Promoting innovative research in media studies

NECSUS is an international, double blind peer-reviewed journal of media studies initiated and published by NECS (European Network for Cinema and Media Studies). The journal is multidisciplinary and strives to bring together the best work in the field of media studies across the humanities and social sciences. We aim to publish research that matters and that improves the understanding of media and culture inside and outside the academic community.

Each volume features diverse contributions, a special thematic section, and review sections that cover books, festivals, and exhibits in addition to an audiovisual essay section and a section on data papers. NECSUS is targeted to a broad readership of researchers, lecturers, and students and is offered as a biannual open access journal.

Focusing on cinema, television, and new media

NECSUS focuses on cinema, television, and new media studies by publishing research either by European scholars or on European media for a global readership. The journal particularly welcomes comparative and pan-European studies. We invite submissions on all aspects of media including textual, representational, and cinema-philosophical issues. Manuscripts may also cover media production and institutions as well as media technologies, networks, audiences, and uses. These aspects may be studied separately or in conjunction and situated in their cultural and historical contexts.

We welcome contributions from different research traditions including but not limited to cinema and television studies, cultural studies, communication studies, game studies, network studies, and media history. The journal aims to promote innovative research presenting new approaches and insights and to publish work that makes a substantial contribution to the field, be it on a theoretical, methodological, empirical, or analytical level. NECSUS publishes content that improves the understanding of media and culture inside and outside the academic community. We encourage the inclusion of links to digital archives and we support the integration of audio-visual data and material into academic arguments.

Essays should be focused and guided by clearly formulated questions or problems, leading to well-argued conclusions. The journal is aimed at a broad readership of researchers, lecturers, and students. We make a distinction between feature essays of 6,000-8,000 words and short reviews of 2,000-3,000 words. Feature essays are subject to double blind external peer review and short reviews will be covered by the section editors.

NECSUS welcomes book reviews, preferably discussing two recently published titles within a particular academic field or addressing a specific theme. Authors are invited to use the books under scrutiny to reflect on an overarching theme or topic. NECSUS also welcomes audiovisual essays and proposals for audiovisual essay sections by prospective guest editors, which are reviewed by the editorial board.

ISSN: 2213-0217

Statement on ethics

The journal was founded by and is an initiative of NECS (European Network for Cinema and Media Studies), one of the largest assemblies of its kind. This research network connects the journal to a wide range of scholars and the network and its membership makes significant financial contributions to the operation of NECSUS. However, NECSUS is open to all who wish to read and contribute to it, whether they are a member of NECS or not. The NECSUS editorial board operates independently so that a broad and inclusive contributor and reader list can be created.

The journal is double-blind peer reviewed and is published on a bi-annual basis. In addition to the website a publishing platform with PDF downloads for every issue is also available. Everything is published in gold level open access. NECSUS is published in English as the acknowledged lingua franca in current academia. One of the goals of NECSUS is to make research in a variety of languages available to a wider audience. The journal has commissioned and published translations and will continue to do so in the future.

The editorial board provides special section guest editors with guidelines on everything that is expected of them and keeps advisory board members updated on new policies and developments. Publication of an article in an academic peer-reviewed journal serves several functions, one of which is to disseminate research that could benefit society. This dissemination must be done in a democratic fashion. It is therefore of immense importance that this research and the activity surrounding it be conducted responsibly. The act of publishing involves many parties, each of which plays an important role in achieving these aims. It therefore follows that the author, the journal editor, the peer reviewer, and the publisher should meet ethical standards in their involvement from submission to publication. NECSUS is committed to meeting and upholding standards of ethical behaviour at all stages of the publication process. Below is a summary of our key expectations of editors, peer reviewers, authors, and the advisory board.

Editors

The editors of a peer-reviewed journal are responsible for deciding which of the articles submitted to the journal should be published. The relative value of the work in question and its importance to a wide readership must always drive such decisions. The editors should be guided by the policies of the journal and constrained by such legal requirements as shall then be in force regarding libel, copyright infringement, and plagiarism.

Editors should act in a balanced, objective, and fair way while carrying out their expected duties. Editors should not discriminate on the grounds of gender, sexual orientation, religious or political beliefs, ethnic or geographical origin, institutional affiliation, or economic standing of the authors. In addition, editors should make all due efforts to seek out and include the work of a diverse body of writers and researchers. Authors should clearly indicate who has funded their research or other scholarly work and whether the funders had any role in the research and its publication.

