About this Manual
General Policies and Procedures
Purpose and
restrictions
Types of
Publications
Authority
for Publications
Reviewing
Process
Financial
Considerations
Copyright
and Permission to Reproduce Materials
Journals Policies and Procedures
Background
and History
Editor
Selection
Editor
Responsibilities
Removal of
Editors and Unanticipated Vacancies
Review
Boards and Process
Publisher
Editorial
Mission of Each Journal
Required Front Matter for Journals
Issues Requiring Statements of Ownership
Stylistic Requirements for
Journals
Page Allocations for Each Journal
Issues
Requiring Statement of Ownership
Page
Allocations for Each Journal
Stipends
for Journal Editors
Transition
of Editors
Reporting
Responsibilities
Journal
Publication Months
Copyright
Recognition
of Editors
Conference
Responsibilities
Questions
Abstracts
and Indexes
Annuals and Yearbooks - Policies and Procedures
Book and Monograph Series - General Policies
Mission and
Goals
Authority
and Decision Making
Financial
Considerations
Operating
Procedures
Copyright
Required
Content
Reporting
Requirements
Cooperative
Publishing
Other Publications
Publications by NCA Units
Endorsement or Sponsorship of Publications and Materials by NCA
Procedures
Policies and Procedures Governing the Publications Board
Duties of the Board
Editor Appointments
Adoption of New Journals
Appendix 1
Copyright: Journal and Book and Monograph Series
Appendix 2
Copyright: Book Editor
Appendix 3
Copyright: Book Author
Appendix 4
Copyright: Book and Authors
Appendix 5
NCA Copyright Statemen
Appendix 6 Taylor and
Francis Assignment Agreement: Journal Article
Appendix 6
Policy Disclaimer
Appendix 7
Cover Letter to Request Copyright Assignment
Appendix 8
NCA Statement on Oral Communication Assessment
Criteria
for the Assessment of Oral Communication
Appendix 10
Editor's Information Report
About this Manual
This manual is a summary of
policies and procedures governing the NCA Publications Program. It is based
on a compilation of policies adopted by the Publications Board, Executive
Committee, and Legislative Assembly. The manual was first drafted in 1978 by
the NCA Publications Board and has been regularly updated and expanded. In
1994, procedures were added to the policy statements to produce a guide for
introducing editors to their duties and responsibilities. Additional
modifications and updates were incorporated in 1998. In 2003 the manual was
further modified to reflect the newly formed partnerships with Taylor and
Francis and EBSCO.
This manual
begins with a section titled General Policies and
Procedures, which
should be read by all NCA editors. Following the
general policies
and procedures are sections pertaining specifically
to NCA Journals,
Communication Teacher, the Index to Journals in
Communication
Studies, Annuals and Yearbooks, the NCA Non-Serial
Publications
Program, Unit Publications, Other Publications,
Endorsement of
Non-NCA Publications, and the Publications Board.
Each section is
designed to be self-contained, as much information
is redundant.
The Executive
Director and Publications Board Chair annually
evaluate the
manual in an attempt to keep it current, comprehensive,
and useful.
Additionally, the Executive Director annually includes a
brief description
of the Manual in Spectra and notes that the Manual
is available to
NCA members on the NCA website:
www.natcom.org
in the
“Publications” area.
General Policies and Procedures
Purpose and Restrictions
NCA's
publications program is operated in support of the basic
purpose of the
Association, which is to promote the study,
criticism,
research, teaching and application of the artistic,
humanistic, and
scientific principles of communication.
NCA, as
not-for-profit corporation under section 501(c)(3), exists
for educational,
scientific, and literary purposes only. Therefore,
no substantial
part of the activities of NCA or any duly authorized
and recognized
agency of NCA shall be the propagandizing, or
otherwise
attempting to influence legislation. Additionally, neither
the Association
nor any of its duly authorized and recognized
agencies shall
participate in, or intervene in (including the
publishing or
distributing of statements), any political campaign on
behalf of any
candidate for public office.
Types of Publications
NCA's
publications program is divided into several basic components
as follows:
Journals.
The
journals of the Association are Communication
Education, Communication
Monographs, Critical Studies in Media Communication, Journal of Applied
Communication Research, The Quarterly Journal of Speech, Text and
Performance Quarterly, The Review of Communication
(online only), and
Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies (beginning in 2004).
Primary responsibility for the content of the journals rests with elected
editors. The elected editors for the journals are listed in the NCA
Membership Directory.
Other serial publications.
In addition to the journals listed above, the Association's serial
publications include Communication Teacher (a magazine dedicated to
publishing pedagogical and curricular information), Free Speech Yearbook,
International and Intercultural Communication Annual, Spectra (the
Association's official newsletter), and the National Communication
Association Directory (available on the NCA website in the “Members Only”
area published occasionally). Editors are elected for all serial
publications except Spectra and the Directory, which are edited by the
Executive Director.
