✓ Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to confirm that their submission complies with all of the following requirements. Manuscripts that do not comply with these guidelines may be returned to the authors before peer review.

1. General Author Guidelines

1. All contributors who wish to submit manuscripts to Communica : Journal of Communication must comply with these Author Guidelines and the journal's official manuscript template.
2. The journal aims to advance and disseminate scholarly knowledge in communication studies, media studies, journalism, public relations, strategic communication, digital communication, social media, interpersonal and organizational communication, audience studies, communication technology, and related interdisciplinary fields. The journal welcomes original research articles, conceptual analyses, and literature reviews that fall within its aims and scope.
3. Submitted manuscripts undergo a blind peer-review process. Before review, the Editorial Team conducts an initial screening to assess conformity with the journal's scope, manuscript format, academic quality, originality, and ethical requirements.
4. Manuscripts that do not comply with the required format may be returned to the authors for correction before being forwarded to reviewers.
5. Reviewers evaluate the appropriateness of the communication topic, methodological quality, scientific significance, originality, theoretical or practical contribution, quality of analysis, and the adequacy and recency of references.
6. Editorial decisions may include acceptance, minor revision, major revision, resubmission, or rejection. The final publication decision remains under the authority of the Editor.
7. The journal uses plagiarism-detection software such as Turnitin or iThenticate. Manuscripts exceeding the similarity threshold established by the Editorial Board will not be processed further.
8. Authors must confirm that the manuscript is original, has not been previously published, and is not simultaneously submitted to another journal.
9. Authors take full responsibility for compliance with publication ethics, including authorship, research integrity, participant privacy, data accuracy, appropriate citation, conflict-of-interest disclosure, and research ethics.
10. Manuscripts must be submitted through the journal's official online submission system, accompanied by the required author declaration or other supporting documents where requested by the Editorial Board.

2. Manuscript Format

Authors are strongly advised to prepare their manuscripts directly using the official Communica : Journal of Communication template to minimize formatting discrepancies during editorial screening and production.

3.1 Title

The title must accurately reflect the central content and contribution of the article. It should be concise, specific, informative, and academically meaningful within communication and media scholarship.

• Maximum recommended length: 16–20 words.
• Do not include the year of research unless scientifically necessary.
• Avoid uncommon abbreviations.
• Place the main communication concept or central idea before secondary explanations.
• The title should reflect the article's principal communication phenomenon, variables, media context, population, platform, or contribution where relevant.

3.2 Author Names and Affiliations

• Write the author's full name without academic or professional titles.
• Provide the author's institutional affiliation.
• Affiliations should identify the institution clearly and consistently.
• Provide the institution's location/address as required by the template.
• Provide a valid email address for each author where required.
• The corresponding author must be clearly identified.
• The corresponding author's email and telephone number must be provided separately where required.
• Authors are strongly encouraged to provide their ORCID iD.

3.3 Abstract

The abstract must form one continuous and coherent paragraph. It should communicate the essence of the article without requiring readers to consult the main text.

The abstract should logically incorporate the following elements:

3.4 Keywords

Provide three to five keywords immediately below the abstract. Keywords should represent the principal concepts of the article and assist readers and indexing systems in discovering the manuscript.

• Use specific and academically meaningful terms.
• Prefer terms commonly recognized in communication, media, journalism, public relations, or related disciplines.
• Avoid unnecessarily broad words such as “communication” when a more specific term is available.
• Use lower case except for proper names, platforms, theories, or terms that conventionally require capitalization.

3.5 Introduction

The Introduction should normally be approximately one to two pages. It must be written as a coherent academic narrative without unnecessary subheadings, numbering, or bullet points in the manuscript.

The Introduction should establish:

1. the communication, media, journalism, public-relations, or related research problem and its academic or practical significance;
2. the specific problem and research question(s);
3. the complexity and scholarly context of the communication phenomenon;
4. relevant previous studies and the current state of the art;
5. the literature or research gap;
6. the novelty or distinctive contribution of the study; and
7. clear research objectives.

3.6 Method

The Method section must provide sufficient information to allow readers to understand, assess, and where appropriate replicate the research process.

The methodological approach must be clearly identified, such as quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods, content analysis, discourse analysis, framing analysis, semiotic analysis, digital ethnography, audience research, network analysis, literature review, systematic review, or another appropriate communication research design.

Ethical approval is mandatory for studies involving human participants when required by applicable institutional or national regulations. Research using interviews, focus groups, personal communication data, identifiable social-media content, or other potentially sensitive communication data must appropriately address informed consent, privacy, confidentiality, and ethical use of data. Where ethical approval is not applicable, this should be stated clearly.

3.7 Results

The Results section presents the principal empirical or analytical findings of the study in a clear, systematic, and objective manner.

• Present findings according to the research questions, hypotheses, communication variables, coding categories, or analytical themes.
• Use processed and summarized data rather than raw statistical or software output.
• For content or media analysis, clearly present relevant categories, frequencies, themes, frames, narratives, or patterns.
• For qualitative research, use participant quotations selectively to support analytical interpretations while protecting confidentiality.
• Tables, figures, models, network diagrams, or visualizations may be used when they improve clarity.
• Avoid duplicating identical information in text, tables, and figures.
• Important findings should be explained in the text rather than merely displayed.

3.8 Discussion

The Discussion must move beyond description by explaining the meaning, significance, and academic implications of the communication findings.

3.9 Conclusion

The Conclusion should present the essence of the study in paragraph form without numbering. It must directly correspond with the research objectives and findings.

The Conclusion should:

• restate the research objective in an appropriate concise form;
• summarize the principal findings;
• answer the research question(s);
• state the practical and/or theoretical implications for communication and media studies;
• identify the academic contribution;
• acknowledge relevant limitations; and
• provide appropriate directions for future research.

3.10 Acknowledgments

Authors may acknowledge individuals, organizations, media institutions, communication agencies, community partners, administrative personnel, technical staff, data providers, or other parties that supported the research or publication process but do not meet the criteria for authorship.

3.11 Declarations

Authors must provide the relevant declarations to ensure transparency, accountability, and research integrity. The declaration section should include Author Contributions, Funding, Conflict of Interest, Generative Artificial Intelligence Use, Ethics Approval and Informed Consent, and Data Availability, as applicable.

3.12 References

The reference list must contain only works cited in the manuscript. Every in-text citation must have a corresponding entry in the reference list, and every reference listed must be cited in the manuscript.

4. Tables and Figures

Oversized tables, extensive coding matrices, large media-content datasets, or supplementary visual materials that interrupt the readability of the manuscript should be moved to the Appendices where appropriate.

5. Appendices

Appendices may contain research instruments, questionnaires, interview protocols, coding sheets, codebooks, media samples, communication materials, supplementary tables, content-analysis categories, network-analysis information, screenshots, or other supporting documents that assist readers in understanding or evaluating the research but are not essential to the main narrative of the article.

Final Manuscript Quality Check