In an article coauthored in interview format, the authors introduce open‐access practices in an anthropological context. Complimenting the other essays in this special section on open access, on the occasion of Cultural Anthropology's move to one version of the gold open access business model, the focus here is on practical information needed by publishing cultural anthropologists. Despite this limitation, the authors work to touch on the ethical and political contexts of open access. They argue for a critical anthropology of scholarly communication (inclusive of scholarly publishing), one that brings the kinds of engaged analysis for which Cultural Anthropology is particularly well known to bear on this vital aspect of knowledge production, circulation, and valuation. [scholarly communication; publishing; open access; neoliberalism; political economy; digital technologies; disciplinary practices]