
The headquarters of the Cambridge University Press, in Trumpington Street, Cambridge.
'Cambridge University Press' (known colloquially as CUP) is a
publisher given a
Royal Charter by
Henry VIII in
1534, and one of the two
privileged presses (the other being
Oxford University Press). It published its first book in
1584, and has published at least one book every year since then, making it the oldest publishing and printing house in the world. It is both an academic and educational
publishing house, a printing factory, and the printer for official documents for the
University of Cambridge. Authors published by Cambridge have included
John Milton,
William Harvey,
Isaac Newton,
Brian J. Ford and
Stephen Hawking. CUP was first exempted from UK Corporation Tax in 1976 (for history, see http://www.akme.btinternet.co.uk/Apdx5.html).
The Press is now a global organisation with a regional structure operating in the
Americas, in
UK/
Europe/
Middle-East/
Africa, and in
Asia-
Pacific. Headquartered in Cambridge UK, the company has warehousing centres in
Cambridge,
New York,
Melbourne,
Madrid,
Cape Town,
São Paulo and
Singapore, with offices and agents in many other countries. Its publishing output includes major ELT courses; tertiary
textbooks and
monographs; scientific and medical reference; professional lists in
law,
management and
engineering; educational coursebooks; and
e-learning materials for schools via the Cambridge-
Hitachi joint venture. Its publications are aimed at markets worldwide, at all levels from primary school to postgraduate and professional. The Press also publishes
Bibles,
prayer books, and some 200
academic journals. It has 25,000 authors in 116 countries and issues between 1,500 and 2,000 new titles a year.
Recently, Cambridge University Press has become embroiled in a controversy as a result of its decision to
pulp , i.e., to destroy, all remaining copies of one of its publications. The Press agreed to cease future publication and to destroy all remaining stock of the 2006 book, Alms for Jihad: Charity and Terrorism in the Islamic World, by Burr and Collins, as part of a settlement of lawsuit brought by Saudi billionaire
Khalid bin Mahfouz. Cambridge's justification of its actions may be read at http://www.thebookseller.com/blogs/43397-why-cup-acted-responsibly.html. Critics concerned about freedom of speech and the strictness of English libel laws have made their case at e.g. http://www.thebookseller.com/news/43128-bonus-books-criticises-cup--.html and http://www.complete-review.com/saloon/index.htm#zs2. Additional criticism can be found at http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/08/16/yaleup . The
American Library Association recently issued a recommendation to libraries still holding Alms for Jihad: "Given the intense interest in the book, and the desire of readers to learn about the controversy first hand, we recommend that U.S. libraries keep the book available for their users."
References and further reading
★
David McKitterick, ''A History of Cambridge University Press'', 3 vols (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992-2004)
See also
★
Bowes & Bowes
External links
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Cambridge University Press
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Cambridge University Press in Asia
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Cambridge University Press in Hong Kong