University of Westminster Press Booklet

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Making a difference through community-led, open access publishing in the arts, humanities and social sciences

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OUR PRESS

UWP HIGHLIGHTS

“University of Westminster Press was founded in 2015 as a digital-first, non-profit open access publisher of peer reviewed academic books, textbooks, policy briefs and journals, seeking to promote our uniquely Westminster perspective on global challenges to an international audience. As one of the first ‘new’ university presses, and as the 3rd largest publisher of this type in the UK, we are at the forefront of a forgetive new movement in scholarly publishing that is community led and mission driven. We are proud to champion a ‘diamond’ open access model, where research is both free to read and free to publish, ensuring equity, inclusivity and accessibility are, like the institution we serve, at the heart of what we do.

This booklet showcases UWP’s many achievements over the last eight years, demonstrating how we have developed into a respected brand in our own right, and how we are helping to amplify Westminster’s reputation and research strengths globally. The founding of UWP was a bold decision, reflective of our University’s pioneering spirit, and through the research we publish and the values we exemplify, UWP plans to keep breaking boundaries into the future.”

Philippa Grand, PhD Press Manager, UWP

“When the University of Westminster Press was founded in 2015 the aspiration was to share widely and freely ground-breaking analyses and research that critically engages with contemporary issues and challenges.

Reaching well over three million downloads within a decade would have been beyond our wildest dreams and it’s great to see the steady rise in our global reach and in the numbers accessing our publications.

I hope you enjoy learning more about our wonderful Press and its many achievements.”

Professor Pippa Catterall Chair, UWP Editorial Board

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Since 2015 we’ve achieved much at UWP. From the acquisition of our first journal, Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture, in September 2015 and the publication of our first book, Critical Theory of Communication, in October 2016 we’ve gone from strength to strength.

• We have published 55 books across the arts, humanities and social sciences • We publish six journals – three were existing journals acquired by UWP and three were new launches spearheaded by Westminster scholars • We have published eight Policy Briefs in association with the Communication and Media Research Institute • We publish three book series, with more in the pipeline and launching soon • In total our publications have been accessed over 3.8 million times • UWP books and articles have been accessed across the globe - everywhere from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe • The Entertainment and Sports Law Journal has surpassed 1 million downloads • Our oldest journal began publishing 21 years ago; our newest was launched in July 2021 • Our most downloaded title, Digital Objects, Digital Subjects, has been accessed over 150,000 times • A UWP book is downloaded on average 27,000 times

• We have sold over 4,000 print copies of our books and our most purchased title is Can Music Make You Sick?

• Our books have been translated into Chinese, Turkish and German • Our books have been widely reviewed in academic journals and blogs, and our titles have won and been shortlisted for book prizes • We have partnered with various schools, research groups and centres across the University including the Active Travel Academy, the Law & Theory Lab, the Centre for the Study of Democracy, the Contemporary China Centre, the Communications and Media Research Institute and Westminster International University in Tashkent • We publish across a range of subject areas including political science, law, development, geography, environmental humanities, history, philosophy, urban studies, cultural studies, education, the arts, and media and communications studies • UWP has been successful in receiving external library funding for our publishing activities including via Knowledge Unlatched and Jisc’s Open Access Community Framework. We are also working with the Open Book Collective to attract funding internationally.

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GLOBAL REACH

GLOBAL REACH

University of Westminster aims to ‘bring our uniquely Westminster perspective to global challenges and making the world a better place’, and global engagement is a key priority.

UWP helps the University to achieve these ambitions through the global reach of our books and journals across over 220 countries and territories, accessible without paywall barriers to anyone with an internet connection.

Our books are available on specialist open access platforms including uwestminsterpress.co.uk, JSTOR, OAPEN, Google Books, Science Open, Open Research Library and Project Muse.

Our journals are indexed in the Directory of Open Access Journals, EBSCO, Clarivate Emerging Sources Citation Index, Google Scholar, Science Open, Sherpa Romeo, Scilit, Dimensions, and other indexing and abstracting services.

DID YOU KNOW?

4. The world’s most isolated country:

UWP’s publications have been accessed in:

North Korea

1. The country with the world’s oldest library:

5. The world’s oldest country: San Marino

Morocco 2. The world’s flattest country: Bolivia

6. The world’s youngest country: South Sudan

3. The world’s highest country: Bhutan

7. The country with the most universities: India

TOP TEN COUNTRIES

BY DOWNLOADS

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USA

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China

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UK

4.

Ireland

5.