Non-serial Publications
Program. The
Association publishes books and monographs on subjects related to its
mission statement. All such works are peer reviewed. The final decision
regarding publication of books and monographs rests with the NCA
Publications Board and Executive Director.
Other publications.
The Association occasionally publishes books, booklets, monographs,
brochures and pamphlets falling outside the above categories. Such
publications do not have elected editors and are the responsibility of the
NCA National Office.
Abstract
communication data base of 26
communication journals, including those of NCA, to EBSCO publishing.
Abstracts and indexes of all NCA journals from their inception will be
available online through EBSCO Host.
Authority for Publications Decisions
It is a long standing policy
of the Association to maintain editorial control over the materials it
produces or that bear its name and/or endorsement. Such editorial control is
exercised in differing ways, depending largely on the nature of the
publication. In most cases, however, editorial control is maintained via
selection of the NCA editor responsible for the publication.
The main responsibility of
the elected editors is to ensure that the content of the publications
adheres to rigorous scholarly standards and that it is consistent with the
purpose of the publication and the mission of the Association. Editors are
also responsible for administrative duties, to include copy editing,
adherence to publication schedules, and monitoring of budgets.
The authority of the
Executive Committee and Legislative Council is applicable to all NCA
publishing activities. Any major change in the statements regulating NCA
publication policies or the procedures and practices of the Publications
Board, the editors, or National Office shall be approved by the Executive
Committee or the Legislative Assembly.
Reviewing Process
All material submitted for
publication by the Association will be subject to peer review. The only
exception to this rule is material submitted for Spectra, which will be
reviewed by the editor. Elected editors are responsible for developing
review procedures and for recruiting and managing editorial boards.
Administrative procedures.
All manuscripts submitted to an editor that are properly submitted and that
fall within the domain of the publication or publication program will
receive peer reviews. Only in cases where submitted materials are clearly
inappropriate for the publication or publication program will they not be
peer reviewed.
Generally, material that is suitable for review will be reviewed by at least two reviewers. All reviews will be conducted in
such a manner as to not identify the author(s) or the reviewers.
Manuscripts submitted
for potential publication are to be treated as confidential until
published. The editor is responsible for instruction reviewers to protect
confidentiality and proprietary rights of the author.
Editors should acknowledge
receipt of all manuscripts and should promptly initiate the review process.
If the reviewing process takes more than three months, editors should inform
authors of the status of the review.
Authors who have submitted
manuscripts will receive copies of the peer reviews. In addition, editors
should clearly state their decisions and, if
appropriate, suggestions for improving the material
submitted.
Review boards.
Editors are responsible for recruiting and managing review or editorial
boards. Editors are free to organize their boards as they determine
appropriate. The boards should consist of individuals competent to review
the full spectrum of articles falling under the domain of the publication or
publication program. The boards should also reflect the demographic and
cultural characteristics of the members of the Association and the
communication field.
Financial Considerations
It is the policy
of NCA to operate its publication program in a cost effective manner.
On the whole, the NCA publications program is
expected to at least
break even. NCA encourages the use of cooperative publication efforts, to
include co-publication with other associations, organizations and commercial
or university presses, when doing so is to the financial advantage of the
Association and/or is a benefit to the credibility or distribution of the
publication. Under no circumstances, however, should editorial control over
content be lost by the Association in such agreements.
NCA also
encourages the use of technologies that lower the cost of producing
publications (e.g., such as use of electronic word processing and editing,
use of desktop publishing facilities, and communication via electronic
networks).
Small stipends will be
supplied to the institutions employing editors, when appropriate. Such
budgets are not intended to cover all the administrative costs of editing
the publications. Editors are to notify the National Office by January 15
of years when stipends are to be awarded regarding the individual at their
institution (typically a department head or chair) to whom the stipend
should be sent. Administrative support must be provided by the institution
at which the editor is employed. Editors should request one half of the
yearly stipend in January and the second half in July by contacting the
Chief Financial Officer of NCA
Copyright and Permission to Reproduce Materials
It is the policy
of NCA to publish only material for which it holds the copyright or has
secured permission to publish from the person or agency holding the
copyright. Specific copyright policies can be found in the sections
governing the specific publication programs.
NCA holds copyright to
all materials it publishes not to make a profit but rather to facilitate
dissemination of these materials. Since NCA can grant permission to reprint
materials, it is not necessary to track down authors whose current addresses
may be difficult to identify. Moreover, by holding copyright to all
materials it publishes, NCA is free to negotiate for multiple authors
simultaneously, facilitating inclusion of NCA publications in abstract and
indexing data bases.
Permission to reproduce
material published by NCA for scholarly, not-for-profit purposes should be
freely granted. A fee of $10 per page is ordinarily charged for articles,
chapters, or excerpts thereof, that are to be reprinted in reasonable
expectation of profit. A fee of $0.30 per article is charged for copies
reproduced by photocopy method for classroom or seminar use. In addition, a
reasonable attempt must be made by the person or agency requesting the
reproduction for scholarly purposes to secure the concurrence of the author.
This policy does not extend to reproduction of materials for classroom use.