Editors should adopt and follow reasonable procedures in the event of complaints of an ethical breach or a conflict of interest. Editors should give authors a reasonable opportunity to respond to any complaints. All complaints should be investigated no matter when the original publication was approved. Documentation associated with any such complaints should be retained.

Editorial board members will serve a variety of functions. These may include: acting as ambassadors for the journal; supporting and promoting the journal; seeking out the best authors and best work and actively encouraging submissions; reviewing submissions to the journal; attending and contributing to editorial board meetings.

The board should meet regularly (at least twice a year, in person and/or by conference call) to gauge their opinions about the running of the journal, define any changes to journal policies, and identify future challenges. The board shall: monitor the performance of peer reviewers; take steps to insure that reviews are of high quality; develop and maintain a database of suitable reviewers; update this database on the basis of reviewer performance; use a wide range of sources (not just personal contacts) to identify potential new reviewers (e.g. author suggestions, bibliographic databases); insure that all efforts are made to contact and utilise a diverse sampling of potential reviewers.

The board should encourage reviewers to insure the originality of submissions and be alert to redundant publication and plagiarism. It should also encourage academic institutions to recognise peer review activities as part of the scholarly process.

Reviewers

Peer review assists the editor in the decision-making process and in improving the quality of the published article by reviewing the manuscript objectively and in a timely manner. NECSUS ascribes to a double-blind peer review process. Any manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. Reviewers should not make undue efforts to uncover the identity of the author nor should they discuss the article or their comments with a third party. Reviewers should also not attempt to cite or publish any parts of the article prior to potential publication in NECSUS.

Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism, name-calling, or any attack on the author or the merits of their work is inappropriate. Reviewers should express their views clearly with supporting arguments and should make every effort to complete the standard review form that is sent to them along with the article. Limited one-sentence responses to review form questions are not acceptable. Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the author. Reviewers should also alert the editor to any published or submitted content that is substantially similar to that under review.

Reviewers should be aware of any potential conflicts of interest (financial, institutional, collaborative, or other relationships between reviewer and author) and alert the editor to these, if necessary withdrawing their services for the manuscript in question.

Authors

An article should contain sufficient detail and references to permit others to understand and utilise the work. Fraudulent or knowingly inaccurate statements constitute unethical behaviour and are unacceptable. Articles should also be accurate and objective, and works foregrounding opinion and subjectivity should be clearly identified as such.

Authors should provide original and unpublished articles that are the results of their study, research, and originality. If the proposed article has already been published, no matter the language or outlet, the author should make an immediate declaration as such. Authors should maintain accurate records of data associated with their submitted manuscript and should supply or provide access to this data on reasonable request.

Authors should confirm/assert that the manuscript as submitted is not under consideration or accepted for publication elsewhere. Where portions of the content overlap with published or submitted content, authors must acknowledge and cite those sources. Authors should confirm that all the work in the submitted manuscript is original and they must cite content reproduced from other sources. Authors should also obtain written permission to reproduce any content from other sources, including images and table. Authors are legally liable for insuring that this content does not infringe on the copyright of others.

Authors should declare any potential conflicts of interest, for example where the author has a competing interest (real or apparent) that could be considered or viewed as exerting an undue influence on his or her duties at any stage during the publication process. Authors should promptly notify the journal editor or publisher if a significant error in their publication is identified. They must then cooperate with the editor and publisher to publish an erratum, addendum, corrigendum notice, or to retract the article where this is deemed necessary.

Advisory Board

Advisory board members will serve a variety of functions. These may include: acting as ambassadors for the journal; supporting and promoting the journal; actively encouraging submissions; reviewing submissions; contributing to the journal’s strategic plans for growth and sustainability; helping to solicit and secure financial contributions to the journal; supporting the policy of gold level open access publishing.

Procedures

Misconduct and unethical behaviour may be identified and brought to the attention of the editors and publisher at any time by anyone. Whoever informs the editors or publisher of such conduct should provide sufficient information and evidence in order for an investigation to be initiated. All allegations will be taken seriously and treated in the same way until a successful decision or conclusion is reached.

An initial decision is to be taken by the editors, who will consult with or seek advice from the advisory board and the publisher, if appropriate. Evidence will be gathered while avoiding the spread of allegations beyond those who can help to resolve the matter. Authors will be given the opportunity to respond to any allegations.

*This ethical statement should be reviewed on a regular basis so that it may be updated where necessary to cover new publishing practices and in light of new partnerships that the journal commences.