Canada

6.

Germany

7.

Sweden

8.

France

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Singapore

10.

Australia

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BOOK SERIES

UWP currently publishes three book series with more on subjects and fields that matter most to Westminster in the pipeline.

BOOK SERIES

LAW AND THE SENSES Published in association with the Westminster Law & Theory Lab, this series takes a multidisciplinary approach to understanding this topic, with volumes focusing in on particular senses.

CRITICAL DIGITAL AND SOCIAL MEDIA STUDIES SERIES Edited by Christian Fuchs, Professor of Media Systems and Media Organisation, University of Paderborn, Germany UWP’s flagship series has published 24 titles to date with more to come. It focuses on how power structures, digital capitalism, ideology and social struggles shape and are shaped by digital and social media.

CULTURAL CHINA Published in association with the Contemporary China Centre, this series seeks to forefront a humanities approach to the study of China, with a cultural studies focus. The series has recently received funding via Jisc’s Open Access Community Framework to commission new volumes.

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TEXTBOOK PUBLISHING

JOURNAL PUBLISHING UWP’s journals allow us to showcase the broad range of Westminster research priorities and strengths. Our programme includes long-established journals, acquired by UWP, as well as new journals in areas for which the University is well known.

UWP publishes textbooks and student resources. Making these freely available greatly helps to enhance the student experience and usage figures are amongst our highest.

Active Travel Studies: launched in 2021 and published in association with Westminster’s Active Travel Academy, this journal addresses a topic of ever-increasing policy interest and provides a bridge between academia and practice. In a time of climate crisis and an epidemic of physical inactivity, this journal provides the evidence base to develop knowledge and underpin change.

Published November 2019 Downloaded over 50,000 times

Anthropocenes – Human, Inhuman, Posthuman: Widespread interest in environmental humanities has made it one of the fastest growing areas of research in recent years. Launched in 2020, this journal takes an interdisciplinary approach to bring arts, humanities and social science perspectives to address the Anthropocene.

Journal of Deliberative Democracy: now in its 20th year, this journal is supported by the newDemocracy Foundation, the Deliberative Democracy Consortium and the International Association for Public Participation and provides a forum to debate citizen engagement.

The Deliberative Democracy Digest – a blog aimed at practitioners – publishes alongside it.

THE STUDENT GUIDE TO THE CREATIVE STUDIO IN THE DIGITAL AGE

Entertainment and Sports Law Journal: Published in association with the Centre for Law, Society and Popular Culture this journal is now in its 21st year. It publishes on a wide range of topics including sport, music, popular culture, social media, gambling and more.

Silk Road: A Journal of Eurasian Development: Published in association with Westminster International University in Tashkent, this journal focuses on social science and public policy research in the countries that make up the Great Silk Road.

DENITSA PETROVA & DOUG SPECHT

Publishing Spring 2024

Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture: First published in 2004, this journal engages scholars in critical debate about the relationship between communication, culture and society.

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AUTHOR & EDITOR STORIES

“I thoroughly recommend publishing with UWP. They are by far the best publishers I have worked with over the past 20 years, being extremely efficient at guiding the process, from initial concept to book proofs and speedy publication without compromising on quality and critique. The open access option is crucial for a whole range of reasons, from ethical to reaching a wider readership. For myself, working with island scholars around the world, many do not have access, or the resources, to purchase expensive academic texts. Publishing open access means they can simply download my book or individual chapters for free. I can thus engage a much broader academic community and publishing with University of Westminster Press has introduced me to a wider range of new scholars from across the world.”

Professor Jonathan Pugh, co-author of The World as Abyss and Anthropocene Islands

“As editor of a diamond open access journal and co-author of an open access manifesto, publishing my work with fully open access University of Westminster Press was an obvious decision.

I could not think of a better place to publish accessible research on Chinese cultural studies as practiced and promoted by academics at the Contemporary China Centre at the University of Westminster. Furthermore, insisting on diamond open access, and supporting young presses, is an important strategy if we want to see the deeply entrenched hierarchies in British higher education and profit-driven publishing models replaced by more equitable, fairer and more ethical approaches.”

Professor Gerda Wielander, co-editor of Cultural China 2020 and Cultural China 2021

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AUTHOR & EDITOR STORIES

“Few scholars write to make money but academic labour has been capitalized in the publishing industry when getting a full-time job and receiving tenure increasingly depend on the number of publications in prestigious venues. As a feminist political economist, I am highly aware that writers who identify as women, people of colour, non-native English speakers, or with a workingclass background have to spend more time and effort on getting their scholarship published. Open access publishing may not solve the inherent inequities in academia but it is one way for us to pay forward by widely and openly sharing research findings. The University of Westminster Press is highly supportive of open access publishing while maintaining academic rigour, such as peer review. I highly recommend those with a great book proposal to consider working with them!”

