In a recent Inside Higher Ed <http://www.insidehighered.com/> article
on "Rallying Behind Open Access," Scott Jaschik (2006a) wrote
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If universities pay the salaries of researchers and provide them with
labs, and the federal government provides those researchers with
grants for their studies, why should those same universities feel
they can't afford to have access to research findings?
That's part of the argument behind a push by some in Congress to make
such findings widely available at no charge. The Federal Public
Research Access Act . . .
.[<http://cornyn.senate.gov/doc_archive/05-02-2006_COE06461_xml.pdf>
(32 kB)]. . . would require federal agencies to publish their
findings, online and free, within six months of their publication
elsewhere. Proponents of the legislation, including many librarians
and professors frustrated by skyrocketing journal prices, see such
"open access" as entirely fair. But publishers - including many
scholarly associations - have attacked the bill. . . [Jaschik
(2006b)]. . . ., warning that it could endanger research and kill off
many journals.
In an attempt to refocus the debate, THE PROVOSTS OF 25 TOP
UNIVERSITIES ARE JOINTLY RELEASING AN OPEN LETTER. . . .[to download
this letter go to Jaschik (2006a) and click on "jointly releasing an
open letter" in the third paragraph]. . THAT STRONGLY BACKS THE BILL
AND ENCOURAGES HIGHER EDUCATION TO PREPARE FOR A NEW WAY OF
DISSEMINATING RESEARCH FINDINGS. "Widespread public dissemination
levels the economic playing field for researchers outside of
well-funded universities and research centers and creates more
opportunities for innovation. Ease of access and discovery also
encourages use by scholars outside traditional disciplinary
communities, thus encouraging imaginative and productive scholarly
convergence," the provosts write.
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The provosts' letter carries three references to articles on "open
access": Economist (2006), Guterman (2006), and Ivry (2006). See also
"The Shift Away From Print" Fenton & Schonfeld (2005).
At the end of Jaschick's article is a forum in which Inside Higher Ed
readers can weigh in on this controversial matter.
Guterman, L. 2006. "Advocates of Open Access Hope to Strengthen the
NIH's Policy on Making Research Results Available Online," The
Chronicle of Higher Education, 19 May; online to subscribers at
<http://chronicle.com/weekly/v52/i37/37a01601.htm>