional research workflow, and by extension, the entire … Read more