Instructions for Authors

GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing

The GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing is an open-access, online journal managed by students in The George Washington University Master of Professional Studies in Publishing program.

Scope of the GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing

The journal's scope is broad and we welcome research articles, case studies, conference presentations, and commentaries from students, scholars, librarians, and media and publishing professionals.

The following list includes relevant topics, but is not exhaustive:

• EDI (equity, diversity, inclusion)
• Accessibility in publishing
• Work to ensure peer review, authorship, editing, and publication metrics are equitable and free of bias
• Institutional efforts to increase diversity, for example, within the Association of University Press (AUPress), Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP), and other publishing institutions
• Open Access
• Open Science
• AI services, including but not limited to ChatGPT, plagiarism checkers, image checkers

Innovative forms of scholarship, such as video or audio recordings, podcasts, or narratives, are also encouraged.

All submissions are subject to peer review and should include:

• Article or presentation (as an attachment). Articles of any length are welcome.
• An abstract of your article (250 word limit) that summarizes the paper to include the hypothesis and outline the argument.
• Optional: A narrative biography of each author (125 word limit per person).

Article Types and Section Policies

Article Types

The GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing accepts the following categories of articles:

• Research Article and Case Studies.
• Applied Ethics.
• Invited Editorials and invited or unsolicited commentaries.
• GW Ethics in Publishing Conference presentations

Reviews of books, websites, digital projects, and other web resources with a focus or considerable aspect of ethics in publishing.

Research Articles and Case Studies (Peer-reviewed)

Research articles and case studies present original findings resulting from qualitative, quantitative, or mixed-methods research should be submitted for this section.

They should include an abstract of no more than 250 words, with an abstract structure that summarizes the sections in the article outlined below.

They should generally include a conclusion and recommendations, with 3-5 items (arranged in a bulleted or numerical list) describing the implications of the article’s findings for publishing, library, media, or scholarly communication practice. Authors should emphasize how the article is relevant to readers of the publishing community and how its conclusions will influence and impact best practice.

Research articles should generally include the following sections (primary sections and subsections may vary by paper):

• Introduction
• Method
• Results
• Discussion
• Conclusion

Scholarly research articles and case study submissions should be between 3,000-6,000 words, though exceptions will be considered.

Applied Ethics (Peer-reviewed)

Applied Ethics projects explore ways that publishing, library, media, and scholarly communication students, professionals, scholars, and others contribute to their communities, including local, regional, or global publishing communities or other communities on aspects of publishing.

Applied Ethics projects may vary considerably, depending on the project and actors, but include work in:

• Advocacy: publishing, library, media, and scholarly communication professionals contribute to many causes, which may include diversity and inclusion, accessibility, censorship, literacy promotion, and other ways to promote knowledge and understanding.
• Engagement: Enhancing participation on issues of the public good, working to close the gap between the number of people affected and the number taking action on issues such as online piracy or accessibility in publishing, etc.
• Volunteerism: Efforts of individuals and organizations dedicated to making the publishing ecosystem, literacy, librarianship, and scholarly communication better through volunteer opportunities.
• Organization: Efforts to organize and engage communities such as using publishing to develop community goals, developing a community newsletter, and so on.

Applied Ethics articles should include an abstract of no more than 250 words, with an abstract structure that summarizes the sections in the article outlined below.

These articles should generally include a conclusion and recommendations, with 3-5 items (arranged in a bulleted or numerical list) describing the implications of the project’s goals and results for publishing, library, media, or scholarly communication practice. Authors should emphasize why the article and project should be of concern/interest to readers of the publishing community and how its conclusions will influence and impact best practice and the community.

Applied ethics articles and projects may vary, but should generally include the following sections (primary sections and subsections may vary by paper).

• Introduction
• Goals and scope of project
• Actions and/or Methods
• Discussion and Implications
• Results and Impact
• Conclusion/Recommendations

Bio: Include a brief biography of each author at the end of the article, including your name, institutional/professional affiliation, and a brief description of your expertise in the relevant field.

Applied ethics articles and project submissions should generally be between 3,000-6,000 words, though exceptions will be considered.