Professor Micky Lee, author of Bubbles and Machines

“Open access and being able to work with UWP was a key factor in choosing a home for our book. Open access allows our book to be available to the widest audience possible and at no cost to the reader – in the age of digital distribution it is an absolute must for any authors or researchers wishing to engage with the wider public. Open access allows global stakeholders across the creative industries to learn about our work. Sharing our work in this way led to further opportunities to disseminate our work at home and at international conferences and music festivals. The staff at UWP were incredibly supportive and helpful and this made the whole process easier and less stressful. If work is to have impact it needs to reach the widest audience possible and so sharing your work for free is the best way.”

Sally Anne Gross, co-author of Can Music Make You Sick?

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MAKING AN IMPACT: PRESTIGE AND RECOGNITION UWP titles have been widely reviewed in academic journals, magazines and blogs, and have won and been shortlisted for academic awards and prizes.

MAKING AN IMPACT: INFLUENCING POLICY AND PRACTICE UWP publishes impactful research that aims to make the world a better place, influencing policy and practice in a number of areas.

CAMRI Policy Briefs and Reports Published in association with the Communication and Media Research Institute (CAMRI) this series of Briefs and Reports focuses on areas of key policy concern, providing policy advice and analysis on a wide variety of media and communications related topics.

Paradoxes of Digital Disengagement “It reads like a manifesto, a warning and, at its best, a crime noir thriller as the authors go searching for an opt-out button that is almost impossible to find” – LSE Review of Books

Anthropocene Islands “Ambitious, sophisticated, timely and downright inspirational” – Okinawan Journal of Island Studies

Digital Objects, Digital Subjects “A valuable addition that informs the understanding of our digital age, and should help further new scholarship along these lines” – Society + Space

Politicizing Digital Space “Lively and engaging … this is a book, finely written, which prompts important questions and deserves a wide readership” – Contemporary Political Theory

Destination London “A welcome addition to the field … useful not only to students and academics, but also to policymakers interested in better understanding the implications of tourism development and the expansion of the visitor economy in large cities” – Tourism Management

Knowledge in the Age of Digital Capitalism – Winner of the Latin American Association for the Social Study of Science and Technology Best Book Prize, 2018 AI For Everyone? – Shortlisted for the Media, Communication and Cultural Studies Association (MeCCSA) Outstanding Achievement Awards, 2022 12

Misinformation Policy in Sub-Saharan Africa Co-author Peter Cunliffe-Jones is a leading global expert on countering misinformation. He is on the board of the International Factchecking Network and advises a network of fact-checkers in the Middle East. He is currently working on a Google-funded project to trial his model for identifying misinformation with potential to cause or contribute to specific harms.

Christian Fuchs and Klaus Unterberger, The Public Service Media and Public Service Internet Manifesto This manifesto – part of Professor Fuchs’ work in helping public bodies advance digital democracy – argues that a public service media and a public service internet are essential to create a democracy-enhancing media landscape.

Signatories include the European Federation of Journalists and the International Federation of Journalists as well as over 1,000 members of civil society, including Jürgen Habermas and Noam Chomsky.

Democracy in a Pandemic This book, co-edited by Professor Graham Smith, a global expert on participation and democracy, in association with Involve, a UK charity focused on public participation, brings together activists, practitioners, policymakers, researchers and writers to discuss how the Covid-19 pandemic impacted our democratic politics.

Journal of Deliberative Democracy This journal publishes the Deliberative Democracy Digest blog as part of its aim to broker knowledge between scholars and practitioners of citizen engagement.

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MAKING AN IMPACT IN THE COMMUNITY

UWP’S BUSINESS MODEL Open Access business models are fast evolving and UWP is adopting new approaches that prioritise equity and inclusivity in the publishing ecosystem.

UWP advocates moving beyond dominant models of funding open access publishing via article and book processing charges to champion new collective, community-led approaches. Our journals utilise a ‘diamond’ open access model whereby it is free to read and to publish. Our books programme draws on a variety of approaches that enable us to offer fee free publishing options to as many authors as possible.

Knowledge Unlatched This scheme has provided funding for eight individual UWP titles enabling them to publish open access with no author facing fees.

