Hot Spots in Publishing

Is Reading for Pleasure on the Decline?

It isn't exactly a secret that reading for pleasure has been declining for years now, and it seems to be continuing. This poses a problem for editors and publishers who make their living on whether or not people will buy and read the books that they sell. They are force to face the question of what the future holds for the book publishing industry. Will it eventually decline so much that they will become obsolete or are there ways they can turn it around. I think that publishing companies have done a lot to try and promote reading in the modern era with things like electronic books or online book stores, but even with these advances, the decline goes on.
 (Why We Don't Read, Revisited - Caleb Crain)

Publishing & Politics

In today's society, the moral divide is growing wider. Instead of a society that generally have similar morals or basic beliefs, we have a society that collides on every issue presented. Even issues that in the past have been obvious are now topics of strong debate. With this storm of beliefs it is often difficult for publishers to decide what is within the spectrum of healthy differences and debates and what takes it too far. Sometimes it's a hard line to walk; people wonder if publishers allow too much through or don't censor their content enough. But on the other hand, they run into problems if they prevent authors from voicing their opinions. There have even been lawsuits over it. So where do they draw the line?
(Is Book Publishing Too Liberal? - Rachel Deahl)

Quality vs. Quantity

It can often be a struggle, particularly for newer publishing companies or self publishers, to decide how picky they should be about what they publish. It seems tempting to publish more to get their name circulating. But it also makes sense that you should publish quality books to build a reputation for the company. So another line needs to be drawn between publishing enough to be noticed, but good enough quality to be remembered.

(Self Publishing Success The Truth About Quality Books - Ryan Thames)

I would say that the most prominent issue today is the politics in publishing. Unlike news stations, publishing companies don't want to associate themselves with political parties or ideas, so they try to stay neutral as a company. This means that they don't want to publish books that are too extreme toward either side, but don't want to eliminate politically charged books altogether. So I guess it's important to make sure that if the book is more political, that it is respectful in it's arguments and that the book's purpose isn't meant to degrade or spark conflict.