White Publishing Industry

Overview

While the publishing field is viewed as a liberal and inclusive industry, the continuing dominance of whites within this field has shattered such an idea, showing the realities within this industry. From employees to authors, all aspects of the publishing field are affected by this conflict, making the supposed inclusive publishing industry an exclusive one that is only for a select few.

Defintion

The white publishing industry can be defined as the dominance of whites within this industry, leading to limitations and mistreatment of others. The term white liberal racism also falls under this term. White liberal racism involves the "unconscious bias" in which there is a false sense of empathy that is presented to people of color within the publishing industry.

Impact

Publishing has always been a historical struggle for minorities, despite the deceptively inclusive image it projects in the modern day. According to one estimate, 95% of American fiction books published between 1950 and 2018 were written by white people. In comparison, about 42% of the country is non-white. In addition to that, a 2015 study found several similarly concerning percentages: the publishing industry was 79 percent white, executives in the publishing industry were 86 percent white, editorial departments were 82 percent white, sales departments were 83 percent white, and marketing and publicity departments were 77 percent white, and book reviewers were 89 percent white.

The statistics on published books and on the publishing industry are very relevant to each other. Predominantly white publishers are much more likely to have biases against authors of color. Even aside from that, they may not have the knowledge necessary to properly market a book by an author of color where their race plays a major part, so quite a few books will be turned down for that.

White Liberal Racism

What is White-Liberal Racism? Maraih Stovall’s, A Letter From a Black Woman in Publishing on the Industry’s Cruel, Hypocritical Insistence brought up this concept. White Liberal Racism can be defined as the unconscious bias. It is not deliberate or direct racism, but a front presenting allyship and unconsciously discriminating. Another way to look at it is microaggressions. For example, this can be seen as two job candidates having the same credentials, but one is hired over the other because they are white. Or a book by a white author being published over a book by a black author because they think it will sell more because of who it is written by. This is not seen as “racist” because they are just doing what is best for business in their eyes. They will smile and maybe give the person of color a letter of recommendation, but send them on their way. Yet, this is White-Liberal Racism. In Stovall’s Letter, the narrator says she is afraid to use her voice to speak out because of retaliation. As a black woman, she has less power in the white dominated industry. They could easily replace her.

Marketing

Publishers want to make money. A way to do that is by catering to their largest audience. However, a study in the UK on the diversity in the industry illustrated that the understood audience is white and mostly female. That carries into the view that minorities like Black and Asian people do not read. While the target audience may have been accurate a few decades ago, it is now just a sign of the publishing industry holding on to ideas of the past. The study also uncovered how a lot of fiction by authors of color are “whitewashed or exoticized”. This is because they will sell better, or are imagined to do so. The white audience would rather read something they can identify with or find interesting because it is exotic and a good story. Authors of color are then pushed even further to the side because, financially, they are a commercial risk. Publishers and booksellers do not want to put people of color on the covers of books because they see it as being bad for sales. Their white audience will not buy a book with an African American on the front. Finally, the study reports that they do not know how to reach a wider audience or see the cultural benefit. Their choices are not driven by inclusivity but by money.

Impact

While the white publishing industry affects the publishing field as a whole, its impact can be divided into the categories of employees and authors. Analyzing both categories shows the extent with which this exclusive industry has reached. These categories also present the two positions held within this conflict, showing both sides of the white publishing industry

Employees

The category of employees within the white publishing industry refers to the clear lack of diversity within staff members resulting in white employees dominating the publishing field. As a result, diverse staff members may face lacks of promotions or opportunities, are valued less than other employees, or have their opinions completely disregarded.

Some employees may face even more discrimination and racism such as inappropriate or targeted jokes, the expectation of being "Americanized" through things such as changing ones name in order to better blend with others, and asking employees of color to authenticate a diverse piece of writing yet questioning their work. While these are only a few instances of racism in the publishing industry that have been experienced by employees, it is clear that there is a divide between white and diverse employees in both value, opportunities, and overall experience.

Motivating Exclusivity: Comp Titles

This chart reveals the race of the authors behind the top 500 Comp Titles. 21 out of the 500 authors were minorities

Comp titles (comparable titles) are used to predict profit. When a new book proposal comes in, publishers look at comp titles to see their similarity, which can help infer the investment and success of the new book. They become a goal or target at which publishers aim to acquire. The writer’s identity carries a lot of weight as it aligns with a certain audience. Comps are harmful to smaller authors as if they present something original, it is less likely to get published as it is “not a good sign.” It is assumed that this systemic problem is individual as questions like “why can’t employees of color choose to acquire more diverse stories?” but this issue isn’t personal, and acquisitions don’t work this way.

“Comps perpetuate the status quo, creating a rigid process of acquisition without much room for individual choice or advocacy.”

The LA Book Review writes: "the dearth of writers of color as frequent and influential comps — both within and across genres — shows that writers of color still do not enjoy a broad influence behind the scenes." This is an unfair advantage as this old system has disadvantaged authors of color as books written by white authors have been given more platforms for a longer time, allowing them to gain more popularity, allowing more promised investment to occur.

