Sensitivity reader#Revisions of previously published works

Proponents state "the literary quality of a work is substantially improved" when reviewed and copy-edited by others from "a specific Nation or community that the author is writing about". Helen Wicks, managing director for children's trade at Bonnier, defended the practice by stating that "we believe sensitivity reads can play an important role in inclusive, forward-thinking publishing."{{Cite magazine |last= |first= |date=20 June 2022 |title=Publishers defend sensitivity readers as vital tool following author criticism |url=https://www.thebookseller.com/news/publishers-defend-sensitivity-readers-as-vital-tool-following-author-criticism |url-status=live |magazine=The Bookseller |language=en |publisher=The Stage Media Company |publication-place=London, England |issn=0006-7539 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627212742/https://www.thebookseller.com/news/publishers-defend-sensitivity-readers-as-vital-tool-following-author-criticism |archive-date=27 June 2022 |access-date=19 February 2023 |url-access=limited}}

From 2015, partly in response to the movement for diversity in young adult fiction, sensitivity readings became popular and influential especially in Young Adult Fiction.{{cite news |last1=Alter |first1=Alexandra |title=In an Era of Online Outrage, Do Sensitivity Readers Result in Better Books, or Censorship? |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/24/books/in-an-era-of-online-outrage-do-sensitivity-readers-result-in-better-books-or-censorship.html |access-date=19 December 2023 |work=The New York Times |date=24 December 2017}}{{cite news |last1=Benedictus |first1=Leo |title=Torn apart: the vicious war over young adult books |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/jun/15/torn-apart-the-vicious-war-over-young-adult-books |access-date=19 December 2023 |work=The Guardian |date=15 June 2019}} Cases where sensitivity readers were brought in after pre-publication controversy included those of Laura Moriarty, whose book American Heart had its prestigious Kirkus Reviews star removed prior to publication in 2017,{{cite magazine |last1=Heller |first1=Nathan |title=Kirkus Reviews and the Plight of the "Problematic" Book Review |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/kirkus-reviews-plight-of-the-problematic-book-review |access-date=19 December 2023 |magazine=The New Yorker |date=23 October 2017}} and Blood Heir by Amélie Wen Zhao.{{cite news |last1=Alter |first1=Alexandra |title=She Pulled Her Debut Book When Critics Found It Racist. Now She Plans to Publish. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/29/books/amelie-wen-zhao-blood-heir.html |access-date=28 December 2023 |work=The New York Times |date=29 April 2019}} Kosoko Jackson, a sensitivity reader himself, withdrew his own novel A Place for Wolves over sensitivity concerns in 2019.{{cite news |last1=Senior |first1=Jennifer |title=Opinion {{!}} Teen Fiction and the Perils of Cancel Culture |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/08/opinion/teen-fiction-and-the-perils-of-cancel-culture.html |access-date=19 December 2023 |work=The New York Times |date=8 March 2019}}

Publishers have used sensitivity readers to flag content perceived as offensive in previously published works, such as outdated attitudes towards race or gender. Prominent authors subject to such edits include Agatha Christie,{{Cite news |last=Simpson |first=Craig |date=25 March 2023 |title=Agatha Christie classics latest to be rewritten for modern sensitivities |language=en |work=The Daily Telegraph |publication-place=London, England |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/03/25/agatha-christie-classics-latest-rewritten-modern-sensitivities/ |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=27 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327154858/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/03/25/agatha-christie-classics-latest-rewritten-modern-sensitivities/ |archive-date=27 March 2023 |issn=0307-1235 |oclc=49632006}}{{Cite news |last=Nugent |first=Annabel |date=26 March 2023 |title=Agatha Christie books, including Poirot and Miss Marple mysteries, to be rewritten for modern sensitivities |language=en |work=The Independent |publication-place=Longon, England |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/agatha-christie-books-rewritten-b2308195.html |url-status=live |access-date=27 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327040914/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/agatha-christie-books-rewritten-b2308195.html |archive-date=27 March 2023 |issn=1741-9743 |oclc=185201487}}{{Cite news |last=Hall |first=Rachel |date=26 March 2023 |title=Agatha Christie novels reworked to remove potentially offensive language |language=en |work=The Guardian |location=London, England |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/mar/26/agatha-christie-novels-reworked-to-remove-potentially-offensive-language |url-status=live |access-date=27 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327170108/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/mar/26/agatha-christie-novels-reworked-to-remove-potentially-offensive-language |archive-date=27 March 2023 |issn=1756-3224 |oclc=60623878}} PG Wodehouse,{{cite news |last1=Simpson |first1=Craig |date=15 April 2023 |title=Jeeves and Wooster stories censored to avoid offending modern readers |publisher=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/04/15/jeeves-and-wooster-censored-penguins-latest-sensitivity/ |access-date=16 April 2023}} Ian Fleming and Roald Dahl.

