Re: Bethesda statement on open access publishing

From: <l.hurtado_at_ED.AC.UK>
Date: Mon, 14 Mar 2005 14:12:11 +0000

As someone who monitors this discussion and only rarely comments, one small
observation in response to David Goodman.
Although I appreciate his sentiment, the realia of current academic life cannot
be ignored. E.g., for tenure and promotion, for granting bodies, etc., there
remains the need to identify items as formally published in a refereed venue.
The people/groups who seek such information do not feel qualified to judge the
quality of one's work themselves, and so, understandably, look for some
indication that those who are qualified have given the items some assessment.
In Humanities subjects such as my own, we actually also rely heavily on
post-publication review/assessment, especially of our books (which retain a
certain pride-of-place as research output).
Senior scholars with assured standing can perhaps afford to ignore these
matters, but we cannot in good faith suggest to junior scholars that they
ignore these protocols, at peril to their own livelihood.
If, therefore, we wish to broaden and diversify the definition of "publications"
in academia, we must explore with the university administrators and with
granting bodies as well other agreed means of identifying research/publication
productivity that "counts".
Larry Hurtado


L. W. Hurtado, Professor of New Testament Language, Literature & Theology
School of Divinity, New College
University of Edinburgh
Mound Place
Edinburgh, UK
EH1 2LX
Office Phone: (0)131 650 8920
FAX: (0)131 650 7952
Received on Mon Mar 14 2005 - 14:12:11 GMT