Open Access is a response to the new challenges posed to the publication and distribution of the results of research in the humanities. Therefore, the founders of JRFM, experts in theology, the study of religion, film and media studies and fine arts, developed JRFM according to a Gold Standard Open Access policy. The University of Graz in cooperation with the Ludwig Maximilian University Munich and Villanova University provides financial, technical and human resources in order to guarantee high standards of selection, review and production. The Land Steiermark (Austria) generously supports JRFM financially, and the publishing house Schüren in Marburg offers expertise in designing and distributing the journal. The university library of the University Graz hosts the journal.
Yet, as every Open Access Journal, the JRFM faces challenges, too.
- How does the editors policy fit into the political necessities of publication metrics?
- Given that neither readers nor authors are charged, how can the problem of finances be solved in a sustainable way?
- What is the best way to keep the quality level as high as possible? And what is the best strategy to cope with the challenges of indexing?
The conference also aims at tackling questions linked to the topics our journal will pursue in the next decade and their connection to Open Access publication: How will the field of film, religion and media develop? What challenges and questions arise from digital media, the interaction among media, and broader processes of mediatisation? How do publications policies impact theories, methodology and subject matters? Which mutual influences might we discover?
