Never before has the control of the global conglomerates over the publishing, media and culture industries been under such scrutiny. Publishing Scotland, in association with the Scottish Universities Insight Institute Independent Publishing programme, presents an event at this year’s Edinburgh International Book Festival which goes to the heart of that debate.
André Schiffrin, the speaker at the event, was the Director of Pantheon Books for almost thirty years, bringing authors including Pasternak and Foucault to an American audience. His landmark 2000 publication The Business of Books expressed his belief that Western publishing was in a crisis, fuelled by the concern that the five largest conglomerates in the US controlled 80% of the books produced. His belief that this profit-driven industry prevented him from publishing books propelled him to resign and set up the nonprofit New Press.
In his new book Words and Money, Schiffrin builds on his earlier arguments by focusing on the crisis in the general media, examining the European market to illustrate how the US corporate model has influenced practice worldwide to the detriment of serious journalism. He proposes measures to safeguard the future of publishing, bookselling and the press. In this timely intervention into the ownership practices and philosophies, Schiffrin will give a presentation and then open the floor to questions from the audience.
Date: 22 August 2011
Time: 6.45–7.45pm
Location: Peppers Theatre, Charlotte Square, Edinburgh
Tickets £10 (£8 concession)
For further information and to book your place visit the Edinburgh International Book Festival website. http://www.edbookfest.co.uk/the-festival/whats-on/andre-schiffrin
More information on Publishing Scotland is available at www.publishingscotland.org
More information on the Scottish Universities Insight Institute Independent Publishing Programme of Enquiry is available at www.independentpublishing.stir.ac.uk.
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