Tom Allen is not at all daunted by the problems facing the publishing industry. The former six-term Democratic congressman from Maine who will succeed Pat Schroeder as president of the Association of American Publishers later this spring said it was the challenges that drew him to the position.

“I was intrigued by the job because of the complexity of issues involved with it,” Allen said. “There are a host of challenges, including digital and copyright issues.” Although the committees Allen sat on when he was in Congress (Energy and Commerce, Budget, Armed Services, and Government Reform) brought him in little contact with the publishing industry, he does have two beliefs that are of utmost importance to publishers—he is a strong advocate of free speech and of education. “I'm struck by the fact that if education is to be improved, educational content must continue to get better,” Allen said, “and children need to be encouraged to read at an earlier age and to read more often.”

Allen was first approached by Schroeder about taking the job shortly after he lost his bid to unseat Susan Collins as a Maine senator. He begins at the AAP April 6 and plans to spend a good part of his first month in the job meeting publishers and getting up to speed on the concerns of the AAP membership. He noted that, as a member of Congress, “you learn to become a generalist,” a background he believes will serve him well in dealing with the myriad issues he will face.

One area that Allen specialized in Congress that he could carry over into publishing is the environment. Allen spent a lot of time with climate change issues, and with the industry becoming more green conscious it could benefit from his expertise. But Allen said he isn't coming to the job to push his own agenda. “I'll work with the board on what they believe needs to be done,” he said, indicating that the top of the list is likely to be the continued protection of copyright. “Every industry in the country is facing lots of technology changes,” he said, “but as long as publishers and authors get paid for content, no matter how it is delivered, publishing will be fine.”

An improvement in the economy would certainly help all publishing, and Allen is relatively optimistic: “I hope at some point this year things will stop getting worse, at which point people will begin to believe the worst is over and a restoration of confidence will begin.”

At last week's AAP annual meeting, Allen observed, “I have very big shoes to fill” in replacing Schroeder, whose reputation, he said “extends far beyond this room.”

In saluting Schroeder, Bertelsmann's Richard Sarnoff—AAP's outgoing chairman—cited her willingness to take on a host of issues, most recently the fight over the Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act. Her Washington contacts, noted Macmillan head John Sargent, and AAP treasurer, in his own remarks, helped bring that potential crisis to a successful conclusion. For her part, Schroeder called Allen “a great gem who will do great things,” and said her 12 years leading the AAP “has been great, great fun.”