Comps also create issues as stories can only be produced to appeal to the largest audience, which is white readers. Authors of color can be rejected as their stories aren’t universal enough. It is less universal and more directed towards white audiences as diverse authors are only being compared to other white authors, diluting their cultural identity and forcing them to be marketable to a group they do not racially align with. These comps reinforce institutional racism by prescribing which stories are considered marketable, often sidelining authentic narratives from writers of color in favor of familiar, white-centered ones.

Authors

The category of authors refers to the overall dominance of white authors and the consistently negative views which diverse authors face. While this may include a variety of things, diverse authors typically face an overall lower chance of being accepted, the view that their work is "too risky" and thus not profitable, and may have no one within a publishing house that is qualified enough to read their work.

Statistics

In 2018, a study observed that only 11% of authors published by Big Five publishers that year were people of color. This creates a sort of endless feedback loop; the fewer published authors of color, the fewer people of color inspired to get into the industry, and vice versa. Authors of color don’t just have more difficulty getting their book past the publishing stage; there are immense obstacles on every step of the way.

The traditional publishing world can simply feel completely shut out from authors of color; absolutely nothing, they argue, is built for them. Even the image of inclusivity it often projects is viewed by these authors as largely disingenuous; diversity is considered a sort of bonus, or even gimmick, to a lot of publishers. When financial difficulties necessitate layoffs, the employees of color are often the first to go, due to the way their presence is regarded, even if there is no issue with their job performance. This means that the few people in the publishing houses who might potentially understand the authors' books in full are at constant risk of termination.

Even when authors manage to break through, their works can fall victim to being undermarketed or marketed improperly, because the publishing houses do not have the employees necessary to do their books full justice. Thus, even a book that is published is not always going to be a success story, which makes this statistic look even worse.

Solutions

Though the realities of the publishing industry leave the future of this field unknown and perhaps negative, there are a variety of solutions which can help to better improve this conflict. It is important to note, however, that these solutions though won't immediately solve this problem, are the first few steps which a publishing house can do in order to initiate change for a better and brighter future.

Examining Biases

Here, a publishing house must examine the very foundations or origins of bias within their workplace. For instance, how is a publishing house defining a "good book?" If it is too limited and narrow then that can lead to less diversity, therefore showing a need for change.

Building Partnerships

Partnering with other publishing houses whose mission statement or actions align with a both diversity and inclusivity can offer a variety of opportunities. Firstly, this can allow a publishing house to learn how to be much more inclusive. Secondly, this is a chance for a publishing house to show their authors and employees that they are striving for diversity and improvement which can offer a wide range of advantages.

Improving Hiring Practices

Is there a diverse range of staff members within the publishing house? If not take not then perhaps there needs to be a change in the hiring process. Consider opportunities such as internships where a publishing house can hire a wide range of people.

Direct Call for Submissions

While this may not be the avenue for all publishing houses have direct calls for submissions is certainly one way to bring in more diverse authors. A publishing can send out calls for submissions stating "we are looking for such and such diverse authors" giving the opportunity for these writers to submit their works.

Reaching out

Reaching out to diverse authors is a direct and easy way to receive more diverse authors. This can be anything from speaking to authors employees personally know, or even offering to read the manuscript of an author who someone personally enjoyed reading. While reaching out may not immediately result in authors agreeing to submit their work, this shows them that the publishing house is in fact welcoming and diverse. This can also help to better spread the word allowing authors who were not reached out to consider submitting their work with the publishing house.

Rewording Mission Statement

A publishing houses mission statement directly states what their goal and intensions are. This provides a clear image of what kind of publishing house it is and whether an author or employee wants to work with them. Therefore, it is crucial that a publishing house directly states their inclusivity and diversity or their goal to attain such a thing in order to show both authors and readers their goals.

Promoting Diverse Authors

Though a publishing house may attain diverse authors, this process if far from over. Once a publishing house is officially working with a diverse author it is important to promote both the work itself and the author, in order to get others to not only read but recognize their work. This is important to note, because if a publishing house has diverse authors yet doesn't promote them as they do for white authors, then change will not happen. In other words, it is not enough to simply just have diverse authors, a publishing house must continue to work, promote, and advocate for them.

Future of Publishing Industry

Some examples of the diverse range of books which include a variety of authors, languages, and subjects, that are published through Lee & Low Books.

It is clear that the publishing industry, though is viewed as liberal, has become a limited and white favoring industry. This has lead to continuous racism, discrimination, and the overall limitations of diverse employees and authors. Despite this fact, there is still hope that the future of publishing is a brighter and inclusive one. While issues still remain within the publishing field, a diverse and inclusive publishing house is something that can be reached. For instance, there are a variety of small presses that are minority owned or accept minority writers, publishing their works that in other places may be seen as "too risky." An example of this is Low & Lee Books, a multicultural children's publishing house which strives to be diverse. Lee & Low Books have open submissions for writers of color, are 100% minority owned, and have an inclusive mission statement stating that they "publish beautiful books about everyone, for everyone." So while there is still work to be done in order to improve the publishing industry as a whole, it is clear that this conflict can be overcome through both time and effort.