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Jisc/Open Access Community Framework UWP has been at the forefront of the community-led open access movement, playing an active part in shaping the future of scholarly publishing. We also support the academic community by providing training and advice on the publishing process.

This scheme is supporting publishing in our Critical Digital and Social Media Studies series and our Cultural China series. Financial support from seven British libraries will enable us to publish ten new books over the next three years.

• Founder members of the Open Institutional Publishing Association (OIPA) and part of the Executive Committee

Open Book Collective

• Members of EvenUP – a University Press-wide initiative for equity, diversity and inclusivity in publishing

UWP was accepted as a member of the OBC in September 2023.

This will allow us to access library funding internationally to support book publications in new areas.

• Editorial Advisory Board member of Jisc’s New University Press Toolkit • Signatory of the UN Sustainable Development Goals Publishers Compact • Members of the Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers (ALPSP) and the Association of European University Presses (AEUP) • Successive UWP Press Managers have published on open access publishing. See ‘New University Presses in the UK: Accessing a Mission’, Learned Publishing, 2016 and ‘Monographs on the Move? A View on “Decoupling” and Other Prospects’, Insights, 2018. Published blog posts include ‘Why Open Institutional Publishing Matters’ available at oipauk.org • Presentations at conferences, webinars and events contributing to the discussion on open access and the future of scholarly publishing

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Print book sales UWP receives income from print sales of our books, which surpassed 4,000 copies sold in 2023.

This income is invested back into the Press to aid us in publishing and promoting our publications.

University of Westminster support The bulk of funding for the Press is due to the generosity of the University in investing in open research and in a new future for scholarly publishing.

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UWP’S PLACE IN THE WESTMINSTER STORY

UWP’S PLACE IN THE WESTMINSTER STORY

University of Westminster Press exists to promote the research strengths and priorities of University of Westminster internationally, to amplify our unique perspective to global challenges and making the world a better place, and to promote an equitable approach to open access publishing that is inclusive and offers an alternative to legacy publishing models.

• We contribute to the EDI goals of the University by offering an inclusive and equitable form of open access that makes research freely available to anyone with an internet connection, anywhere in the world

How does UWP make a positive impact on our Westminster community?

• We can offer internships and work experience enhancing the employability of our students

• We raise the profile of the Westminster brand and reputation worldwide with high quality, peer reviewed publications that can be accessed across the globe

• We are part of a movement of ‘new’ university presses and library publishers seeking to disrupt a scholarly communications landscape dominated by commercial interests, sharing the ethos and values of our home institution with our focus on serving knowledge, not shareholders

• We provide scholars with opportunities to experience the many advantages of publishing their work open access • Through our books and journals we enable Westminster to lead the conversation on the key research topics of our time • We enhance the cultural life of the University for our researchers, students and professional colleagues • We make textbooks freely available to our students, supporting the University’s mission of making education accessible to all • We publish work that seeks to impact policy and practice aligning with the University’s own ambitions to make a positive difference

• Providing publishing expertise inhouse supports our researchers – from PhD students to professors – in developing their skills and knowledge of the publishing process

• UWP gives the University a voice in a wider movement that seeks to change scholarly publishing for the better • Our publications address global challenges and the SDGs. In making research freely available we help the University meet SDG Target 16.10 on ensuring public access to information • UWP and WestminsterResearch provide core institutional open research infrastructure as part of the University’s research environment and contribute to an open and transparent research culture • UWP has developed into a respected brand in its own right, serving to complement the University’s own reputation • UWP is a truly global press befitting of our status as a global university

• Our focus on arts, humanities and social sciences mirrors the University’s own reputation as a pioneer in these fields of research 16

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ADDRESSING THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

ADDRESSING THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

SDG

Publishers Compact

As a signatory of the UN SDG Publishers Compact, UWP is committed to publishing books and journals that help address the SDGs, supporting the University in its aim to make the world a better place.

Public and open access to information is embedded in the SDGs under SDG 16.10. UWP supports this Target by making our publications freely available and accessible to everyone, everywhere across the globe.

3: Good Health and Wellbeing • Gross & Musgrave, Can Music Make You Sick?

