This research paper proposes a model of study to discern the impact of publisher-created paratext on a text’s reception in the media. It showcases how publisher-created paratext activates processes of speculative consumption, delineating audience, and providing a guide on how to consume the text. It also demonstrates how a publisher’s brand identity is implicated in this process. Through the analysis of the paratext surrounding three titles published by Riverhead Books—The Female Persuasion by Meg Wolitzer, The Ensemble by Aja Gabel, and The Friend by Sigrid Nunez—this research reveals how brand-mediated paratext creates boundaries of interpretation around a text that primarily positions the titles as sources of cultural capital. This paper also situates its analysis within the context of a cultural climate where the need for diversity is seen as increasingly urgent. This research ultimately makes the argument that not only does publisher-created paratext influence how a text creates meaning, it also contributes to how the topic of diversity is discussed in the media.