Publishing to Influence:
regnery and the role of Books
By Marji Ross
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D
o books reflect a zeitgeist—or create one? People certainly like to talk about books. And authors, naturally, love to talk about books—mostly their own. (Publishers, too, I must admit.) In fact, there is an entire cable station devoted to books (C-Span’s Book-TV), where you can listen to people talking about books 24 hours a day. And all across America, hundreds of thousands of people meet each month (or so) in reading groups to talk about books. But does all this talk really mean anything? Yes, it probably (but not always) reflects strong sales. It often leads authors to write, and publishers
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to publish, more books in the same vein. But Seminal books like this become embedded how much effect do books actually have on in popular culture. Today, you hear the media public policy? talk about a politician being “swift-boated.” The simple answer is: more than you might Similarly, people have adopted Malcolm think. Gladwell’s paradigm-shifting concept when Take, for instance, the most recent Regn- they refer to the “tipping point” in an issue or a ery book to hit #1 on the New York Times movement. And how many of us have seen the list: Unfit for Command: Swift Boat Veter- bumper stickers calling for a presidential ticket ans Speak Out Against John of “Cheney-Voldemort”? Kerry. That book, and the Most books, we must resulting media tidal wave, acknowledge, suffer the fate The publisher must also underdominated the public debate of the proverbial tree falling during the final three months stand how to turn a book into a in the forest. Good, bad, or megaphone through which the of the 2004 presidential elecindifferent, most books are tion campaign. John Kerry author’s ideas are shouted and never heard of, because it’s had nowhere to turn without broadcast and spread throughout not enough just to write a facing the questions and critgood book. It’s not enough, the land. icisms raised by this book. usually, even to write a great Matt Drudge blazed the book. The publisher must accusations across the Interalso understand how to turn net. Conservative talk radio reverberated with a book into a megaphone through which the the Swift Boat Vets’ stories about John Kerry’s author’s ideas are shouted and broadcast and service in Vietnam and his actions when he spread throughout the land. returned home. Mainstream media vilified the This is not so easy, for a variety of reasons. Swift Boat Vets, Regnery, John O’Neill, and First, there are more than 175,000 new books anyone else they could think of who might published every year. Sadly, as the number of sully John Kerry’s reputation. titles increases, the number of book buyers And everyone was talking about the book. seems to decrease. According to the most recent Correction: Everyone was talking about Census Bureau statistics, bookstore sales have what was in the book. And this is an important fallen every month this year and were down distinction, I believe, for publishers who wish 4.3 percent for the first third of 2007. You’d to influence the debate. At Regnery, we have probably be surprised to discover how small a rule: Our publicity campaigns focus on the the book industry actually is, as a business. The news in the book, not the news of the book. total sum of all book sales in 2006 was about Clearly, Unfit for Command influenced the $20 billion. Well, as they say, “a billion here, a public debate. Many people believe it influ- billion there, pretty soon we’re talking about enced the outcome of the election. In fact, the real money.” But when you consider that in a best thing that the New York Times has prob- single quarter of the last fiscal year, GE sales ably ever said about Regnery Publishing was were $40 billion, you realize that book sales are in their belated (reluctant, I assume) review of a drop in the GDP ocean. Unfit for Command: “If John Kerry loses the And yet, the power of a book can be enorpresidential election, Unfit for Command, by mous. As we have seen, a book can change the John O’Neill and Jerome Corsi, will go down course of a presidential election. It can change as a chief reason.” the course of history. In 1987, Regnery published
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a book called Red Horizons, written by Roma- business. We target the best-seller list as most nia’s former head of foreign intelligence, Ion of our New York competitors do (though we Mihai Pacepa. The book exposed the shocking hit that list at a far higher rate than they do), truth about Communist Romania—and, when but we target the list for its megaphone effect it was picked up and broadcast into Romania as much as its monetary effect. on Radio Free Europe, was credited with inspirSometimes we take on a book even when ing the popular counterrevolution that brought we know that the media attention will far down the regime. outpace the sales potential. There are some Best-selling books can books and some topics (and also push a debate onto the even some authors) who will national stage. Take Berattract hundreds of radio Best-selling books can push a nard Goldberg’s categoryand television interviews— killer book, Bias, which debate onto the national stage. and still not drive people to Take Bernard Goldberg’s catfinally forced the issue of the bookstores. Book sales liberal bias within the media egory-killer book , Bias, which are virtually impossible to into the national spotlight. finally forced the issue of liberal predict in the best of circumOr Charles Murray’s The stances. When you know a bias within the media into the Bell Curve, which ignited book won’t sell, why publish a nationwide debate on the national spotlight. it? At Regnery, our answer is role of race in academic simple: We want to get peoachievement. ple talking. And if the issue So, how can publishers orchestrate certain is truly important, perhaps the achievement of books, in this industry with too few buyers driving the debate, even without the accompaand far too many products to sell, so that they nying sales, is reward enough. actually influence the public debate? At this point, I hear my boss sighing, worOur motto at Regnery has always been to ried about the flood of proposals for “imporpublish “books that challenge the status quo.” tant” books I have just encouraged. So let me So we are looking specifically and deliberately add this one last point: Regnery has built its for books that provoke, books that will stir con- reputation for the past 60 years on publishtroversy, books that people will not just want to ing the nation’s most important and influentalk about but will want to fight about. tial books in current affairs and public policy, And yet, I should rush to point out, Regn- from a conservative point of view. Over the ery is not the Jerry Springer of the book pub- past 10 years, we have also developed a repulishing business. (I think that title was held by tation for selling more copies, per title, of our Judith Reagan, until she died by that particu- current affairs and public policy books than lar sword, at least professionally.) Regnery is any other publisher in the country. both a for-profit business and a mission-based Our books, in the end, are both the causes company. We are publicly and personally dedi- and the echoes of the political and social thuncated to furthering the principles of democra- derclaps reverberating throughout the country. cy, freedom, limited government, and respect With the proper megaphone, a great book can for the rights of the individual upon which our and should be both. country was founded and which our soldiers today serve to protect. Ms. Ross is President and Publisher of Regnery In this way we are unique in the publishing Publishing, Inc.
The InsIder summer 07