Promedia Verlag

Promedia Publishing House is an Austrian publishing house founded in 1982 by bookseller Erich Ertl. It focuses on critical, cultural, and political books that “go against the mainstream.”

Relying on authors such as Erich Fried, Karl Wiesinger, and Harald Irnberger, the publishing house quickly found its niche, as the works of these writers achieved solid circulation figures. Within just a few years, Promedia already had 350 available titles. Alongside its general program in cultural history and political philosophy, the house publishes works within a number of thematic series, including Women’s Journeys, Eastern Europe in Focus, Historical Social Education, Left Classics, and World History.

Cultural-Critical Writing

The publishing house’s original identity—releasing books that swim against the current—has been expanded and refined to include cultural-critical and historical-political writings, contemporary works on domestic and foreign political issues, travel reports, feminist texts, Vienna city guides, and anti-fascist literature.

Today, Promedia is one of the few Austrian publishing houses that see themselves as a socially engaged project and have maintained a firm presence in the book market.

Since 1991, Promedia has been led by Hannes Hofbauer, who was joined by Stefan Kraft in a management role in 2011.

Austrian Literature and History

Through a dedicated publishing line, Promedia expresses its appreciation for its regional roots by publishing works on Austrian literature and history—subjects often overlooked in mainstream discourse. Biographies of feminist activists such as Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, or portraits of Austrian anti-fascist women (such as “The Sky Is Blue”), form part of this critical examination of the country’s past, alongside titles like “Gay Vienna” and “Red Vienna.”

Leftist Beginnings

Cultural history occupies an increasingly important place at Promedia. Although the house had a left-leaning orientation in its early years—without ever expressly defining itself as such—it has broadened its profile particularly through cultural-historical publications. Authors such as Rolf Schwendter, Hilde Schmölzer, Thomas Rothschild, Walter Wippersberg, Claudia von Werlhof, Moshe Zuckermann, Rosina-Fawzia al-Rawi, Johan Galtung, Edgar Morin, Winfried Wolf, Werner Sepp, Andrea Komlosy, Immanuel Wallerstein, Hannes Hofbauer, Do-Yul Song, Martin Balluch, and Berbel Danneberg give voice to a critical debate free of narrow ideological lenses. This is complemented by the Eastern Europe in Focus series.

Conclusion

Promedia has succeeded in presenting the history and politics of regions on the periphery of the European Union in an accessible, popular manner. This series focuses on countries and areas such as Albania, Bukovina, Transylvania, Kosovo, Slovakia, and Silesia, helping readers understand life in Eastern Europe through the exploration of social, national, and religious dimensions.