10th Turkish Publishing Assembly Final Declaration
10th Turkish Publishing Assembly Online (15-16 June 2022)
Final Declaration
The tenth Turkish Publishing Assembly, organized by the Turkish Publishers Association every two years, was held online on 15-16 June 2022. The important matters discussed during the two-day Assembly with a view towards following the changes and transformations in the field of publishing after the pandemic and addressing the problems in the field of publishing included historical crisis conditions, digitalization, legal regulations, freedom of thought and expression and freedom to publish, the future of educational publishing, new marketing tools, trends, book fairs and reading culture.
A. The publishing industry must resist?? so that future generations can enjoy the creative and cultural benefits of strong publishing.
- For all the stakeholders of our sector, the way to get out of the historical crisis conditions with the least damage is being open to change, solidarity and cooperation, and to transparent and data-based business models.
2. While high interest and recession/stagflation are a serious problem in the global economy, new business models should be planned considering this situation.
3. Protecting the labor in the creation and production process should be a priority; ways for publishers to protect their qualified human resources should be found; and grievances that may arise from compulsory economic restrictions should be prevented.
4. All stakeholders of publishing, such as publishers, booksellers, authors, printing houses, bookstores and libraries, should come together and use their resources in a way that nurtures and encourages the culture of reading, and should pave the way for events and opportunities that serve this by keeping public benefit a top priority.
5. Hate speech and loss of trust between people must not become a part of our lives, and freedom to publish, which is one of the fundamental human rights, and interference in the freedom to publish should be addressed on this basis.
6. In an era when new commercial actors such as e-commerce service providers/marketplaces are identified, bookstores are closed and publishing houses are struggling, measures should be taken against price competition created by e-commerce, and distributors gradually becoming dominant and having the power to dictate prices.
B. Digital tools are expanding and transforming the publishing landscape.
- Along with digital capabilities, fields such as audiobooks, e-books, metaverse and artificial intelligence have opened the doors to a different, dynamic world that will change our minds. The means of reaching the reader and the production process should be considered and planned together with all these capabilities.
2. The publishing industry, which is able to cater to the needs of every sub-target group, should redefine the data and put it at its core.
3. Digital transformations in education due to the pandemic have revealed new behavioral models. In this transition phase, the benefits of hybrid solutions to publishers and users should be considered.
4. Publishers should first perform due diligence in determining their carbon footprints, and then develop a step-by-step plan and strategy in order to take action. The books that are published and the way the climate crisis is presented to readers of all ages are vital to the way societies deal with this gigantic and urgent situation.
5. Publishers and librarians must jointly solve the problems of illiteracy, depreciation of quality, the elimination of intermediaries for publishers and libraries, and the persistent inadequate supply of diverse digital content.
6. Publishers and libraries should contribute to shaping a better future based on universal literacy, curiosity and innovation, ethics and professionalism, creativity and diversity.
7. Publishers should not be content with publishing quality books; they should also assess how sustainable their way of doing business is. They should consider the environment in their production flows and reduce their impact on the environment.
8. Book-oriented events such as book fairs and festivals should be planned according to the pandemic-induced changes in the behavior patterns of visitors and exhibitors, and the protection of cultural diversity should be a priority in participation through solidarity and multidimensional collaborations. Physical meetings should be restructured with digital and hybrid structures. Considering public benefit?? will strengthen the structure of festivals and fairs.
C. In order to preserve and develop cultural diversity, the publishing industry and the reader should jointly own all the values that make publishing exist.
- Bookstores are vital for a society that thrives around books–independent bookstores in particular should have opportunities to exist in a sustainable ecosystem.
2. Niche publishing has an important place in the cultural diversity of our country and should be supported by cooperation and solidarity models in publishing.
3. The disappearance of physical borders has changed the way that publishing workers and rightsholders are nurtured by each other, the way they work, and their production relations.
4. Children’s books publishing should not be assigned a “teaching” mission; it must be remembered that publishers are sufficiently qualified to attach importance to quality content suitable for age groups in children’s and youth books.