Reproduction of articles from journals published by Taylor and Francis are
governed by their policies.
The determination of
whether or not a reprint is for profit will be made by the National Office.
Reprint requests should be sent to the Executive Director, who can delegate
specific processing duties to other members of the National Office staff.
Journals Policies and Procedures
Background and
History
The development of an
academic journal was a significant motivation for the
establishment of NCA. The Quarterly Journal of Public
Speaking
(currently The Quarterly Journal of Speech) was first published in
1915 at The University of Chicago Press, just one year following the
establishment of the organization. By 1919, the journal was being published
by the Association.
The Association
began publishing Speech Monographs (currently Communication
Monographs) in 1934, The Speech Teacher, (currently
Communication Education)
in 1952, Critical Studies in Mass Communication (currently
Critical Studies in Media Communication), in 1984, Text and
Performance Quarterly in 1989 (previously named Literature in
Performance, established in 1980), Journal of Applied Communication
Research in 1991 (founded in 1973), and Communication and
Critical/Cultural Studies (commencing in 2004).
The Association served
as its own publisher from 1914 until 2003, when it formed a publishing
partnership with Taylor and Francis.As early as
1917, membership in the Association was linked to subscription to the
Association's journals. Today, as the membership structure has become more
complex, to accommodate additional journals, convention registration, and
non-journal publications, the journals continue to provide a common bond
between members of NCA and the motivation for many to join.
The journals
are important to NCA and its members in at least three ways. First, the
journals constitute a defining feature of the nature of NCA and the field
of communication itself. The publication of a journal results
in a conception of what NCA seeks to promote as scholarship and ultimately
how the field is understood by ourselves and others.
Second, the journals
provide a means of promoting, disseminating, and preserving research
scholarship. The facilitation of such scholarship is important to the
production and application of knowledge relating to communication.
Third, the journals are central to the financial structure of NCA. NCA journals constitute a significant portion of NCA's annual operating budget. Additionally, subscriptions to the journals are difficult to separate from membership.Editors of NCA's journals therefore play key roles in the definition of the field, in
the facilitation of research, and in the health of the Association. They are responsible for maintaining the tradition of the journals, for promoting
scholarship related to the issues addressed by the journals, for ensuring adherence to academic standards, and for administration of the production of
the publication.
Editor Selection
When individuals apply
for nomination for editorial positions, they are required to submit a
statement of plans and goals for the journal. This statement is carefully
reviewed by the Publications Board and weighs heavily in the evaluation
process. If their goals for the journal differ in any substantial way from
the mission statement of the journal contained in this manual, the
modification should be noted at the time of application. The statement
submitted by the applicant is also presented to the Legislative Assembly as
part of the materials supporting the nomination.
The selection of editors
is based on three primary criteria: their qualifications, both substantively
and administratively to discharge their duties as editor; their statement of
goals and objectives; and their record of scholarship.
Editors for NCA's
journals are elected by the Legislative Assembly at least one year in
advance of their taking office. That simple statement, however, masks a
considerable amount of detail. A sample timeline of events from nomination
as an editor through publication of an editors first issue is as follows:
Call for applications
September 2003
Deadline for application
February 2004
Nominated by the Publications
Board
March 2004
Endorsed by the Executive
Committee
May 2004
Elected via ballot by
Legislative Assembly
May-November 2004
Begin editing manuscripts
1st Quarter, 2005
Publish First Issue
1st Quarter, 2006
The election process
begins with the publication of a call for nominations two years prior to the
production of the first issue by the new editor. The early call is designed
to provide applicants with time required to secure administrative support
from their institutions, develop editorial goal statements, and obtain
letters of support. This time frame allows approximately six months to
complete that process. A sample call follows.
NCA’s Publications Board will
appoint editors in [year] 2004 for [name of journal]. Nominations and
self-nominations are welcome.
Nominations should include:
1.
A statement
accepting the nomination;
2.
A statement
about plans and projections for the publication, including the ability to
meet editorial deadlines; If the editor applicants goals for the journal
differ from the mission statement for the journal contained in this manual,
the modification should be explicitly noted.
3.
Curriculum
vitae;
4.
At least three
letters of support from persons qualified to
assess the candidate’s ability to edit the
publication (both scholarly and managerial expertise);
5.
A letter from
the responsible administrator that institutional support, including release
time, administrative support, and financial support will be provided;
6.
An agreement to
observe and support association publication policies;
7.
A statement
about how the candidate would implement NCA’s affirmative action statement.
Nominations and supporting information should be sent to the National Office
for distribution to Publications Board members.
Nominations received by February 15 will receive full consideration.
Inquiries may be made to the assistant to the Executive Director @natcom.org
Another three months is
consumed by the review process. The
Publications Board
reviews the applications in the spring to make a nomination to the
Legislative Assembly. That nomination is typically reviewed and endorsed by
the Executive Committee during the same spring EC meeting. The actual
appointment is made by the Legislative Assembly at the annual meeting.
It is the policy of the
Publications Board to nominate one person for vacant editorial positions.
