University Presses and the Digital Universe
Maikowski believes that having a unique area of specialization, focus and expertise is imperative for university presses.
“Without some focus, the [title] list is problematic, and it’s difficult to build excellence in core fields, which in turn typically means that the best scholars working in a discipline will not bring their projects to your press. At NYUP we publish in nine core academic disciplines: cultural studies (including media, film and cyberstudies), law, American history, politics, criminology, anthropology, sociology, psychology and religion,” he says. “Many university presses have profit centers such as journals to help underwrite or defray losses [in] their book program. We have no journals program, so it’s critical that our book program stands on its own in terms of profitability and the overall bottom line of the press.”