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| Black Inc. | |
|---|---|
| Name | Black Inc. |
| Type | Independent publisher |
| Founded | 1990 |
| Founder | Morry Schwartz |
| Headquarters | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Publications | Books, Magazines |
| Imprint | Black Inc., La Trobe University Press (partner) |
Black Inc. Black Inc. is an independent Australian publishing company based in Melbourne, Victoria, founded in 1990 by Morry Schwartz. The company publishes nonfiction, fiction, and the political and cultural magazine Quarterly Essay, and operates imprints and partnerships across Australia and international markets.
Black Inc. was established in 1990 by Morry Schwartz after his earlier ventures in media and publishing, connecting to figures involved with The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, Australian Financial Review, The Australian, and other Australian media outlets. Early publishing projects engaged writers linked to John Howard, Paul Keating, Bob Hawke, Gough Whitlam, and public intellectuals associated with institutions such as Australian National University, University of Melbourne, Monash University, La Trobe University, and University of Sydney. The company expanded through the 1990s and 2000s, interacting with personalities from Germaine Greer, Helen Garner, Geraldine Brooks, David Marr, and scholars connected to Lowy Institute, Australian Council of Social Service, and Centre for Independent Studies. In subsequent decades Black Inc. formed partnerships with cultural organizations like Melbourne Writers Festival, Sydney Writers' Festival, Perth Writers Festival, and international contacts including agents from Hachette, Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, and Simon & Schuster.
Black Inc. publishes the long-form periodical Quarterly Essay alongside books across genres including political analysis, biography, history, and fiction. Notable book series and imprints have included collaborations resembling university press activity with La Trobe University, and titles engaging subjects such as Indigenous Australian history, Asia-Pacific geopolitics, climate change, refugee policy, and cultural criticism connecting to authors associated with ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), SBS (Special Broadcasting Service), Sky News Australia, and digital platforms like The Conversation and Crikey. The publisher’s catalog features works by journalists and scholars connected to The Guardian (London), New York Times, Washington Post, Financial Times, Foreign Affairs, and opinion writers linked to The Australian Financial Review and The Monthly. Black Inc.’s fiction lists have included novelists with associations to Miles Franklin Award, The Stella Prize, Commonwealth Writers Prize, and international prizes such as the Man Booker Prize.
The editorial approach emphasizes rigorous argumentation, long-form essayism, and engagement with public debate, attracting contributors from universities and media institutions including Australian National University, University of Sydney, University of Queensland, Griffith University, Deakin University, The University of New South Wales, The University of Western Australia, The University of Adelaide, Columbia University, Harvard University, and think tanks such as Lowy Institute and Australian Strategic Policy Institute. Notable authors published include journalists and public intellectuals tied to Germaine Greer, Robert Manne, Clive James, Tom Switzer, Annabel Crabb, Frank Brennan, Tim Flannery, Robert Hughes, Inga Clendinnen, Morris Gleitzman, Peter Carey, Louis Nowra, Helen Garner, and historians associated with Peter FitzSimons, Judith Brett, and Geoffrey Blainey.
Titles from the publisher and its authors have been shortlisted for and won awards including the Miles Franklin Award, the Stella Prize, the Walkley Awards, the Prime Minister's Literary Awards, the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards, the NSW Premier's Literary Awards, and international recognition in prizes like the Man Booker Prize and the Melbourne Prize for Literature. Individual essays and books have been cited in parliamentary debates in the Parliament of Australia and referenced in policy discussions at institutions such as Treasury (Australia), Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia), United Nations, and scholarly fora at Cambridge University and Oxford University.
Black Inc. operates from Melbourne with editorial, production, marketing, and rights teams working alongside agents and distributors affiliated with global networks such as Hachette Livre, Penguin Random House, Ingram Content Group, Bertelsmann, Bonnier Group, and regional partners across Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Asia. The company negotiates translation and international rights with agencies in markets like China, Japan, India, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Spain, collaborating with literary festivals including Hay Festival, Edinburgh International Book Festival, and national broadcasters like BBC, NPR, ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), and SBS for author appearances and promotion.
As a publisher of polemical essays and political commentary, the company and its authors have occasionally provoked debate and criticism from public figures and institutions including commentators from Sky News Australia, The Australian, The Daily Telegraph (Sydney), and pundits tied to political actors such as supporters of Liberal Party of Australia and Australian Labor Party. Disputes have arisen over editorial choices, authorial opinion pieces, and the handling of sensitive subjects involving Indigenous affairs, immigration policy, climate science, and national security, eliciting responses from advocacy groups including GetUp!, Human Rights Commission (Australia), Reconciliation Australia, and legal interlocutors in matters sometimes adjudicated in the Australian media sphere and referenced in reports by Australian Broadcasting Corporation and The Guardian (Australia).
Category:Publishing companies of Australia