De/Instutionalize is a new series from Un/Livable Cultures that focuses on the un/livability of academia and the ways in which academic institutions participate in regimes of oppression and subjugation. This first episode of the De/Institutionalize series covers the elitism of knowledge, the profitability of academic publishing conglomerates, and the struggle for open-access scholarship.

The average cost of a scholarly journal article is $32. With profit margins to rival the likes of Google, academic publishing has become a gatekeeper of knowledge and access while keeping scholars on the hamster wheel of exploitation. As capitalism maintains the Ivory Towers, resources like shadow libraries have emerged to create more equitable opportunities to engage with scholarship. But as the recent FBI seizure of domains of Z-Library remind us, knowledge is power, and the role of the system is to exclude those who do not belong from using our power to make our lives more livable.

Special Guest Dr. Laurie M. Johnson (Political Philosophy: Dr. Laurie Johnson YouTube channel and The Maurin Academy) shares her rich experience in academic publishing and invites us to reflect on the purpose of knowledge production when it is inaccessible to the public. 

Find more of Laurie’s work: https://lauriemjohnson.com/

Consider supporting the podcast on Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/user?u=89403232) or leaving us a review!

Sources:

Is the staggeringly profitable business of scientific publishing bad for science?

 Stephen Buranyi

Feds Seize One of the Largest Sites for Pirated Books and Articles, Z-LibraryZ-Library Was a Lifeline for Students on Shoestring Budgets

https://eua.eu/news/188:scholarly-publishing-eua-asks-european-commission-to-investigate-lack-of-competition.html

Many articles from https://torrentfreak.com/

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/jun/27/profitable-business-scientific-publishing-bad-for-science

https://www.vice.com/en/article/7k8qby/feds-seize-one-of-the-largest-sites-for-pirated-books-and-articles-z-library

https://slate.com/technology/2022/11/z-library-pirated-books-papers-school-tor.html