this post was submitted on 25 Nov 2025
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So why do they charge $6000 to publish, and pay $0 to reviewers?
The top JIF journals also lead with the most retractions. The journals also game the scoring system. Years ago, the number of printed paper journals affected impact factor scores, so Nature just started sending our paper journals free to game that number. Or, they gave out free subscriptions, because the real money is in page charges to the research labs.
All this has been discussed at the NIH and in government, always shut down by US Ivy League schools.
Error correction policies like retractions mean the journal is better, not worse, right?
Except that Nature was leading the world in retractions. The problem is the Editors form a cabal with top lab heads, because they want the best papers, first. So they close an eye to problems seen in peer review. Retractions revealed the Emperor had no clothes.
Why does Science, CELL, Nature, etc., keep reviews secret?
For a modern scientist, we now have to scan https://retractionwatch.com/ once a week as well as https://pubpeer.com/, where HUNDREDS of fraudulent papers have been outed without any formal retractions.