The Legislative Assembly has the authority to reject the Board's
recommendation and to elect another candidate. Experience suggests, however,
that the Board's nominees are generally accepted by the Legislative
Assembly.
While editors are
elected approximately one to one and a half years prior to producing their
first issue, they may begin editing as early as one to three months after
being elected (or as soon as the sitting editors fill their page
allocations). Editors should therefore be prepared to act quickly to set up
editorial boards and administrative systems.
Sitting editors
must stop accepting manuscripts when their page allocations have been
exhausted. They then transfer articles in review and new submissions to the
editors-elect. NCA policy prohibits sitting editors from transferring
accepted articles to their successors.
The election of editors
will be reported in Spectra, the Association's newsletter. Editors will be
asked to supply a short biographical statement, and a statement of goals and
objectives, to be published in Spectra.
To help facilitate the
establishment of these support systems, the newly elected editors should
meet with the Publications Board, the retiring editor, and with a
representative of Taylor and Francis during the convention at which they are
elected. Additionally, other editors, the Publications Board chair,
the publisher’s representatives, and the National Office staff are available
for consultations and assistance.
Editor Responsibilities
The NCA Executive
Committee has established minimum standards of professional
conduct for editors of NCA publications. Failure to adhere to these,
including personal standards, could be grounds for removal from the editor
position.
Reviewing
standards. Specific acceptance and rejection decisions regarding
manuscripts are the responsibility of the editors. The editors are also free
to organize and manage their review boards as they feel appropriate. The
Association does, however, require the following minimum standards for
review.
Manuscripts will generally
receive peer reviews. Only in cases where manuscripts are clearly
inappropriate for the journal will they not be peer reviewed. Every
manuscript suitable for review will be reviewed by at least two reviewers.
Authors who have submitted manuscripts will receive copies of the peer
reviews.
Editors will promptly process
manuscripts submitted and will, as much as possible, respond to authors with
a disposition decision within two months of receiving the manuscript. If the
reviewing process takes more than three months, authors will be so informed
by the editor.
Publication standards
Editors are responsible for managing production schedules for their
journals. Falling behind in production has serious potential impact on
member satisfaction with the journal and with library subscriptions. While
members are generally tolerant of minor schedule delays, libraries are not
and often cancel subscriptions if delays are long or frequent. Once a
library subscription is lost, it is very difficult to regain. Therefore, NCA has established the following minimal requirements.
It is expected that editors
will abide by the publication schedule established by the National Office
for submission of material to the publisher. Meeting publication deadlines
is a crucial responsibility of editors even if it means a
higher-than-desirable acceptance rate for a journal. When materials will be
more than four weeks late, it is the responsibility of the editor to inform
both the chair of the Publications Board and the Executive Director of NCA
of that fact and to provide a suitable explanation for the delay.
Editors will not exceed page allocations or budget limitations established by the Association.
Editors will not make major shifts in content or structure of journals without the approval of the
Publications Board.
Ethical practices for NCA authors.
NCA Association makes certain assumptions about articles submitted for publication in NCA serial outlets; about
papers and reports presented at NCA conventions; and about chapters,
books, pamphlets, etc., that are published under the aegis of the
Association. Editors are responsible for monitoring compliance of the
following by authors of articles published in their journals.
Materials disseminated through NCA must be original works which credit all the principal authors.
All sources of supporting material must be properly acknowledged.
Individuals who have had a significant influence on the formulation of the
material should be identified. Substantive student contributions should be
acknowledged. If the material has been previously published or presented, that fact must be communicated atthe time
the material is submitted for consideration by NCA outlets. The place, time, and form of
the previous publication, and whether the present material duplicates or substantially revises the earlier presentation, should all be made clear in a letter accompanying the manuscript.While acknowledging that there may be ambiguity with regard to definitions of previous publication,
NCA considers prior publication to include publication in printed or other
form in a journal, book, newsletter, or similar publication of another
association, organization, university press, or commercial press. While
editors are to be the final arbiters of prior publication, NCA suggests that
a publication be defined as those materials having an assigned ISBN or ISSN
number.
Personal
standards for editors. In addition to the obvious editorial duties, NCA
requires the following from journal editors. Editors must be members of the
National Communication Association at the time of their nomination and must
maintain membership in the Association throughout their editorial terms.
The Publications Board
encourages the individual journal editors to
promote membership in NCA on the part of authors whose articles have been
accepted, but who are not presently Association
members. However, NCA membership is not required for an author's article to
be accepted.
Editors are
expected to attend the annual convention of NCA and participate, as
requested by the Association, on programs at that convention relevant to
their editorial tasks.
Editors are responsible for
familiarizing themselves thoroughly
with the contents of the NCA Publications Manual. Evidence concerning
alleged misconduct under this code must be presented to the Executive
Committee's Ethics Committee.
Removal
of Editors and Unanticipated Vacancies
It is assumed that editors
will fulfill the term for which they have been appointed. The Publications
Board will endeavor to support the editors if they experience difficulties.
