Judith M. Nixon, professor in the Humanities, Social Science and Education Library at Purdue University, recently published a tiered study of journals in the library and information science discipline in the College and Research Libraries journal. Librarians who are not publishing will find the ranked lists useful as a quick summary of the most influential journals in the field (Nixon, 2014). I found it to be a most helpful guide for this project of comparing and contrasting journals and will continue to use it in my research throughout my studies. She further explained that to develop the tiered list, a set of criteria was selected. The first criterion was peer review; both tier one and tier two would be peer-reviewed titles. There are a few journals, such as Library Trends and Library Journal, of high scholarly level that are not peer-reviewed. These journals, which invite authors to write on specified topics are considered by our promotion committee as of the same value as peer-reviewed titles and so are included in the same category as peer-reviewed (Nixon, 2014).
The two journals I chose to look are:
Editor:
Scott Walter, M.L.S., Ph.D.
The College & Research Libraries journal was founded in 1939 by A.F. Kuhlman specifically for college and university librarians. He felt the needs of the college librarian were too numerous, too complex and too specialized to be dealt with effectively...in a journal which seeks to address itself to the varied interests of all libraries (Walter, 2014).
The journal continues to be a scholarly journal for academic and research librarians. C & RL includes articles in all fields of interest and concern to academic and research libraries. Well-written manuscripts on all aspects of academic and research librarianship will be considered. The focus of the journal is on reports of original research. Writers seeking publication are instructed to seek peer review. It is a refereed journal that uses double-blind reviewing in choosing articles for publication. (C & RL Author Guidelines). An important arena for college and university librarians seeking publishing. It is published bi-monthly and starting in January 2014 became an all access all digital format with no printed publication.
Editor:
Kathleen Hughes
Public Library Association
Kathleen Hughes
Public Library Association
Public Libraries is a journal that is published six times per year. It is the official journal of the Public Library Association and devoted solely to public libraries. Each issue includes important industry news, PLA and ALA updates, columns and feature articles that offer strategies and ideas for public librarians. A go-to-read for public librarians.
Public Libraries journal welcomes manuscripts of interest to public libraries and library staff. They are reviewed by a feature editor and others knowledgeable about the topic. Writings they seek:
Feature articles: generally 10-20 pages
"Verso" pieces: opinion pieces
New items for "Tales from the Front"
Items for "News from PLA"
Vendor announcements
Reviews of professional literature
( P L Editorial Guidelines, 2014)
Compare and Contrast
The two journals I looked at are alike in that they both serve a very specific audience. A very focused audience. I think that is a good thing. At least one of the professional journals on a librarian's regular reading list should be a journal explicitly for their field of work.
It is easier to see how the two journals are different. The College and Research Libraries journal reads like the scholarly university journal that it was founded as and still is with its studies of resources, teaching pedagogy and details of research. The Public Libraries journal as a trendy, feature article read filled with advice/examples of the latest great thing to come along in the public library world. It is also apparent that it is the information guide for the association. The issue right before the biennial meeting focuses primarily on the upcoming gathering.
A librarian in training would do well to read and keep up to date with both types of journals.
References:
College and Research Libraries. (2014, March). Instructions for authors. Retrieved from http://www.crl.acrl.org/site/misc/author.xhtml.
Nixon. J. (2014). Core journals in library and information science: developing a methodology for ranking LIS journals. College and Research Libraries, 75, 66-90. Retrieved from http://www.crl.acrl.org/content/75/1/66.full.pdf.html.
Public Libraries editorial guidelines. (2014). Retrieved from http://ala.org/pla/publications/publiclibraries/writeforpl/editorialguidelines.
Walter, S. (2014). Re-introducing college and research libraries: do we still need "another library journal?. College and Research Libraries, 75 (1), 3-4. Retrieved from http: //crl.acrl.org.
free image from Pixabay images
It is easier to see how the two journals are different. The College and Research Libraries journal reads like the scholarly university journal that it was founded as and still is with its studies of resources, teaching pedagogy and details of research. The Public Libraries journal as a trendy, feature article read filled with advice/examples of the latest great thing to come along in the public library world. It is also apparent that it is the information guide for the association. The issue right before the biennial meeting focuses primarily on the upcoming gathering.
A librarian in training would do well to read and keep up to date with both types of journals.
References:
College and Research Libraries. (2014, March). Instructions for authors. Retrieved from http://www.crl.acrl.org/site/misc/author.xhtml.
Nixon. J. (2014). Core journals in library and information science: developing a methodology for ranking LIS journals. College and Research Libraries, 75, 66-90. Retrieved from http://www.crl.acrl.org/content/75/1/66.full.pdf.html.
Public Libraries editorial guidelines. (2014). Retrieved from http://ala.org/pla/publications/publiclibraries/writeforpl/editorialguidelines.
Walter, S. (2014). Re-introducing college and research libraries: do we still need "another library journal?. College and Research Libraries, 75 (1), 3-4. Retrieved from http: //crl.acrl.org.
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