As part of an ebook range in 2018, publisher Scholastic made edits to the 1990s children's book series Goosebumps, "to keep the language current and avoid imagery that could negatively impact a young person’s view of themselves today, with a particular focus on mental health". The author R.L. Stine said that the changes had not been shown to him.{{cite news |last1=Tinoco |first1=Armando |title=Author R.L. Stine Responds To Reports 'Goosebumps' Is Getting Edited With Inclusive Language – Update |url=https://deadline.com/2023/03/goosebumps-author-rl-stine-edits-book-series-changes-mental-health-weight-ethnicity-references-1235279014/ |access-date=24 April 2025 |work=Deadline |date=5 March 2023}}{{cite news |title=Goosebumps author adapts texts to remove weight, mental health and ethnicity references |url=https://news.sky.com/story/goosebumps-author-adapts-texts-to-remove-weight-mental-health-and-ethnicity-references-12825150 |access-date=24 April 2025 |work=Sky News |date=4 March 2023 |language=en}}

In 2023, Ian Fleming's James Bond series was re-published with a number of racial slurs and references removed.{{Cite news |last=Simpson |first=Craig |date=25 February 2023 |title=James Bond books edited to remove racist references |language=en |work=The Daily Telegraph |publication-place=London, England |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/02/25/james-bond-books-edited-remove-racist-references/ |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=27 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230228223448/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/02/25/james-bond-books-edited-remove-racist-references/ |archive-date=28 February 2023 |issn=0307-1235 |oclc=49632006 |quote=Ian Fleming Publications Ltd, the company that owns the literary rights to the author's work, commissioned a review by sensitivity readers of the classic texts under its control.}} A disclaimer in each book stated, "This book was written at a time when terms and attitudes which might be considered offensive by modern readers were commonplace. A number of updates have been made in this edition, while keeping as close as possible to the original text and the period in which it is set."{{Cite web |last=Haring |first=Bruce |date=26 February 2023 |title=James Bond Books Edited To Avoid Offense To Modern Audiences – Report |url=https://deadline.com/2023/02/james-bond-books-rewritten-to-avoid-offense-to-modern-audiences-1235271892/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230228050958/https://deadline.com/2023/02/james-bond-books-rewritten-to-avoid-offense-to-modern-audiences-1235271892/ |archive-date=28 February 2023 |access-date=27 February 2023 |website=Deadline |publisher=Penske Media Corporation |language=en |publication-place=USA}} Charlie Higson, actor, comedian and author of the first five Young Bond novels, defended the alterations, saying that sensitivity reading is "nothing new".{{Cite news |last=Knight |first=Lucy |date=2023-03-15 |title=Sensitivity readers: what publishing's most polarising role is really about |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/mar/15/sensitivity-readers-what-publishings-most-polarising-role-is-really-about |access-date=2024-02-26 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}