Only in extreme circumstances will the Publications Board consider replacing
an editor before expiration of the term. Such extreme circumstances include
repeated failure to (a) process manuscripts in a timely fashion, (b) provide
feedback to authors, (c) submit copy to the publisher in a timely fashion,
(d) process manuscripts in a suggested way that are cost effective, (e) or,
in general, to follow the guidelines established in the Publications Manual.
In the event that the
Publications Board has made reasonable efforts to rectify difficulties and
feels that necessary improvements are not forthcoming, the Publications
Board will submit a motion to replace the editor to the Executive Committee,
along with supporting materials to justify the appeal.
Simultaneously, the motion
and copies of the supporting materials will be sent to the editor by
certified mail with a return receipt requested. The editor will have two
weeks to submit a formal appeal to the Executive Committee, along with
supporting materials to justify the appeal.
The Executive Committee (with
the Publications Board chair recusing himself/herself) will adjudicate the
matter. The Executive Committee may, at its initiative, interview any
interested parties. The decision of the Executive Committee will be final.
In the event of a vacancy in
an editorship prior to completion of the term, either through resignation or
removal of the editor, the Publications Board will appoint an editor, with
the approval of the Executive Committee, to complete the term.
Review Boards and Process
All articles
submitted to an NCA journal that meet the submission criteria and basic
editorial policy should be peer reviewed by at least two reviewers. The
review process should be blind (i.e., the author cannot be identified by the
reviewers and vice versa).
It is essential that editors
develop an editorial board that reflects the breadth of the journals'
substantive domain. Editors should also develop boards that are reflective
of the demographic characteristics of the Association and the field it
represents.
Within these broad
guidelines, editors are free to recruit and organize their review boards as
they determine appropriate. It should also be remembered that editors are
responsible for the substantive content of the journals. While they will
rely heavily on the reviews received from their boards, the decision to
publish or not to publish rests with the editors.
Editors should also use
administrative systems that permit them to easily track the progress of
manuscripts through the review and publishing process. Editors are
expected to track dates of receipt and acknowledgment of receipt of
manuscripts, names of reviewers, when reviews are received and authors are
notified of manuscript dispositions, contacts with authors, and transmitted
schedules for sending and receiving galleys and page proofs.
Editors should also
ensure the reviews are conducted in a timely manner and that authors are
treated fairly and professionally. For example, reviews should be conducted
promptly and authors should be informed periodically of the status of the
review. Authors should be given copies of the review and relevant comments
from the editor.
Publisher
Beginning in 2003, Taylor and Francis is the publisher of NCA journals.
Editorial Mission of Each
Journal
Editors are responsible for
the content of the journals. The content of the journals can be thought of
along several dimensions: substantive, administrative, grammatical,
stylistic, and page allocation. The authority of the editor to make
decisions is different for each type of content.
Substantive
content. NCA has not developed specific policies regarding the
substantive content of journals. The NCA journals were created to publish
scholarship in particular areas of the field, and the content parameters for
the individual journals have evolved over time. Therefore, while there are
not specific policies governingsubstantive
content, the domains of the NCA journals have been established by the
initial decisions to create the journal and by the traditions of journals.
Editors are free to make acceptance/rejection decisions within those
parameters.
The continued evolution
of journal content is managed by the Association via the election of
editors. Applicants for editorial positions are leading scholars within the
area of the field served by the journal they seek to edit. As such, editors
should be familiar with the traditions of the journal and with the range of
scholarship it publishes. Additionally, their record of research is
suggestive of the contribution they will likely make to the continuing
character of the journal.
Editors should also publish
the purpose or domain of the journals in each issue, as a guide for authors
and readers unfamiliar with the journal. The following represents the
statements of purpose currently carried
in the NCA journals.
Quarterly Journal of Speech
The Quarterly Journal of Speech
publishes studies in rhetoric in all its forms and from diverse theoretical perspectives and methods of analysis.Essays in the journal concern situated discourse in forms and venues including the oral and written,
public and private, direct and mediated, historical and contemporary.
Communication Monographs
Communication Monographs publishes
original, theoretically grounded, research dealing with human symbolic
exchange across the broad spectrum of interpersonal, group, organizational,
cultural, and mediated contexts in which such activities occur. The
scholarship reflects diverse modes of inquiry and methodologies that bear on
the ways in which communication is shaped and functions in human
interaction.
Communication Education
Communication Education publishes
original scholarship bearing on the intersection of communication,
instruction, and human development. Among the areas of scholarship
represented are classroom discourse, life-span development of communication
competence, mediating instructional communication with technology, diverse
backgrounds of learners and teachers in instructional interaction,
interaction in informal education and in varied instructional settings, and
learning outcomes associated with instruction communication practices.
Critical Studies in
Media Communication
Critical Studies in Media Communication
focuses on the range of critical perspectives which help define the
expanding area of mediated communication research. Serving as a forum for
cross disciplinary scholarship treating issues related to mediated
communication, CSMC presents a broad range of methodological and theoretical
approaches to the analysis and interpretation of mass media institutions,
histories, technologies, and messages, including the intersections of mass
media and culture.
