Classifying Books and Knowledge-In the Stores and on the Web

Abstract

judith_blau@Ounc. edu one hand, and between sociology and history, on the other. I thought it was not a disservice to suggest that confused buyers could run a check on the departmental affiliation of the author. If a background search produced nothing, then buyers should think of sociologists of culture, such as Joshua Gamson, in contrast to cultural studies types, as scholars who offered empirically rich arguments on the forces responsible for shaping the production or use of cultural goods and that, unlike many historians, we were concerned with contemporary problems of power (citing Charles Perrow's works) and inequality (such as Debra Minkoffbs book). Before the conversation closed, the Barnes and Noble staff promised to move, among othS ers, Steven Seidman and Richard Sennett out of cultural studies; to share William Julius Wilson and Theda Skocpol between sociology and othS er fields; and to expand our display cases. We were given four sections, each seven shelves tall and over three feet across, along the center wall where we were, if not imposing, then certainly highly visible. Cultural studies, our nemesis, was reduced to three sections next to us. From our discussion it seemed that the probS lem with cultural studies' driving out sociology e hand, and betw en sociology and history, on sections was not determined primarily by sales figures. Although the critical edge and brilliant Routledgesque covers of many works in cultural studies made them appealing to students and postmodern urban villagers who frequent book stores, sales were not the only factor at play. At Barnes and Noble our titles were selling as well as most academic books. Rather, the problem came from management's use of national corpoS rate models. The department's allies in the effort to rebuild sociology's sections were those referenceS desk staff and book buyers with advanced degrees who were eager to exercise more control over their local work practices. We were able to use our professional authority to stimulate the local staff to act on our behalf at a point when management was willing to please its new conS stituency. So, contrary to conventional wisdom, it was not the small book shop that was most responsive to our pleas, but the corporate orgaS nization with a sufficiently large personnel strucS ture to provide us with the intermediate actors who would embrace our efforts to revise manS agement's plans.