{{Main|Roald Dahl revision controversy}}

In February 2023, new editions of Roald Dahl's children's novels published by Puffin Books, a division of Penguin Books, changed some of Dahl's language{{Cite web |last=Kirka |first=Danica |date=2023-02-19 |title=Critics reject changes to Roald Dahl books as censorship |url=https://apnews.com/article/books-and-literature-roald-dahl-business-entertainment-91c9bb1a7a10392abeef6feec3159e8b |access-date=2023-04-16 |website=AP NEWS |language=en}} in line with recommendations by sensitivity readers.{{Cite news |last=Ellery |first=Ben |date=25 February 2023 |title=Inside the group of 'inclusion ambassadors' behind Roald Dahl edits |language=en |work=The Times |publication-place=London, England |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/8243434c-b470-11ed-abc9-a9456bea4494?shareToken=199d5626dd18ed8ea26b029d24c4e6dc |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=3 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230304034514/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/8243434c-b470-11ed-abc9-a9456bea4494 |archive-date=4 March 2023 |issn=0140-0460}} The decision was met with criticism from groups and public figures including the CEO of PEN America, Salman Rushdie, Brian Cox, Rishi Sunak, and Kemi Badenoch.{{Cite news |last=Dellatto |first=Marisa |date=20 February 2023 |title=Roald Dahl Books Get New Edits—And Critics Cry Censorship: The Controversy Surrounding 'Charlie And The Chocolate Factory' And More |language=en |work=Forbes |publication-place=Jersey City, New Jersey, USA |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/marisadellatto/2023/02/20/roald-dahl-books-get-new-edits-and-critics-cry-censorship-the-controversy-surrounding-charlie-and-the-chocolate-factory-and-more/?sh=6833ef524534 |url-status=live |url-access=limited |access-date=27 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230228232244/https://www.forbes.com/sites/marisadellatto/2023/02/20/roald-dahl-books-get-new-edits-and-critics-cry-censorship-the-controversy-surrounding-charlie-and-the-chocolate-factory-and-more/?sh=61a3a45a4534 |archive-date=28 February 2023 |issn=0015-6914}}{{Cite news |last=Zymeri |first=Jeff |date=21 February 2023 |title=Salman Rushdie Blasts 'Absurd' Censorship of Roald Dahl |language=en |work=National Review |publisher=National Review, Inc. |publication-place=New York City, NY, USA |url=https://www.nationalreview.com/news/the-dahl-estate-should-be-ashamed-salman-rushdie-blasts-absurd-censorship-of-roald-dahl |url-status=live |access-date=27 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230221153943/https://www.nationalreview.com/news/the-dahl-estate-should-be-ashamed-salman-rushdie-blasts-absurd-censorship-of-roald-dahl |archive-date=21 February 2023 |issn=0028-0038}}{{Cite news |last1=Honeycombe-Foster |first1=Matt |last2=Blanchard |first2=Jack |date=21 February 2023 |title=UK's Badenoch slams 'problematic' rewrites of classic Roald Dahl books |language=en |work=Politico |publisher=Axel Springer SE |publication-place=Arlington County, Virginia, USA |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/uks-badenoch-slams-problematic-rewrites-classic-roald-dahl-books-business-secretary-equalities-minister-salmon-rushdie-brian-cox |url-status=live |access-date=27 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230228164049/https://www.politico.eu/article/uks-badenoch-slams-problematic-rewrites-classic-roald-dahl-books-business-secretary-equalities-minister-salmon-rushdie-brian-cox |archive-date=28 February 2023}} Consequently, Puffin announced that it would also continue to sell the original, unaltered editions of Roald Dahl's children's novels, under the title The Roald Dahl Classic Collection.{{Cite magazine |last=Abramovitch |first=Seth |date=24 February 2023 |title=Roald Dahl Publisher Bends to Controversy, Will Release "Classic" Version of Controversial Kids' Books |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/roald-dahl-controversy-changes-salman-rushdie-willy-wonka-1235333536 |url-status=live |magazine=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en |publisher=Eldridge Industries |publication-place=Los Angeles, California, USA |issn=0018-3660 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230228045145/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/roald-dahl-controversy-changes-salman-rushdie-willy-wonka-1235333536 |archive-date=28 February 2023 |access-date=27 February 2023}}{{Cite news |last= |first= |date=19 February 2023 |title=Roald Dahl rewrites: edited language in books criticised as 'absurd censorship' |language=en |work=The Guardian |agency=Associated Press |publication-place=London, England |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/feb/20/roald-dahl-books-rewrites-criticism-language-altered |url-status=live |access-date=27 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230228164448/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/feb/20/roald-dahl-books-rewrites-criticism-language-altered |archive-date=28 February 2023 |issn=1756-3224 |oclc=60623878}}

