SLOUCHING TOWARDS ALEXANDRIA: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE SCHOLARLY COMMUNICATION SYSTEM A Dissertation by ROBIN ADRIENNE BEDENBAUGH Submitted to the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Chair of Committee, Patrick Burkart Committee Members, Jennifer Mercieca James Kevin Barge Harland Prechel Head of Department, James Kevin Barge May 2018 Major Subject: Communication Copyright 2018 Robin Adrienne Bedenbaugh ABSTRACT This dissertation provides an historical analysis of libraries and discusses the broader system of scholarly communication and publishing using mixed methods from critical media studies, library studies, organizational communication, systems sociology, and rhetorical studies. It argues that practices of scholarly publishing in the US university environment are grounded in myths and ideological systems of gatekeeping which may prevent participants from recognizing dangers and opportunities associated with digital librarianship. Three such myths operate to support the status quo system of scholarly communication: the myth of authority, the myth of influence, and the myth of permanence. These myths portend and reflect structural changes in relationships governing the intertwining of library and university organizations, including emergent organizational forms, intellectual property challenges by commercial scholarly publishers, and new library-centered forms of publication enabled by new technologies. ii DEDICATION For Holly iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS To begin, I would like to thank wine, cheese straws and coffee. You have made the process of getting this dissertation written immensely more tolerable. I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to my advisor, Patrick Burkart, and committee members Jennifer Mercieca, Kevin Barge, and Harland Prechel. Your advice and support through this process has made this project better than I imagined it could be. Kristan Poirot, special thanks to you for swooping in like Wonder Woman at the last minute to sit in on the defense. Drinks are on me forever. To my Master’s committee at the University of Kansas, Robert C. Rowland, Nancy Baym, and Tracy Russo: as you know, my original intent was to go through this process with you. Life being what happens when you make other plans, I ended up at Texas A&M, thankfully with another great committee. I appreciate all that you did for me while I was at Kansas, and I think you will all see your influence reflected here should you ever get bored enough to read it. Thanks also go to two professors from my MLIS program, Linda Walling and Robert “Dr. Data” Molyneux. Linda, you were the first person to suggest that I consider going on to get my PhD. It took a while, but I’m finally here. Dr. Data, you were instrumental in helping me focus my research while at South Carolina, and I appreciate having had the opportunity to work with you. I consider myself very lucky to have had some amazing bosses throughout my career, but a few have had to provide additional support as I worked full-time while attending graduate school. Lynn Bretz, Todd Cohen, Colleen Cook, Charles Gilreath, iv Steve Smith, and Rita Smith, I appreciate everything you have done to help me get through this. Lynn, I’m sorry you aren’t here to read this. I have also been blessed with some amazing colleagues, some of whom were supportive to the degree that they were willing to actually read drafts of proposals and chapters, and, Teresa Walker, Peter Fernandez, Rachel Caldwell, I should have more free time to pay you back for having done so now. Martha Rudolph, Cathy Jenkins and Sarah Zimmerman, you are such an amazing team to work with and I have appreciated your patience with me in my many moments of distraction throughout this process. I thank you, Terry Bullman, for creating a sanctuary in which I could work out my frustrations throughout this process with a combination of mindful reflection and intense exercise. I want to thank the crew at Bullman’s Kickboxing and Krav Maga for offsetting the effects of the aforementioned wine and cheese straws. Thanks to Alyson Gallaher, Erik Andelman, Emily Hildreth, Jodie Jones, Ed Russell, Rik Asher, Jake Levy, Gary Runyon, Savannah Robertson, Jessica Brothers, Jim Cloutier, Joe Dodgin, Steven Tanner, Russell Scales, Jamie Chard, and Adam Ponzurick. Alli Jenkins, I save you for last not because you are least, but because I also need to thank you for being a great buddy with whom to talk through the traumas of watching The Walking Dead and for being an excellent cat dealer. Tiger has been a wonderful addition to our family, and he has been a ruthless editor of this document, having shredded what I’m sure is at least a ream of paper during this process. To Grace, my faithful writing and study buddy, and Xena and Duke, thank you for sometimes lowering my blood pressure. v To Cindy Lou Douglas and the crew at the Chop Shop Hair Studio, thank you for being an incredibly delightful group of people who not only keep my hair looking fabulous, but provide a few hours of soul-renewing laughter every time I come in. I am also lucky to have had a great deal of support from incredible friends throughout this process. Jennifer Jabson, our coffee dates have been one of the things that have kept me sane. Tracy Hammond and Dan Goldberg, you have been extremely generous, wonderful friends and have provided an excellent home away from home for my Texas visits. Lucas and Erin Logan, your outstanding food and company have been one of the highlights of the years since I met you. Kim Topp, you have been a wonderful friend and emotional support for me, and I have to say the same about you, Srivi Ramasubramanian. And finally, to Cara Wallis, the friendship you have provided over the last few years is not something I have words to describe, so I’ll lean on the great Muppet, Gonzo, who once sang, "There's not a word yet, for old friends who've just met." I would like to thank my mother, Mary Ann Johnson, for the support you’ve provided throughout the years. I definitely wouldn’t be here without you. To my aunt and uncle, Jennifer and Mike Hall, you certainly contributed to a fair share of my success, as have you, Miriam and Tommy Young. Most importantly, thank you to my wife, Holly Mercer. You have been more support than I could have possibly asked for. Not only have you put up with my complaining (and sometimes crying), you have been a valuable resource for ideas, and when I began this, you took on yardwork duties in addition to the household duties to vi provide me time to write. If I used the entire space allotted for acknowledgements, I couldn’t begin to express how much I appreciate you, so I’ll leave you with this: I’m going to go mow the grass. vii CONTRIBUTORS AND FUNDING SOURCES This work was supervised by a dissertation committee consisting of Professor Patrick Burkart [advisor] and Professor(s) Jennifer Mercieca and James Kevin Barge of the Department of Communication and Professor Harland Prechel of Sociology. All work for the dissertation was completed independently by the student. The research and writing of this document was completed without outside financial support. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................II DEDICATION ............................................................................................................ III ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................... IV CONTRIBUTORS AND FUNDING SOURCES ...................................................... VIII TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................. IX LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................... XI CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION: MODELING THE SYSTEM OF SCHOLARLY COMMUNICATION ..................................................................................................... 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 1 Statement of the problem and research questions ....................................................... 3 Delineation of the research field and scope of the project ........................................... 4 Research methods & outline of chapters ................................................................... 27 CHAPTER II WHAT THE MARKET WILL BEAR ................................................... 31 The changing landscape of scholarly publishing ....................................................... 31 Changes to the legal environment & copyright law .................................................. 42 CHAPTER III LIES, DAMN LIES AND IMPACT FACTORS ................................... 48 Introduction ............................................................................................................. 48 Defining authority .................................................................................................... 50 The myth of fixity .................................................................................................... 54 A brief history of scholarly journals ......................................................................... 58 Factors contributing to change in the publishing culture ........................................... 70 Open