Editing Publishing (section)

{{Short description|Production and distribution of media}}
{{Redirect|Publisher}}
{{pp-move}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
[[File:Shelves of titles at the Aboriginal Studies Press bookshop.jpg|thumb|The [[Aboriginal Studies Press]] (ASP) bookshop at the [[Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies]]]]
'''Publishing''' is the activity of making information, literature, music, software, and other content available to the public for sale or free of charge.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/publishing|title=Publishing {{!}} meaning |website=Cambridge English Dictionary |language=en|access-date=2020-02-07|archive-date=5 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190705011116/https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/publishing|url-status=live}}</ref> Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of [[Printing|printed works]], such as [[book]]s, [[comic book]]s, [[newspaper]]s, and [[magazine]]s. With the advent of digital information systems, the scope has expanded to include [[electronic publishing|digital publishing]] such as [[E-book|e-books]], [[Magazines|digital magazines]], [[Electronic publishing|websites]], [[social media]], [[music]], and [[video game publisher|video game publishing]].

The commercial publishing industry ranges from large multinational conglomerates such as [[News Corp]], [[Pearson PLC|Pearson]], [[Penguin Random House]], and [[Thomson Reuters]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://issuu.com/gremideditorsdecatalunya/docs/2019-global50-the-world-ranking-of-the-publishing-|title=GLOBAL 50. The world ranking of the publishing industry 2019|website=Issuu|date=28 October 2019|language=en|access-date=2020-02-07|archive-date=27 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200727024046/https://issuu.com/gremideditorsdecatalunya/docs/2019-global50-the-world-ranking-of-the-publishing-|url-status=dead}}</ref> to major retail brands and thousands of small independent publishers. It has various divisions such as trade/retail publishing of fiction and non-fiction, educational publishing, and [[Academic publishing|academic and scientific publishing]].<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.wipo.int/publications/en/details.jsp?id=4251&plang=EN|title=The Global Publishing Industry in 2016|website=WIPO |doi=10.34667/tind.29034 |doi-access=free |language=en|access-date=2020-02-07|author1=International Publishers Association |year=2018|archive-date=15 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200615101051/https://www.wipo.int/publications/en/details.jsp?id=4251&plang=EN|url-status=live}}</ref> Publishing is also undertaken by governments, civil society, and private companies for administrative or compliance requirements, business, research, advocacy, or public interest objectives.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Börjesson|first=Lisa|date=2016|title=Research outside academia? – An analysis of resources in extra-academic report writing |journal=Proceedings of the Association for Information Science and Technology|language=en|volume=53|issue=1|pages=1–10|doi=10.1002/pra2.2016.14505301036|s2cid=7212603 |s2cid-access=free |doi-access=free}}</ref> This can include [[annual report]]s, [[research reports]], [[market research]], policy briefings, and [[technical report]]s. [[Self-publishing]] has become very common.

Publishing has evolved from a small, ancient form limited by law or religion to a modern, large-scale industry disseminating all types of information.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Publishing industry history and challenges {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/summary/publishing |access-date=2024-01-19 |website=britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

"'''Publisher'''" can refer to a publishing company, organization, or an individual who leads a publishing company, [[Imprint (trade name)|imprint]], [[Periodical literature|periodical]], or newspaper.