A long and winding road: 25 years as editor
| Published date | 01 March 2022 |
| Author | R. A. W. Rhodes |
| Date | 01 March 2022 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/padm.12810 |
SPECIAL ISSUE ARTICLE
A long and winding road: 25 years as editor
R. A. W. Rhodes
Faculty of Social and Human Sciences,
University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
Correspondence
R. A. W. Rhodes, Department of Politics and
International Relations, University of
Southampton, Murray Building, Southampton
SO17 1BJ, UK.
Email: r.a.w.rhodes@soton.ac.uk
Abstract
This article reflects on 25 years of editing Public Adminis-
tration. It provides a brief account of Rod Rhodes's term of
office before airing some of his pet bugbears on being an
editor and on trends in journal publishing.
1|INTRODUCTION
In October 1970, I got my first job in academia. I was a lecturer in public administration on a two-year contract at
the Institute of Local Government Studies, University of Birmingham. My mentor was Richard Chapman, a keen sup-
porter of the Royal Institute of Public Administration (RIPA). Eventually, at Richard's urging, I became a member of
the RIPA, and copies of Public Administration came with membership. It has been on my bookshelves since 1972, and
I edited it from 1986 to 2011.
The RIPA was a “mini-me”version of American Society for Public Administration. It was founded in 1922 at the
instigation of the Society of Civil Servants and other staff associations (on the early years, see Nottage & Stack 1972,
and Nottage 1972). The first issue of the journal was published in 1923. Its contents betrayed its origins with most
papers from public servants. It was a practitioner journal from the start in sharp contrast sharp with the Political Stud-
ies, the journal of the Political Studies Association of the UK (PSA), which was an academic association and journal
from its formation in 1950. That practitioner streak marked the journal out as different. It was also a different world.
The discipline of political science barely existed let alone a subfield of public administration. Articles were better
described as essays. The academic paraphernalia of footnotes and references was optional and often missing.
Refereeing was a hurdle for the future. I look back and think how much easier it was to get published back then.
The Joint University Council for Social and Public Administration, known variously as the JUC or the PAC (Public
Administration Committee), started me on the journal editing road. Richard Chapman was the editor of the PAC Bul-
letin. When he stood down, my mentor proposed me as his successor, and the PAC accepted his recommendation.
I served from 1977 to 1982. Originally, it was a newsletter rather than an academic journal, and it focused on teach-
ing public administration. Richard started to include academic articles, including a conference special issue based on
the papers delivered at the PAC's annual conference. I continued this trend. I upgraded the standard of production.
Previously, it had been on A4 paper with a comb binding. It was produced on a shoestring, so it was bound with sta-
ples. However, before I stood down, it was bound with glue. Now, it looked like every other journal. Then, it seemed
important! We changed the name to Public Administration Bulletin. In 1986, it became Public Policy and Administration
and marketed by a commercial publisher. The journey to full journal was complete.
Received: 15 November 2021 Accepted: 15 November 2021
DOI: 10.1111/padm.12810
6© 2021 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Public Admin. 2022;100:6–11.wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/padm
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