by Gene Edward Veith
Cover Story | Visitors to the Christian Booksellers Association convention in Atlanta, July 14-17, will walk into the ultimate trade show. The latest T-shirts, plaques, CDs, and software will all be on display. Celebrity authors will sign autographs. Bookstore owners will be feted at hospitality suites. Publishing insiders will schmooze and make deals. Last year's convention attracted 13,663 attendees, including 2,801 store representatives and 419 exhibitors from what has become, according to published reports, a $3 billion industry. But such dramatic material success is not without its price. Today the largest Christian publishers are owned by secular corporations or have shares held by Wall Street investors. As ministries turn into big businesses, theological integrity can easily give way to marketing considerations.
