Fear of the academic fake? Journal editorials and the amplification of the 'predatory publishing' discourse

Abstract

This analysis of 229 editorials and opinion pieces published in science and medical journals explores the affective discourses used to characterise so-called predatory publishing. Most (84%, n = 193) deploy one or more of three related categories of metaphorical and figurative language (fear, fakery and exploitation) to strengthen their rhetorical case. This paper examines the deployment, co-occurrence and amplification of this language across the science publishing system, focusing particularly on the role of major science journals in adopting and normalising this emotive discourse. The analysis shows how few editorials offer alternative perspectives on these developments (n = 9), and their relative invisibility in scholarly debates.