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.

We welcome articles, case studies, and conference presentations from scholars, students, and publishing professionals on topics including, but not limited to, diversity and inclusion, accessibility, peer review, open access, sustainability, publishing metrics, equity, and other aspects and issues of ethics in publishing.

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

Each submission should include:

• The e-mail address of the primary author as well as names and e-mail addresses of other contributing authors.
• A narrative biography of each author, of no more than 125 words.
• A short abstract of your article of no more than 300 words.
• The URL of the author's personal home page, project or university department.
• Article or presentation (as an attachment). Articles of 6,000 - 7,000 words are recommended, but shorter articles will also be considered.

Scope of the GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing

We intend the journal to be broad in scope, and invite papers from publishing, library, and media professionals, scholars, and students on topic areas such as:

• Ways to ensure publishing is inclusive: in all its dimensions.
• Making sure diverse voices are part of the conversation about inclusion, equity, and accessibility.
• Work to ensure peer review, authorship, editing, publications metrics, etc., are equitable and free of bias.
• Can equitable, inclusive, and accessible publishing become a reality instead of a goal?
• Institutional efforts to increase diversity, for example, within the Association of University Press (AUPresses), Society for Scholarly Publishing (SSP), and other publishing institutions.
• Financial equity and sustainability, including institutional support, and access to research and publications, as ethical issues.
• Accessibility as an ethical issue.
• How publishers can ensure publications are more accessible.

Article Types and Section Policies

Article Types

The GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing accepts five main categories of articles:

• Scholarly research articles and case studies, presenting research about ethical issues in publishing
• Applied ethics, “Making the World Better” articles and projects, that explore ways of contributing to communities, including local, regional, or global publishing communities or other communities on aspects of publishing, literacy, and so on.
• Invited editorials and commentaries
• Reviews of books, websites, digital projects, and other web resources with a focus or considerable aspect of ethics in publishing.
• GW Ethics in Publishing Conference presentations

Scholarly Research Articles and Case Studies (Peer-reviewed by default)

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

Scholarly research articles and case studies must include an abstract of no more than 250 words, with an abstract structure that summarizes the sections in the article outlined below.

Scholarly research articles and case studies 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 why the article should be of concern/interest 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
• Literature Review
• Methods
• Results
• Discussion
• 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.

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

Applied Ethics, “Making the World Better” articles and projects (Peer-reviewed and non-peer-reviewed)

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

Applied ethics, “making the world better” projects and articles should be submitted for this section.

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 projects may be improved through active peer review, however, due to their varying nature, some of these projects may not warrant peer review. The editorial board will make a determination on a case-by-case basis.

Applied ethics, “making the world better” articles and projects must include an abstract of no more than 250 words, with an abstract structure that summarizes the sections in the article outlined below.

Applied ethics, “making the world better” articles and projects 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 (Generally non-peer-reviewed)

The Editorial Board will invite editorials and commentaries 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, Randy Townsend, at rantowns@gwu.edu.

GW Ethics in Publishing Conference presentations

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 (Non-peer-reviewed)

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

1. Title page: list all authors, affiliations, and conflicts of interest that a reasonable reader would think appropriate to know prior to reading the piece
2. Section headers: bold and centered, left-justified and underline
3. References/citations: The GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing uses The Chicago Manual of Style for footnotes and references: https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org. All links to reference sources, examples, etc., should be checked twice. Hyperlinks to articles or other references should also include date of last reference (i.e. Accessed December 21, 2019).
4. Manuscript text must:

1. be double-spaced
2. include page numbers
3. include continuous line numbers

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

Not prescribed: tone or voice usage. 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.

Abstract: Each submission is limited to a 300 word abstract that should summarize the paper to include the hypothesis and outline the argument.

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: GW JEP 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, 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.