Printed materials have long been a source of income for anyone who wants to disseminate information and entertain the masses. Writers create articles for newspapers that contain information on a variety of topics; authors crank out manuscript after manuscript to satisfy the needs of their fans for a new book. Publishers, on the other hand, do nothing more than create several hundred or thousand copies of the articles, put them into a book or newspaper, and send it out for the world to see. They don’t think about how the published works affect the economy in general. This begs the question: Do publishers really care about the economy?
Yes, publishing involves a lot more than that. But at its heart, it’s still a business. Editors are always looking for writers to write something that would sell. But big-name publishers are only looking at written work as something to be printed. They won’t publish something if it’s not going to make them money. It doesn’t matter if that work will destroy someone, or something, so long as they make money, even if the economy starts to fall because of what they published.
Another thing to look at is how they distribute these works. Newspapers are still largely printed on, what else, paper. Environmentalists have called a stop to printing on freshly-made paper for years, because they’ve seen what it does to the world’s forests. Books are still printed on non-recycled paper, because big-name publishers feel that recycled paper does not have the same quality.
Luckily, there are independent publishers that are taking things to a whole new level. With people becoming more and more connected, the Internet is becoming more and more of a resource for information.
People don’t have the time to read the newspaper from cover to cover, or pick up a book and read it even during their free time. People want a compact means of carrying everything they need for that day, even if it means abandoning books and newspapers altogether.
This is where the Internet comes in. With more people on mobile devices, independent publishers have started putting their books online instead of on paper. It’s very cost effective, since you have no need of a printing press or even buying tons and tons of paper.
But don’t think that it’s just the independents that are taking to the Internet. Even the biggest names in publishing are putting out their usual material on the internet. They have noticed what these small publishing houses are doing, and by going towards digital copies, they’re essentially making more money than they ever did.
The digital age means that publishers can now express how much they care about the economy. Being environmentally aware is the “in” thing nowadays, and all publishers are taking notice. They’re now hiring people who are tech-savvy. By moving into the digital age, publishers have become more sensitive to the needs of the people. They no longer see writers as machines, because if you publish something online and people scrutinize it, the writer sees it instantly. It gives them a chance to improve their work much faster compared to traditional means. This, in turn, helps the economy grow.
