The Editorial Team of Third Text has called for an open and independent review of the organization that governs the journal. This has been approved by the new chair of trustees of Black Umbrella Tony Panayiotou.
You will be aware that the last two years of change and prolonged transition have had a negative impact on the reputation of Third Text. We seek to restore confidence in the journal’s future. Clearly this requires radical steps that ought to include your involvement.
We would appreciate your support as former Editorial Board, Advisory Council members and associated editors to engage in the review process and be involved in the journal’s future. The remit for the review includes the organization of Black Umbrella and Third Text’s editorial and operational model with a proposal to sustain the journal’s future. It will also address the changes and developments that have occurred in the organization of Black Umbrella and Third Text in the last two years.
We are aware that the lack of a transparent independent review addressing the structure of the organization has been responsible for concerns about the journal's good name in its peer community.
We call on you to support progress which is of vital importance to the mandate and intellectual rigour of Third Text as a radical peer reviewed scholarly journal. A transparent and open review will bring clarity to changes in the journal’s management and governance and implement reforms necessary and appropriate to restore and advance the ethos, integrity and authority of Third Text within the artistic and academic communities. The main aim of the independent review is to make recommendations that support and secure the future success of Third Text.
In order to take soundings for potential candidates to participate on the review panel we are asking you to nominate credible individuals in the fields of scholarship and art practice with experience of journals, art publishing organizations, management teams, project boards, charitable trusts and arts administration. Nominated candidates must have no prior involvement or association with Third Text or Arts Council England, Black Umbrella or Routledge.
We are asking you to send us the nominations within two weeks of receiving this email (by 27th October). We would ask you to limit your choice to a maximum of three. We will contact candidates confidentially and ask if they agree to put their names forward. After the list is compiled, it will be circulated to you to select a review panel of 3 to 5 members. The list of members of the review panel will be publicized on the Third Text website.
The review panel will receive all relevant information concerning the organization and will be invited to set the terms of reference under which it will conduct the review. We envisage the panel will be in place at the beginning of December for the review to be completed within 3 months from then (end of February 2014).
We would like to assure you this will be a thoroughly open review and all the procedures, the agenda of the panel and outcomes will be announced on the Third Text website.
We truly hope you will support the case for an independent review of Third Text and respond to this call.
We look forward to hearing from you soon.
Third Text Editorial Team