The Journal of Media Literacy Publication Ethics Policy

Thematic Structure

IC4ML’s Executive Board with the guidance of the governing board and the Advisory Council invites guest editor(s) to help shape, lead, and manage a thematic issue of our journal. The responsibilities of the IC4ML Executive Board and all guest editors of The Journal of Media Literacy and its contributing authors are described below.

Responsibilities of Editors (Executive Board members and guest editors)

Publication Decisions

IC4ML Executive Board, with advice from the guest editors, is responsible for deciding which of the articles submitted to the journal will be published. The editors will evaluate articles without regard to the authors’ race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political philosophy. The decision will be based on the article’s importance, originality and clarity, and the article’s validity and its relevance to the journal’s scope. Current legal requirements regarding libel, copyright infringement, and plagiarism should also be considered.

Confidentiality

The editor and any editorial staff must not disclose any information about a submitted article to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, other editorial advisers, and the publisher, as appropriate.

Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest

Unpublished materials disclosed in a submitted article will not be used by the editor or the members of the editorial board for their own research purposes without the author’s explicit written consent.

Responsibilities of Authors

Reporting Standards 

Authors of original articles should present an accurate account of the work performed as well as an objective discussion of its significance. Underlying data should be represented accurately in the article. An article should contain sufficient detail and references to permit others to replicate the work. Fraudulent or knowingly inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable. 

Originality, Plagiarism and Acknowledgement of Sources 

Authors will submit only entirely original works, and will appropriately cite or quote the work and/or words of others. Publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the reported work should also be cited. 

Multiple, Redundant or Concurrent Publication 

In general, articles describing essentially the same research should not be published in more than one journal. Submitting the same article to more than one journal constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable. Articles which have been published as copyrighted material elsewhere cannot be submitted. In addition, articles under review by the journal should not be resubmitted to copyrighted publications. However, by submitting an article, the author(s) retain the rights to the published material. In case of publication they permit the use of their work under a CC-BY license, which allows others to copy, distribute and transmit the work as well as to adapt the work and to make commercial use of it.

Authorship 

Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the article. All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors. The corresponding author ensures that all contributing co-authors and no uninvolved persons are included in the author list. The corresponding author will also verify that all co-authors have approved the final version of the article and have agreed to its submission for publication. 

Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest 

All authors should include a statement disclosing any financial or other substantive conflicts of interest that may be construed to influence the results or interpretation of their article. All sources of financial support for the project should be disclosed. 

Fundamental Errors in Published Works 

When an author discovers a significant error or inaccuracy in his/her own published work, it is the author’s obligation to promptly notify the journal editor or publisher and to cooperate with the editor to retract or correct the article in the form of an erratum. 

The above policy is based on the guidelines and best practices outlined by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).