Invited Editorials and Commentaries (Peer review dependent on case, will be disclosed in publication)

Commentaries may examine issues within publishing and use sources to support the argument are also welcome even if they do not include new data. Authors are welcome to submit commentaries.

The Editorial Board will invite editorials from publishing, library, and scholarly communication professionals, researchers, scholars, and others to comment on their work in ethical publishing practices and in advancing the field.

If you have an idea or suggestion, or would like to be considered for an editorial or commentary, please contact Editor-in-Chief, Lois Jones.

GW Ethics in Publishing Conference presentations (Peer reviewed)

The GW Ethics in Publishing Conference is presented annually and complements the GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing. Presenters are invited to submit articles based on their conference presentation or slides. Conference videos are available for the 2020 and 2021 conference.

Reviews (Reviewed by editorial board)

The GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing invites you to submit reviews of books, websites, digital projects, and other web resources with a focus or considerable aspect of ethics in publishing.

Reviews should generally be between 500 - 1,500 words, though exceptions will be considered, especially for reviews of multiple titles or resources.

Reviews should include the following aspects in a review, as relevant to the book, website, or project:

• Citation: Include the title, author(s) or editor(s), publication date/year, publisher, pages, format, unique identifier (DOI, ISBN, or URL). When citing a website, include the URL as well as the date that the website(s) was accessed.
• Authority: Relevant background or expertise of the author(s),creator(s), or editor(s)
• Audience: Potential or expected community of interest or audience for the book, website, or resource.
• Content, Quality, Usefulness, and Impact: Goals of the book or resource and whether the author(s) or editor(s) achieve their goals; whether the book or resource advances the field; qualities of accessibility and other aspects; organization; importance of the resource for the intended audience.
• Your Bio: Include a brief biography of yourself at the end of the review, including your name, institutional/professional affiliation, and a brief description of your expertise in the relevant field.

The Editorial Board may solicit authors and items for review, but we welcome your proposals or suggestions for reviews. Please let us know if you have a book, article, or website that you would like to review. You must let us know if you have any conflicts of interest or connection to the authors, editors, or publishers of the work that you intend to review and publish.

Style Requirements

Manuscript Text: Double spaced and include page numbers.

Title Page: List all authors, affiliations, and conflicts of interest that a reasonable reader would think appropriate to know prior to reading the piece

Section Headers: Bold and centered, left-justified and underline

References/Citations: The GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing uses The Chicago Manual of Footnotes and References: https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org. Hyperlinks to articles or other references should also include date of last reference (i.e. Accessed December 21, 2019).

Masking: No identifying information in the manuscript, only on the title page

Tone or Voice Usage: Not prescribed. This can differ based on subject or style of submission. As long as this is internally consistent to the piece, then the author is free to use what they find most appropriate.

Figures: The GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing also requires that all published articles meet basic digital accessibility standards for visual resources. Papers accepted for publication that include images, charts, videos, or other visual assets must include alt-text (or long descriptions) for each visual asset, as well as appropriate captions. For more information on the basic principles of describing visual resources for accessibility in arts and humanities publications, please visit Describing Visual Resources.org (https://describingvisualresources.org/guidelines/basic-principles/).

Language/Inclusivity Guidelines: Authors are encouraged to use the Inclusive Language Guide (APA): https://www.apa.org/about/apa/equity-diversity-inclusion/language-guidelines.pdf  and the Conscious Style Guide: https://consciousstyleguide.com/

Accessibility: GWJEP requires that all published articles meet basic digital accessibility standards for visual resources. Papers accepted for publication that include images, charts, videos, or other visual assets must include alt-text (or long descriptions) for each visual asset, as well as appropriate captions. For more information on the basic principles of describing visual resources for accessibility in arts and humanities publications, please visit Describing Visual Resources.org ( https://describingvisualresources.org/guidelines/basic-principles/).

More Information

See also the journal’s Call for Papers and Peer Review Guidelines.

Submit your article using this Call for Papers Submission form.

Questions?

If you have any questions about the GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing, please contact Lois Jones, Editor-in-Chief at lijones@gwu.edu.

If you have any questions about the GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing, or the GW Ethics in Publishing Conference, please contact John W. Warren, Director and Associate Professor, Master of Professional Studies program, at jww@gwu.edu.