Call for Papers

Call for Papers

NOTE: The submission deadline for the December 2025 issue is Sept. 29

Teaching Journalism & Mass Communication: A Journal Published by the Small Programs Interest Group  is the official academic journal of the Small Programs Interest Group within the Association for Education in Journalism & Mass Communication.

ACCEPTING PAPERS that are relevant to those teaching journalism and mass communication.

Deadline for the July 2025 issue is April 25. Deadline for the December 2025 issue is September 29.

Submit papers to journaltjmc@gmail.com. Please specify to which category you are submitting: Research for peer review, Teaching & Industry Articles, or a Review.

There are no fees for submission or being published. Submissions must be unique and must not be submitted to another publication at the same time.

Submit your work in two separate documents files , both as WORD.   The first file is your research/article/review with all author identification deleted.  This includes deleting the author’s name from the WORD properties segment.  

The second file is to clearly include:

      • Authors names and education affiliation for the byline.  Include a link to any university profile page. 
      • Short author’s biographic details for the end of the published article. 
      • Lead author’s contact details.
      • In separate lines attests

1. Any funding received for this research

2. Any gifts/payments given to interview participants

3. Any ethics approval granted for the research 

4. Any usage of Artificial Intelligence in the research or paper production 

Research

Papers present research on practical teaching and learning issues within journalism and mass communication. All methods (quantitative, qualitative, interpretive, participatory, and theoretical) are welcome. Use APA referencing, and follow traditional research structure with introduction, literature review, method, results, discussion (example: Swanson). This means a 150-word abstract that explains the results or significance of the results (not simply your research method); an Introduction putting it in context with your background; Literature Review showing what other academic work has been done on this topic; Methodology explaining how the research was conducted including ethics approval; Results to clearly show the data; Discussion on the conclusion and what the research data means to the reader or how it fits in with other research described in the Lit Review. Caution: be sure the conclusions build on the results you obtained, and not a disconnect.

All research papers undergo double-blind review. Submit the paper in Microsoft Word with a maximum of 5,000 words, excluding tables and references. Include with an abstract of about 150 words and a short title of about 8-10 words. Ensure this document is clean of an identification (including the Word/File/Properties tab). In a separate document include authors’ names and institute, contact information, and a short 3-sentence biography of your experience (not your current university title). Include a contact email that you are happy to be put on the website.

The normal acceptance rate for research articles is 50%.

Teaching & Industry Articles

Articles of 800-1,500 words that explore a topic relevant to those who teach in our discipline. These articles are single-blind-peer reviewed. Topics include:

  • Exploring a lesson or course with detailed attention to course strategies, challenges, and outcomes. This needs to be more than a description of a course, so assess and critique it too.

  • Commenting on issues affecting the professoriate in and out of the classroom.

  • Commenting on industry issues in journalism, public relations, and other JMC fields of interest to academia.

The article should have an element of analysis in it. It should not be simply a description of a new course you have developed without some comparison to other courses, or assessment of tangible outcomes. Commentary on current industry practices and how it relates to our disciplines can be wide ranging. (example: Incollingo).

Please stay within the 1,500 word maximum (excluding any references).

Reviews

Reviews of books, textbooks, films, or other resources are invited, with a 500 word limit. (example: Strong).

Disclosures

Authors must disclose the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology or tools in their manuscripts, including the specific tools used and the tasks they were used for. Authors must also disclose any external financial support received in connection to the submission, or potential conflicts of interest.

Copyright is retained by authors.

Teaching Journalism and Mass Communication: A Journal Published by the Small Programs Interest Group (ISSN 2163-9132)