Editors can’t spot talent. I’ve heard this joke before. It isn’t funny
Editors at The BMJ are lousy at predicting the citation performance of research papers. Or are they?
Exaggerated Claims — Has "Publish or Perish" Become "Publicize or Perish"?
A recent study finds that academic press offices exaggerate claims in their press releases about published research. Worse, the vast majority of these find their way into subsequent reporting.
The Journal Redesign — More Complicated, More Costly, and More Strategic Than Ever
Journal redesigns seem to be occurring more frequently — and are certainly more complex — than in the past. What motivates a publisher and editor to undertake a redesign? And why is it so complex, costly, and strategic today?
Link Miser — Why the NLM Links to PubMed Central Versions Directly from PubMed Search Results
Why does PubMed preferentially link to PMC versions in its search result lists? Emails from 2011 suggest it’s specifically to generate more traffic to PMC and show off NLM services.
Most NIH-Sponsored Trials Slow to Publish, Many Aren't Published, Most Fail to Report Data, Studies Show
Fewer than half of NIH sponsored clinical trials are published within 30 months, and 4 out of 5 FDA trials fail to publicly register results (as mandated by law), studies published in the BMJ report. Authors and sponsors may be the strongest source of reporting bias.
Vanishing Ghost Authorship
The prevalence of ghost authorship in the medical literature may be in decline, a new study reports. Is the issue really social or is authorship partly a problem of definition?
Should Journals Sell Reprints?
Article reprints can be a considerable source of income for some medical journals and there is some worry that this source of income presents a conflict of interest for publishers.
What We Talk About When We Talk About Business Models: A Bestiary of Revenue Streams
Business models for publishers fall into four broad categories, defined by how revenue is generated. Some classes of content lend themselves to one model over another.
When Fraud Hits Medical Science: The Decade of the Vaccine-Autism Scandal
Now that the vaccine-autism link has been shown to be based on a fraud, will ego continue to trump humility in the face of evidence?
Weighing the Costs and Benefits of Open Peer-Review
Do the benefits of open peer-review outweigh the costs? A BMJ study argues “yes,” but there are caveats.
The Reboxetine Scandal — How Should We Make Medical Trial Data Available?
Another scandal rocks medical journal publishing. It’s time to stop pretending journals can salvage this on their own. It’s time to bring modern solutions to bear.
Where Trust Is Built and How It Can Be Destroyed — A Publisher’s Perspective
A write-up of a presentation at Charleston, here’s one way to parse trust in academic publishing.
Cascading Peer-Review — The Future of Open Access?
BMJ Open is marketed as high-volume journal of rejects. Did BMJ miss on marketing or is this the future of open access publishing?
Are Peer-Reviewers Overloaded? Or Are Their Incentives Misaligned?
Improving participation in peer-review may be a matter of finding the right combination of incentives.
Industry Sponsorship of Open Access Articles
The willingness of industry to sponsor open access articles may bias your access to reliable health information.