In its modern incarnation, what is now called the menhaden reduction industry consists almost entirely of Houston-based Omega Protein, whose dozens of factory ships harvest billions of menhaden each year. The largest share goes to a production complex on Virginia’s Northern Neck. Franklin drew heavily on scientific research to show how overfishing by the industry continues to wreak havoc in East Coast waters. These include the Chesapeake Bay, where a dearth of menhaden is believed to have caused malnutrition among striped bass, leading to a deadly mycobacterial infection, a kind of fish tuberculosis.

Partly inspired by Franklin’s articles from the book in progress as well as radio and TV appearances, anger toward the industry was building among sport fishermen and environmental groups, including Greenpeace, which in 2005 led a protest flotilla off Omega’s production site in Virginia. But the two camps regarded each other warily. The Most Important Fish in the Sea helped bring them together. Written for a general audience, albeit one with an interest in marine ecology, it was favorably reviewed in national publications such as Science and the Washington Post. At the same time, Island Press embarked on a publicity campaign that went well beyond the usual round of radio interviews and book-signing appearances at local stores.

Fishermen were among the first targets. With philanthropic support, Island Press supported Franklin on multiple speaking engagements to anglers’ groups up and down the East Coast. “We’re talking about audiences that were overwhelmingly white, almost entirely male and mostly working class,” Franklin recalled. “A lot of the talks I was giving were in VFW halls, American Legion halls, Knights of Columbus, places like that. Although many people in the environmental movement may think otherwise, the fishing guys in these audiences are devoted to the marine environment. They want it to be there for their kids and grandkids.” The publisher would always supply him with a stack of books, which often sold out.

One of the groups he addressed was a local chapter of the Maryland Saltwater Fishing Association on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. He had been invited by Charlie Hutchinson, a retired manager who had become alarmed by the sudden disappearance of striped bass from his favorite fishing spot on the Choptank River. Spurred in part by Franklin’s speech, the fishermen “built quite a coalition” with environmental groups such as Pew and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Hutchinson said. “I think it had quite an impact,” he added. “Not many people knew much of anything about menhaden, even those who are heavy fishermen.”

Island Press views its books as just the beginning – a platform for discussion, education and change. This book was no different. Not long after the book’s appearance, for example, Island Press president Chuck Savitt got a call from a wealthy private-equity investor and avid striped-bass fisherman. “I’m outraged,” Savitt recalled him saying. “How can I help?” At Savitt’s suggestion, the investor provided a grant that allowed hundreds of books to be distributed to, among others, the members of the Virginia state legislature and members of the US House of Representatives. A copy of the book also found its way to Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, who reportedly promised to “unsheathe my sword” against menhaden fishing.

It didn’t take long for Franklin’s message to resonate with the media. Thanks to the book and its title, the humble menhaden was no longer a forgotten ecological wallflower but “the most important fish in the sea,” as it was invariably described in press accounts of the controversy. Typical of the coverage was a Dec. 28, 2007 column by Jim Brewer of the Charlottesville, Va. Daily Progress, who cited Franklin’s book in urging the Virginia state assembly to stop protecting Omega Protein and start protecting menhaden instead. Brewer was particularly incensed that Omega’s lobbying had prevented the legislature from even funding research into menhaden.

As the publicity campaign gathered steam, the fisheries commission—made up of three representatives from each of the 15 Atlantic coast states—was coming under growing internal pressure from its own scientific advisers. Of particular concern were new data showing that menhaden were not being managed in a sustainable way. “There was a new analysis, a new stock assessment that went through a scientific review, and when the reviewers looked carefully at that analysis, they said the benchmarks you’re fishing this population at probably are not sufficient to protect it,” said Lynn Fegley, deputy fisheries director for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and a member of the commission.

With little choice but to act, the panel invited comment from the public, holding hearings in most states along the East Coast. Recreational fishermen and their newfound allies in the environmental movement packed the meetings, where Franklin sometimes followed them to the microphone. The commission received an unprecedented 92,000 letters, almost all of them urging curbs on the reduction industry. “It shattered all previous records,” said William Goldsborough of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, who also sits on the commission. “It was quite a diverse coalition.”

Many of the letters referenced “the most important fish in the sea,” even if they did not credit Franklin and his book directly (though plenty of them did). “The book being in circulation those four years did a lot to raise awareness about menhaden and helped spur this expression of public concern,” Goldsborough said. Lynn Fegley agreed. “Certainly reading through the hundreds and hundreds of public comments that came in on this issue, and just looking through the outreach literature, the book is often referenced,” she said.

In the end, the panel voted to reduce the annual menhaden harvest by as much as 37 percent. Only Virginia and New Jersey voted against the measure. The commission still must decide on how to implement the reduction in catch, but when it does, Bruce Franklin and Island Press can legitimately claim some of the credit.

Founded in 1984, Island Press is the nation’s leading publisher on environmental and natural resource issues. In keeping with its nonprofit mission, the Washington, D.C. organization is focused not just on sales, but on education and making sure decisionmakers have the best available information. This means reaching out in every way possible—to policymakers, activists, the general public and “thought leaders” in the media and elsewhere. In that regard, the Franklin book and subsequent publicity campaign was in many ways “the model of how we publish,” said Savitt. “We’re committed to getting the ideas and information out to those who need it.”

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