Text and Performance Quarterly
Text and Performance
Quarterly presents
scholarship addressing constitutive elements of texts, performers, and
audiences in any of the many sites of performance, including the performance
of literary texts, performance in everyday life, cultural performances,
social dramas, and conspicuous, aesthetic performances. Essays in TPQ
explore performance as a social, communicative practice; as a technology of
representation and expression; and as a means of interpretation. Essays
reflect a wide range of perspectives and methods of analysis, including the
historical, rhetorical, feminist, ethnographic,
psychological/psychoanalytic, political, and aesthetic.
Journal of Applied Communication
The Journal of Applied
Communication Research publishes original scholarship that is
theoretically-driven while focusing on understanding communication in
applied contexts. The journal presents research that applies existing theory
and bodies of knowledge to situations, problems, and practices or that
indicates how embodied activities inform and reform existing theory.
Commentaries on applied communication issues and critical summaries of
theory and/or research that help explain communication practices or
processes are included. Diverse theoretical and methodological approaches
are represented.
Review of Communication
The Review of
Communication is a leading publication in Communication, reviewing books
in all areas of human communication, including academic books, textbooks,
and appropriate trade books. Review essays covering multiple publications,
bearing a common theme or issue, are the basis for exploration and comment
on a wide range of contemporary research and writing within the field. The
Review of Communication also includes both brief summaries and
extended analyses of single books and a listing of recently-published books
in Communication.
Communication and
Critical/Cultural Studies
Communication and
Critical/Cultural Studies publishes scholarship for an international
readership on communication as a theory, practice, technology, and
discipline of power. The journal features critical inquiry that cuts across
academic boundaries to focus on social, political, and cultural practices
from the standpoint of communication. CCCS promotes critical reflection on
the requirements of a more democratic culture by giving attention to
subjects such as, but not limited to, class, race, ethnicity, gender,
ability, sexuality, polity, public sphere, nation, environment, and
globalization. Collectively, the scholarship analyzes historical contexts,
material and economic conditions, institutional settings, political
initiatives, practices of resistance, and/or the theoretical significance of
discursive formations in everyday life.
Editors may not make
major shifts in content, structure, or graphic layout of journals without
the approval of the Publications Board. Editors wishing to make such
changes must apply in writing to the Publications Board. A formal review of
the request may be required prior to a Publications Board decision.
Required Front Matter for Journal
Administrative (required)
content. NCA does require certain administrative content to be carried in
its journals. While the format of the required content will vary with the
style of the specific journal, editors are responsible for the inclusion and
the accuracy of the information.
Association
Page: Contains lists of NCA officers, the Executive Committee members,
journal editors, publication series
editors and Communication Teacher editor; and National Office staff.
This page is supplied by the National Office and must appear
in all issues of NCA journals. It should be the first page of each issue.
Journal Title Page: Contains
title of journal; volume, issue, date information; and listing of the editor
and editorial staff. This page is supplied by the editor and is to appear as
the second page of each issue.
Table of Contents: Contains
title of journal; volume, issue, date information; and listing of the
contents of the journal, including an abstract of each article and up to
five keywords. This page should be the third page of each issue.
Policy Statements: Contains
editorial policy statement, submission guidelines, ownership and
subscription information, and copyright/permission statement. This page
should be the fourth page of each issue.
Abstract: An author-produced
abstract for all articles published. Manuscript acceptance date: The dates a
manuscript was 1) first
received, 2) received in final revision and 3) accepted for publication by
the editor should be posted at the end of each printed article, following
references and endnotes.
Copyright Notice: A copyright
notice must be carried at the bottom of
the first page of each article in each NCA journal.
Index: A cumulative index for
each volume year is to be included in issue number 4 of the journal.
Statement of Ownership. An
annual Statement of Ownership must appear in the second issue of each
journal, following the month in which the appropriate permit filings are
submitted. Accordingly, the Statement of Ownership will be supplied by the
National Office to both the Editor and to Taylor and Francis. The statement
must be carried in the months indicated in the table below. The accuracy of
information is the responsibility of the National Office.
Issues Requiring Statement of Ownership
JOURNAL ISSUE
Communication Education
January
Communication Monographs
March
Critical Studies in Media
Communication March
Journal of Applied
Communication Research
February
Quarterly Journal of Speech
February
Text and Performance
Quarterly
January
The Review of Communication
January
Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies
March
Stylistic Requirements for
Journals
Grammatical content.
Editors are responsible for working with authors to ensure the published
articles meet acceptable standards of writing (e.g., grammar, spelling,
punctuation, etc.).
It is important to avoid
altering manuscripts once they have been submitted to the publisher.
Consequently, editors should carefully instruct authors to avoid changes.
Report to authors
that the final draft (manuscript) of their essay will be the version of the
manuscript published by NCA. Authors and editors should thoroughly proof the
article in manuscript form and before it is sent to the printer.
