Friday, December 05, 2008

An optimistic appraisal

  • MediaBistro has what the others ain't got: courage!
If you're surprised that the publishing industry is crumbling... well, welcome back to Earth. A lot has happened since you've been gone.
...If that last sentence (which originally referred only to the departure of two CEOs) sounds somewhat callous after everything that's happened this week, we apologize—but we also encourage readers to remember that there is more to the publishing industry than the conglomerates in New York, and that even though independent publishers are themselves not immune to the economic pressures, many are prepared to press on and carve out a unique space for themselves because they don't want to live in a world where the books they love aren't available for others to read. They may press on cautiously, and slowly, and they may not gain huge ground most years, but they will persevere, as will their equally passionate counterparts at the larger houses, because they must. And we hope that, through such perseverance, opportunities emerge for those of our colleagues whose careers were disrupted this week.

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