Episode 7: Why University Presses Matter

Collegeland

Few things say “college” more than a stack of books, and yet university presses remain one of the best-kept secrets on campus.
To get a behind-the-scenes look into the world of academic publishing, we talk to John Sherer, director of the University of North Carolina Press. UNC Press has long been a pioneer in publishing books on African American history and gender and women’s studies. This past year, the press saw a surge in readership during the pandemic, and many UNC Press titles made their way onto Black Lives Matter reading lists.
John explains how and why university presses operate on a “deficit publishing” model to support important books that aren’t money-makers, talks about racial inequities in the publishing world, and describes new and exciting open-access (OA) initiatives to make campus research more accessible to the public.
After the interview, Nan and Lisa share a few of their personal favorite university press books in a Letter of Recommendation segment.
About our guest
John Sherer is the director of the University of North Carolina Press. Previously, he was the vice president and publisher of Basic Books.
Produced and edited by Richelle Wilson
Theme music by Josh Wilson
Show cover art by Margaux Parker
Episode cover art by jmexclusives on Pixabay
A special thanks to Wisconsin Humanities for their support.
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