Carefully examine any
changes on galleys or page proofs proposed by authors to determine that the
changes are absolutely essential. If the changes are not absolutely
essential, do not submit the changes to the printer.
Editors may explore and
propose new design, format, and style sheet changes in journals that they
feel will enhance the readability, accuracy, convenience, and aesthetics of
the journals in a cost effective manner. All such changes must be formally
approved by the Executive Committee before the changes are adopted. In order
to implement such changes, editors should forward their proposals and
rationales for these proposals to the Chair of the Publications Board.
Proposed changes shall be formally considered by the Publications Board,
distributed by the Chair of the Publications Board to other relevant
Executive Committee Boards, and presented by the Publications Board to the
Executive Committee for its approval.
Minor changes may be
made to specific text in order to address one-time needs of a particular
issue, if done with the approval of the appropriate representative of Taylor
and Francis. For example, editors may find that an article includes only a
few lines on the last page and that a minor style change (e.g., space
between lines, size of sub-heads, etc.) would save the extra page. Such
changes can be made by the editor without consultation with the Publications
Board, although they should be limited in their overall impact on the
appearance of the journal and should not be carried over to subsequent
issues.
Page Allocation for Each
Journal
The Association’s contract
with Taylor and Francis specifies the minimum and maximum number of pages
required for each issue and for each volume. These page allocations
must be closely monitored by the editors and must not be exceeded.
Totals refer to all pages,
including all front matter, table of contents, index, and advertisements.
Total Allocations
Journal
Min/Max/Issue
Min/Max/Volume
Communication Education 80-96
320-384
Journal of Applied Communication Research
80-96 320-384
Text and Performance Quarterly 80-96 320-384
Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies 80-96
320-384
Review of Communication 80-96 320-384
Critical Studies of Media Communication 96-112 384-448
Quarterly Journal of Speech 112-128 448-512
Communication Monographs 112-128 448-512
As indicated above, some
pages counted in the page allocation do not carry pagination numbers. Using
page numbers as a measure of total pages used will result in overestimating
the number of pages remaining in the allocation. For example, if a journal
contains an average of 4 pages of unnumbered "front-matter" per issue, at
the end of the 12 issues contained in the editorial term, the page numbering
would underestimate the pages remaining in the allocation by 48.
Each editor is
responsible for making certain that the total allocation is not exceeded.
Editors must not accept more articles than they can publish within the
limits of their page allocations.
NCA cannot increase the
authorized journal page count since these are specified in the contract with
Taylor and Francis. If an editor believes that the page count for a journal
ought to be changed, he/she should submit a proposal justifying the change
to the Publications Board. Any such increases must be recommended by the
Publications Board and must be explicitly approved by both the Finance Board
and Executive Committee or by the Legislative Assembly and then negotiated
with Taylor and Francis. It is critical for editors to continually monitor
their page usage. Experience suggests that editors often find themselves
short of pages for the last issue because of decisions made early during
their terms.
Editors should strive
for issues in which the total white pages count is an even multiple of 32
(i.e., 64, 96, or 128) including front matter. While other four-page
multiples are acceptable (e.g., 4, 8, and 16), they are increasingly
expensive to produce. Present policy permits articles to begin on either
left or right-facing pages. Taylor and Francis can supply "house ads" to
help fill pages that would otherwise remain blank, but editors should avoid
partial signatures.
Stipends for Journal Editors
Budget limits are
established by the NCA governance based on the normal manuscript flow for
editors of the publication or publication series. The budgets are not
intended to fully compensate the editor or host institution for all costs
incurred in editing the publication.
Editors of Quarterly
Journal of Speech, Communication Monographs, Communication Education,
Critical Studies in Media Communication, Text and Performance Quarterly,
Journal of Applied Communication Research, and Communication and
Critical/Cultural Studies are currently provided a budget of $6,000 per
year. NCA's policy is generally to provide equal financial support to all
editors within a particular category of publication and to approve
additional funds only in extraordinary circumstances.
The
editor of Communication Teacher receives an annual stipend of $2,000.
Editors must submit a request to the Chief Financial Officer of NCA in
January and July, each
for a half year’s stipend.
During years of transition
between editors (one editor is responsible for that year’s volume, but the
incoming editor is processing new manuscripts), the stipend will be divided
equally between the two editors. The outgoing editor will receive the
January stipend and the incoming editor will receive the July stipend.
Transition of Editors
It is assumed that editors
will cooperate with their successors by supplying current information on
procedures, etc. Editors and their successors should come to early agreement
on the disposition of any article backlogs that may exist. Outgoing editors
shall not accept more manuscripts than their page allotment can accommodate.
At the end of an editor's second year, she/he will be asked to affirm that
the authorized page count will not be exceeded.
Reporting Responsibilities
Article V, Section 6 of the
NCA By-Laws requires that each editor report annually to the Legislative
Assembly in such a form and manner as the Council shall prescribe. The
Assembly requires a written report at its annual meeting that includes the
information identified below:
Intellectual category
represented by the manuscript.
