[Lingtyp] Call for nominations and applications: Editor of Linguistic Typology

Wed Apr 26 10:36:41 UTC 2017

Dear all,
I'm writing as Chair of the nomination committee, and as the person
who suggested the May 10 deadline. As Martin says, it has been known
for a while that we would need to find a new editor this year. The
initial stage is to collect nominations and suggestions for who could
fill the position, which the committee can then discuss. Given that
many typologists do fieldwork over the Northern summer, or otherwise
travel, we need to have suggestions in place at a time of year we can
act on them, and so that the process can be completed to allow time
for a smooth handover.

Let me emphasise that the nomination materials themselves are not
meant to be extensive. We've asked for a CV (a link to a recent web CV
Is fine), and a brief explanation for why the person is being
nominated and why they would be a good editor. We are not asking for
detailed or time-consuming nomination packets. (They should be sent to
lt.editor2 at gmail.com.) Two weeks should be ample for that.

Regarding Martin's comments -- the relationship between the LT journal
and the ALT would be something for a new editor to consider, in
consultation with the editorial board, ALT executive, and ALT
membership. However the role of LT is conceived in the future, we need
to find a replacement for the irreplaceable Frans in the near future.

Best wishes, and I look forward to seeing the nominations come in.
Claire

-----
Claire Bowern
Department of Linguistics
Yale University
370 Temple St
New Haven, CT 06511, USA

On Wed, Apr 26, 2017 at 5:54 AM, Martin Haspelmath
<haspelmath at shh.mpg.de> wrote:
> I agree with Bernhard and Susanne that there is every reason to have full
> trust in those active for ALT and LT, and I actually think that a two-week
> deadline is quite reasonable. It has been known for some time that the
> present solution for LT is only an interim solution, so interested
> colleagues have had ample time to think about it.
>
> What has not been discussed, and maybe should be discussed in one way or
> another, is whether ALT needs to continue its close association with LT.
>
> In 1997, the idea was that De Gruyter would publish a journal for the
> community of typologists – in a sense, for ALT. But in the meantime, the
> publishing landscape has changed quite drastically. Increasingly,
> publishers' incomes do not come from individual subscriptions, but from
> owning prestigious journal brands, which are parts of big packages that are
> sold in  intransparent ways to big consortia of libraries.
>
> There seems to be no doubt that LT would survive even if ALT members no
> longer had a compulsory subscription, and with new services such as
> Unpaywall.org, there would not be a real danger that people would not have
> access to LT articles even if their institutions did not have access to LT.
>
> Thus, I think that by now, the roles are reversed: Rather than De Gruyter
> publishing LT for ALT, ALT is helping De Gruyter find an editor for a
> journal that is owned by De Gruyter. And is this really part of ALT's
> mission?
>
> (Note that ALT does not own the title LT, i.e. we do not have the legal
> option of choosing a different publisher.)
>
> These are difficult issues, and there are no easy solutions. But I seriously
> think that ALT might consider letting LT go, trusting that De Gruyter will
> find a suitable editor even without us. ALT might want to focus on other
> things such as organizing conferences, and maybe supporting non-commercial,
> scholar-owned publication efforts such as Language Science Press.
>
> Best,
> Martin
>
>
> On 26.04.17 11:35, Bernhard Waelchli wrote:
>
> Dear all,
>
> I would like to write some words in support of the president of the
> association and all the other people working for Linguistic Typology behind
> the curtains. Without knowing exactly what they are doing and why, but
> assuming that it must be a lot they have to deal with, I have full
> confidence in their intentions to work for the best of this journal, which
> is very important for our community. I am also confident that the people who
> are in change and whom we have elected are capable of dealing with these
> issues.
>
> Kind regards,
>
> Bernhard
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: "Good, Jeff" <jcgood at buffalo.edu>
>> To: "LINGTYP at listserv.linguistlist.org"
>> <LINGTYP at listserv.linguistlist.org>
>> Sent: Tue, 25 Apr 2017 23:00
>> Subject: [Lingtyp] Call for nominations and applications: Editor of
>> Linguistic Typology
>>
>> Dear all,
>>
>> ALT is currently soliciting nominations, including self-nominations, for
>> the position of Editor of Linguistic Typology, beginning January 2018. The
>> Editor is probably the most important officer in the ALT. They organize the
>> work of the Editorial Board, oversee the work of the editorial assistant,
>> make final decisions about acceptance or non-acceptance of papers, set
>> journal policy (consulting with the ALT Executive Committee as necessary),
>> and work closely with the publisher to maintain the high quality of the
>> journal. Support for editorial work is generally made available through the
>> journal publisher, de Gruyter Mouton.
>>
>> Candidates should be established scholars with good publication records,
>> relevant editorial experience (such as service on one or more editorial
>> boards), and/or other relevant organizational experience, and a history of
>> prompt and efficient handling of email and other communications.
>>
>> Nominees and applicants can be individuals or pairs or teams of
>> co-editors. The nomination or application should include a brief CV (about
>> 2-3 pages), or link to a website if it provides the relevant information,
>> and a brief cover letter mentioning the individual's qualifications (for
>> both self-nominations and regular nominations).
>>
>> In view of the importance of the Editor position, the President has
>> appointed a special Editor Search Committee led by the Chair of the
>> Nominating Committee (Claire Bowern).
>>
>> The Search Committee will also make nominations of their own. In addition,
>> all members of ALT are urged to think of qualified people and urge them to
>> apply.
>>
>> Please send nominations, applications, and inquiries to the Editorial
>> Search Committee at this email account: lt.editor2 at gmail.com. The deadline
>> is May 10, 2017.
>>
>> Claire Bowern
>> Chair, Editorial Search Committee and Nominating Committee
>>
>> Jeff Good
>> President, ALT
>>
> --
> Bernhard Wälchli
> Stockholms universitet
> Institutionen för lingvistik
> SE - 106 91 Stockholm
> Tel +46 8 16 23 44
>
>
>
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>
> --
> Martin Haspelmath (haspelmath at shh.mpg.de)
> Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History
> Kahlaische Strasse 10
> D-07745 Jena
> &
> Leipzig University
> IPF 141199
> Nikolaistrasse 6-10
> D-04109 Leipzig
>
>
>
>
>
>
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