Diversity, inclusivity, and accessibility

Publishers have been using technology to disseminate research since we started publishing, but we often focus on the mainstream needs and forget the perspectives and needs of those voices we rarely hear. This perpetuates disadvantage and reduces diversity throughout the publishing community. Such problems can be considered from two perspectives: the make-up of the publishing industry and the manner by which we disseminate publications. Within the publishing workforce, diversity imbalances have long been acknowledged, for example in the demographic data reported in 2016 (Greco, 2016). And there are too few initiatives to address these limitations, although some attempts are being made, for example the 2017 American Association of Publishers intern programme in partnership with the United Negro College Fund. Similar awareness regarding what and how we publish is less commonly recognized as a problem for inclusivity and broader access to knowledge. An estimated 285 million people throughout the world are thought to have serious visual impairment and another 360 million have deafness or hearing loss (World Health Organization [WHO], 2014). While these are among the most common sensory deficiencies, countless other limitations challenge disabled readers and prevent their access to informational resources. Fortunately, their needs have been recognized in some countries through legislation enforcing accessibility policy within higher education institutions and commercial website owners alike. The implications for publishers are huge. In a recent lawsuit, it was found that the Massive Online Open Course (MOOC) websites run by the University of California, Berkeley were in breach of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. In this case, the content was inaccessible to blind and deaf people, missing key features such as closed captions and screen-reader compatibility (Straumsheim, 2017). As result the University is currently in the process of taking down all MOOC content, including over 20,000 audio and video files because it is too expensive to make it compliant. With the huge growth of online publishing and digital resources, what must be done to ensure that publishers meet the requirements of legislation (and differences between countries), and is there more we can do? Is the publishing industry stepping up to its responsibilities? From voice recognition software to web-enabled devices, technological advances in content processing are extending the publisher’s ability to ensure the broadest possible accessibility of their products, with interoperable formats to suit readers’ diverse needs and capabilities. Platform providers are including accessible download options and the latest updates to web publishing standards, like JATS and EPUB, comply with World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) requirements for access for the visually and motor impaired. So, why isn’t every publication able to meet these basic standards? What risks are in play for publishers, libraries, and societies? Why are we still talking about accessibility? Our January 2018 special issue of Learned Publishing will be dedicated to answering these questions from a range of perspectives. Technologists will share the latest breakthroughs in digital workflows and hosting. Librarians will explain the current state of disabled student services on campuses around the world. And we expect to hear directly from readers and learn from their experiences with our products. Publishers can no longer burrow in the sand and hope that accessibility fixes itself. It only takes a bad day of hay fever or a broken arm for each one of us to realize that we are only temporarily abled. Gifts like sight, sound, and mobility are easily taken for granted, but any deterioration in these capabilities can drastically limit our ability to learn and engage with the world around us. As purveyors of the world’s growing body of knowledge, publishers have a profound obligation to continually adapt our offerings to meet the needs of all readers, able bodied and otherwise. The January 2018 issue will highlight how national funding agencies and regional legislation require many institutions to