• Gross & Musgrave, Wellbeing and Mental Health in the Gig Economy

12 Responsible Consumption and Production • Denisova, Fashion Media and Sustainability 13 Climate Action

4: Quality Education

• Active Travel Studies Journal

• Breen, Developing Educators for the Digital Age

• Smith, We Need To Talk About Climate

8 Decent Work and Economic Growth

14 Life Below Water and 15 Life on Land

• Woodcock, The Fight Against Platform Capitalism

• Anthropocenes Journal

• Armano et al, Digital Platforms and Algorithmic Subjectivities

16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

10 Reduced Inequalities

• Smith, Democracy in a Pandemic

• Whyte et al, The Long Walk to Equality

• Morelock, Critical Theory and Authoritarian Populism

• Garrisi et al, Appearance, Discrimination and the Media

• Journal of Deliberative Democracy

11 Sustainable Cities and Communities • Smith et al, Festivals and the City

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We also publish Silk Road: A Journal of Eurasian Development, which addresses multiple SDGs

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WHY PUBLISH WITH UWP?

THE OA ADVANTAGE

Open Access: UWP provides fee-free open access publishing to the vast majority of our authors, with all our journals utilising a diamond open access model and regular calls for proposals for book projects where fees are not required.

Non-profit, community-led, mission-driven: UWP is part of a movement offering an alternative to legacy publishers. By publishing with us you are helping to bring about change and create a publishing ecosystem that is equitable, inclusive and works in collaboration with the academic community, putting the research endeavour, not profits, first.

Rights retention: all our authors retain copyright in their work and we use creative commons licences that allow for sharing and reuse.

Global reach: our publications have been accessed across the world. They are available without restrictions or paywalls, optimising their reach to an international audience, including increased access by those in the majority world.

Increased impact: research shows that OA publishing results in higher downloads, citations and Altmetric scores than non-OA publications, with greater reach into low and middle income countries and to non-academic audiences.

Prestige and recognition: UWP titles have been reviewed widely in international journals and blogs and have won and been shortlisted for international academic prizes.

Commitment to quality: All UWP publications undergo rigorous peer review, with our books subject to a three-stage process that includes reviews by external advisors at proposal and draft typescript stage, and approval by the UWP Editorial Board. We also ensure a high-quality author focused editorial and production process, including bespoke cover designs.

Flexibility in formats and lengths: Our books publish open access in PDF, ePub and Mobi digital editions and are available as low-cost print editions for purchase. We publish shortform work as well as longer monographs and edited collections and can accommodate multimedia content too.

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Research shows that publishing open access provides significant advantages in ensuring your research is impactful within the academy and beyond.

Increased downloads: research shows that open access publications are viewed nearly four times more than non-OA counterparts Increased citations: OA content is cited 60% more than non-OA content Higher Altmetric scores: OA content generates four times as much Altmetric attention compared with non-OA content Low and middle income countries: OA content provides better access for majority world readers, contributing to a richer, more diverse publishing ecosystem

Equity, diversity and inclusion: in championing diamond open access, UWP provides a more equitable and globally inclusive form of OA that doesn’t replicate the barriers and boundaries of legacy publishing models.

Collaboration and cross-disciplinarity: OA means not just an increase in citations, but an increased diversity of citation sources by institution, countries, regions and also fields of research. This aids a culture of sharing and cooperation, and breaking barriers of all kinds in research.

Visibility, discoverability and preservation: all our publications are assigned DOIs and are archived by CLOCCKS and Portico for long term preservation. They are also included in a range of abstracting, indexing and discovery services.

Transparency and countering misinformation: Openness enhances transparency by allowing for greater scrutiny, verification and reproducibility of research, strengthening credibility and reliability. It can help counter misinformation by ensuring access to quality information.

Author care: We pride ourselves on offering a bespoke service to our authors and aim to provide a high level of author care.

Impact and engagement: OA helps research reach policymakers, practitioners, citizen scientists and beyond.

SDGs: SDG 16.10 enshrines public access to information as a key Target in its own right. We cannot hope to solve the SDGs if the knowledge about them is not open – openness is essential to aid our collective understanding of problems and to facilitate the development of solutions.

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EDITORIAL BOARD

MEMBERSHIPS

Pippa Catterall (Chair) Professor, School of Humanities Charles Chi Cui Professor, Westminster Business School Adrija Dey Senior Research Fellow Social Sciences Jenny Evans Research Environment and Scholarly Communications Lead Philippa Grand Press Manager Guy Osborn Professor, Westminster Law School Catherine Loveday Professor, Centre for Psychological Sciences Eugenie Shinkle Reader, Westminster School of Arts Andrew Smith Professor, School of Architecture and Cities Roza Tsagarousianou Professor, School of Media and Communications Gerda Wielander Professor & Director, Contemporary China Centre

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