What does this research mean for the field?

Changes in journal control can enable successor governance regimes to exploit accumulated reputational capital while maintaining signals of continuity, a process defined as reputational capture. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.METHODOLOGICAL. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To provide an empirical evidence base documenting the reputational capture of scholarly journals, where governance transitions exploit legacy metrics and community trust for commercial gain.

September 8, 2026Open Access

Journal governance transfer dataset: transfer matrix, acquisition-offer register and paratextual audit of residual certification signalling

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To provide an empirical evidence base documenting the reputational capture of scholarly journals, where governance transitions exploit legacy metrics and community trust for commercial gain.
Assembled a multi-sheet register tracking 20 journals linked to a specific acquisition network, 1 unlinked case, 8 contrast cases, and 23 acquisition solicitations made to a single society journal between December 2021 and June 2026.
Established a three-tier per-field verification system (Levels A, B, and C) supported by timestamped primary web captures, a source manifest, and SHA-256 checksums.
Conducted a paratextual audit to record residual certification signals, including persistent indexing status, legacy metrics, and inherited publication identifiers.
Documented 23 private acquisition and manuscript-supply solicitations delivered to a single society journal, including verified financial buyout offers of USD 75,000 and USD 400,000.
Mapped evidence profiles across 20 targeted journals alongside contrast cases demonstrating transparent handovers, formal purchase refusals, and community-led journal reconstitutions.

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Implication

Descriptive audit uncovers systematic acquisition approaches and residual certification signalling across targeted scholarly journals, highlighting risks of reputational capture in academic...

Cite This Study

Fabiano Couto Corrêa da Silva (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a9fd83b58e84d0ff5b479ef https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22572405

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Implication

Descriptive audit uncovers systematic acquisition approaches and residual certification signalling across targeted scholarly journals, highlighting risks of reputational capture in academic...

Journal governance transfer dataset: transfer matrix, acquisition-offer register and paratextual audit of residual certification signalling

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Discussion

Implication

Cite This Study

Journal governance transfer dataset: transfer matrix, acquisition-offer register and paratextual audit of residual certification signalling

Key Points

Discussion

Implication

Cite This Study

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