Review process
characteristics (e.g., number of manuscripts received, time requirement for
editorial decisions, time between acceptance and publication, number of
revisions submitted for manuscripts, and overall acceptance rate).
Production Schedules and Press Runs
Appendix 10 contains the
form to be submitted to the Legislative Assembly.
Journal Publication Months
It is NCA
policy that journals are to be delivered to the post office no later than
the 15th of the month prior to the month of publication. It is the
responsibility of the editor to work out with the publisher a mutually
agreeable schedule for submitting copy, returning proofs, etc. in order to
meet the publication schedule in the table below.
Publication Months for NCA Journals
Communication Education
Jan Apr Jul Oct
Communication Monographs Mar
Jun Sep Dec
Critical
Studies in Media Communication Mar Jun Sep Dec
Journal of
Applied Communication Research Feb May Aug Nov
Quarterly Journal of Speech Feb May Aug Nov
Text and Performance Quarterly Jan Apr Jul Oct
Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies Mar June Sep Dec
Review of Communication
Jan Apr Jul Oct
The goal is to distribute all
issues of all journals in a timely fashion. Delays that occur in the
production of one journal should not be allowed to slow down production of
the other journals or other issues of the same journal.
The publisher will
provide detailed production schedules that should be followed. In general,
these schedules include the following working frames:
From receipt of copy (or last
of copy) to mailings of galleys:
11 working
days
From
receipt of corrected galleys to mailing of page proofs:
10 working
days
From
telephoned final okay from the editor to mailing of
journal: 8
working days
This is an optimal time
frame. It does not allow for contingencies. In practice, three months
appears to be the working minimum for carrying out the steps above. Given
the realities of delays that can be introduced by authors, editor,
publisher, and printer, four months appears to be a more realistic time
frame, at least at the beginning of an editor's tenure.
To expedite production,
Taylor and Francis will send galleys to individual authors, using
instruction sheets and name/address labels provided by the editor. Editors
are encouraged to stockpile articles with the printer for use in future
issues. This practice provides flexibility in achieving an economical page
count for a particular issue and provides the editor with a buffer, in the
event of unanticipated delays. In order to trouble-shoot problems, should
they occur, it is NCA policy that a production log for each issue of each
journal be maintained independently by Taylor and Francis, by the Editor,
and by the NCA National Office.
Taylor and Francis will provide the editor and authors with an electronic
file of each published article and one copy of the issue in which the
article appears. Editors will receive additional copies.
Copyright
NCA's policy is
to publish materials only for which it holds the Copyright. It should be
noted, however, that NCA's concern regarding copyright is largely
administrative and not economic. While there is relatively little economic
value associated with a particular journal article, there are often numerous
requests to reprint the article in books and in class readers. The value of
such products increases with the number of articles included. It is judged
to be important that the Association maintain copyright on all material it
publishes.
Copyright and
permission statement
A copyright statement must
appear in each issue of an NCA Serial Publication. No substantial
modifications of the copyright statement can be made without the prior
approval of the Publications Board, Executive Committee, or Legislative
Assembly. The model statement developed by Taylor and Francis, is printed in
the Appendix 6.
Assignment to NCA
Copyright law stipulates that
for NCA to clearly obtain the copyright of materials produced outside the
obvious work place (i.e., by persons not directly employed and supervised by
NCA), editors and authors must assign such copyright to the Association
under the law's "work for hire" provisions. To implement this requirement,
editors must assign copyright of the issues they produce. The assignment
document will be supplied by the National Office upon election of the
editor. Failure to assign copyright to NCA will prevent editors from
assuming their duties. Editors must also obtain from each author a signed
copyright assignment and release document prior to publication. Editors
should maintain a file of such assignment documents and forward them to
Taylor and Francis with corrected galleys. It is recommended that a cover
letter for copyright assignment be developed.
Recognition of Editors
NCA recognizes the
contributions made to the Association by journal editors. While recognizing
the editors perform their duties out of a sense of professional commitment
and service, NCA seeks ways to reward their efforts by:
1.
Providing journal editors with a complementary room at the NCA annual
meeting during their last year as editor of an NCA journal, if complementary
rooms are available.
2.
Presenting them a plaque at the same annual meeting from the
President and the Executive Director of NCA.
3.
Sending letters to those at an editor's institution, designated by
the editor involved, indicating the significance of the contribution to the
discipline provided by the editor and itemizing the specific benefits which
the editor's institution derives from supporting an NCA editor.
Conference Responsibilities
An annual convention forum
(program or panel), sponsored by the Publications Board, shall be organized
by the Publications Board for editors to address and to receive responses
from the members of NCA.
Questions
Editors are encouraged to
address questions or concerns to the Executive Director or Publications
Board Chair. Additionally, editors are encouraged to contact one another to
discuss issues of common interest.
Abstracts and Indexes
Beginning in 2003, all
NCA journals will be abstracted and indexed as part of a compilation of
communication journals by EBSCO Host.