Following the controversy{{clarify inline|date=April 2025}} over the book American Dirt in 2020, the use of sensitivity readers was questioned.{{cite news |last1=Urwin |first1=Rosamund |title=Is the rise of sensitivity readers progress or censorship? |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/is-the-rise-of-sensitivity-readers-progress-or-censorship-9zxwm2pkc |access-date=28 December 2023 |date=28 December 2023 |language=en}} Lionel Shriver{{cite news |last1=Shriver |first1=Lionel |title=What if 'sensitivity readers' came for my novels? |url=https://www.spiked-online.com/2023/02/25/what-if-sensitivity-readers-came-for-my-novels/ |access-date=28 December 2023 |work=www.spiked-online.com |date=Feb 2023}} accused sensitivity readers of being censorious, of being "new moral gatekeepers" or of offering a way to "cancel-proof your book".{{Cite magazine |last=Dubno |first=Zoe |date=10 July 2021 |title=The rise of the 'sensitivity reader' |url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-rise-of-the-sensitivity-reader/ |url-status=live |magazine=The Spectator |language=en |publisher=Press Holdings |publication-place=London, England |issn=0038-6952 |oclc=1766325 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230216202534/https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-rise-of-the-sensitivity-reader/ |archive-date=16 February 2023 |access-date=19 February 2023 |url-access=limited}}{{Cite magazine |last=Rosenfield |first=Kat |date=August 2022 |title=Sensitivity Readers Are the New Literary Gatekeepers |url=https://reason.com/2022/07/05/rise-of-the-sensitivity-reader/ |url-status=live |magazine=Reason |language=en |publisher=Reason Foundation |publication-place=Los Angeles, California, USA |issue=August/September 2022 |oclc=818916200 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230222190900/https://reason.com/2022/07/05/rise-of-the-sensitivity-reader/ |archive-date=22 February 2023 |access-date=19 February 2023}}

Kate Clanchy wrote an essay in 2022 expressing her concerns that her sensitivity readers seemed "to concur that the past should match an idealised present", and to imply that writing "should represent the world as it ought to be, not as it is". Clanchy believed that the readers did not recognise irony and satire and wished "to eliminate journeys of thought across chapters, ambiguity from paragraphs, and nuance from sentences".{{Cite web |last=Clanchy |first=Kate |date=2022-02-18 |title=How sensitivity readers corrupt literature |url=https://unherd.com/2022/02/how-sensitivity-readers-corrupted-literature/ |access-date=2022-12-30 |website=UnHerd |language=en-GB}}

Writer Anthony Horowitz wrote in 2023 that it felt "wrong to be told what to write by an outside party, no matter how well-meaning", when he accepted suggested changes to descriptions of native American characters in one of his books.{{cite news |last1=Horowitz |first1=Anthony |title=My clash with 'sensitivity readers' |url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/my-clash-with-sensitivity-readers/ |access-date=28 December 2023 |work=The Spectator |date=1 February 2023}}

• Cultural diversity
• Expurgation (also known as bowdlerization)
• Political correctness

{{reflist}}

Category:Editors by type

Category:Book censorship