Laurie Taylor Column

" The Arts and Humanities Research Board is to produce a 'top ten list' of the most important journals in such subjects as media and cultural studies in a bid to establish new performance measures " - TheTimes Higher, January 28.

From: The Arts and Humanities Research Board
Subject: Journal hierarchy Following extensive discussion by the Arts and Humanities Research Board, it has been decided that publication in the following journals in the area of media and cultural studies will not be counted towards the next RAE.

Brief reasons for their exclusion are provided.

British Journal of Cultural Relativism : The board described this journal as "irremediably oxymoronic".

Culture, Spatiality and Distance: Developments in the New Geography : The board welcomes attempts to make geography more interesting, but it felt this publication merely used a lot of big words to disguise its failure to tackle traditional subjects such as "the principal rivers of Africa".

The Welsh Journal of Hospitality Studies : The board held that the small size of this journal and its irregular appearance "did not represent value for money".

Culture, Politics, Gender and Experimental Mechanics : Although wishing to commend interdisciplinary studies, the board thought that this journal was "going a bit too far".

Journal of Great Sporting Moments : This largely pictorial magazine was described as "lacking in analytical purchase". But the colour spread of Steven Gerrard scoring against Olympiakos was singled out by one board member as "pure magic".

Advanced Library Studies : The board decided that this journal was "inappropriate" within a British academic context, where most universities lacked anything resembling "a library", let alone an "advanced library".

Kritique : The board felt that the misspelling of "critique" in the title "set a bad example".

Religion and Politics : The board agreed unanimously that these topics did not mix.

I hope this clarifies the situation, Chief Executive, AHRB