This just came through on H-Judaic; I thought it would be of interest to fellow Judaica Librarians.
Michelle From: David Berger [mailto:[email protected] <[email protected]>] Sent: Wed 5/30/2012 11:33 AM Subject: RE: committee on accuracy The Harry and Jane Fischel Foundation <http://fischelfoundation.org/> <http://fischelfoundation.org/> has just organized an entity called the Committee on Accuracy in Publications about Jews and Judaism to serve the interests of Jews all over the world by facilitating the correction and elimination of reputational damage in published statements - primarily in books - particularly when the damage is in the form of errors that unintentionally defame Judaism in general, or Jewish values, individuals, communities, or organizations. The purpose of the Committee is not to get into controversies, debates, or lawsuits, but rather to facilitate the elimination of unintentional errors that would not otherwise be corrected by publishers in future editions or printings, owing to a lack of knowledge or awareness, indifference, and/or economics. If errors are spotted, even before the publication of the statements, all the better. The administrator of the Committee proposed the concept, upon finding that a prestigious university press refused to correct clear errors bordering on defamation simply owing to purported considerations of cost. The intent is not to embarrass or coerce any publisher, but rather to help publishers to become aware of the seriousness of the errors pointed out to them, and to correct them. Only corrections that eliminate insults to Judaism, or to the categories enumerated above, are to be considered, and only if brought to the attention of the Committee by authors or publishers; not by members of the general public. The Committee's basic mandates are to ascertain which errors are worth its intervention; to decide how to effect the necessary corrections; to persuade the publishers to make the proposed revisions; and to help defray the expenses associated with these corrections, if necessary. The Committee is not designed to subsidize the entire costs of new editions of any books. The Committee has set up a Web site to serve as a venue for accepting submissions: http://accuracyonjewsandjud.org. The Committee will publicize corrections only if it first receives the express written permission of the publishers that will benefit from this service. Otherwise, the role of the Committee will appear only in the Acknowledgments of the books that will benefit from this service, with the specificity and language deemed appropriate by the publisher and the Committee. The initial panel consists of a distinguished group of scholars and communal leaders: Hon. Rabbi Benjamin Kelsen, Esq., chairperson; Professor David Berger, Rabbi Gil Student; Dr. Bella Hass Weinberg, and Rabbi Aaron I. Reichel, Esq., ex officio, Administrator of the Harry and Jane Fischel Foundation. Questions may be emailed to [email protected] and submissions for the Committee should be made on the Committee's submission form <http://accuracyonjewsandjud.org/submission-form/> <http://accuracyonjewsandjud.org/submission-form/>.
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