İnönü University Faculty of Communication Electronic Journal (INIF E-Dergi)

Manuscripts submitted for evaluation should be original and not previously presented or published in any electronic or print medium. If a manuscript was previously presented at a conference or meeting, authors should provide detailed information about the event, including the name, date, and location of the organization.

İnönü University Faculty of Communication Electronic Journal (INIF E-JOURNAL), published by İnönü University, accepts review articles, research papers, and theoretical and conceptual papers related to communication sciences.

The publication language of the journal is Turkish and English. However, the publication of articles written in any of the other languages depends on the decision of the editorial board.

All developments and results of the manuscript process are notified to the first author online.

Manuscripts submitted to the journal for publication must be properly organized according to the academic and journal writing rules and uploaded to the system at https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/inifedergi.

Article Upload Process:

1. Dergipark User Page
2. Process
3. Submit Article
4. Article Parent Data
5. ... and so on, following the required steps in the system.

The fact that the work has been presented as a paper at a congress, symposium, or meeting does not prevent its publication. When the work is first uploaded to the system, the editor should be notified via a message through the system. Once the publication process has started, it must be clearly stated in the footnote where the work was presented.

The works must be uploaded as WORD files, not PDFs.

In addition to the manuscript files, authors are required to submit the following during the initial submission:

• Copyright Agreement and Acknowledgement of Authorship Form

During the article submission process, the 'Similarity (Plagiarism) Report' and the 'Ethics Committee Approval Document' must also be uploaded.

For works that do not require ethics committee approval, the corresponding author must add the following statement to a Word document and upload it to the system, signed: 'The work titled '..................' I/we have submitted for evaluation under INIF E-JOURNAL does not require ethics committee approval.'

Additionally, the authors must submit a brief biography (no more than 75 words), including their research area and contact information (e-mail and phone number are mandatory), as an additional document (title page).

a) For single-author works, the following two items need to be explained, and the document must be signed by the author and uploaded to the system:

• Supporting Institutions/Organizations:
• Conflict of Interest:

For works with two or more authors, the following three items need to be explained, and the document must be signed by all authors and uploaded to the system:

• Authors Contributions Rate:
• Supporting Institutions/Organizations:
• Conflict of Interest:

Due to the double-blind peer review technique, the submitted manuscript should not contain any information that could reveal the authors' identities or information related to the work's title (such as author names, email addresses, institutional information, etc.).

The author(s) must include an Extended Abstract, consisting of at least 750 and no more than 1500 words, immediately before the references section at the end of the manuscript. Extended abstracts should be written in English for papers written in Turkish and in Turkish for papers written in English.

If the corrections requested by both the editor and the reviewer are not completed and submitted within 15 days, the manuscript will be rejected by the editorial board's decision.

After a positive review outcome, the author(s)' name and title should be placed right below the title, aligned to the right, in bold and 10-point font. If there are multiple authors, their names should be written one under the other in sequence. Additionally, the author(s)' institution(s), email addresses, and ORCID numbers should be listed as footnotes at the bottom of the page in 9-point font. A star symbol should be used instead of a number or other symbol for footnotes.

Each author can only have one paper published per year.

The article should be prepared according to a plan, as shown in the table below:

Page Layout 

• The text should be written in Microsoft Word.
• The paper size should be A4 vertical.
• Manuscripts should not exceed 25 pages including figures, graphics, images and tables.
• The page layout should be created by leaving a space of 2.5 cm at the top, 3 cm on the left, 2.5 cm at the bottom, and 2.5 cm on the right.
• Font should be Times New Roman, style should be normal text, 12 pt, footnote text should be 9 pt, paragraph spacing should be 6 pt before and 0 pt after, line spacing should be Single (1).

Turkish Title 

The main title of the article should be at the top of the first page, in all capital letters, bold and centered in 12 pt.

Öz (Turkish Abstract) 

• All manuscripts should begin with a Turkish abstract.
• Turkish abstracts must also be included in English and German studies.
• The abstracts should include information on the purpose, methods, results, conclusion, and originality of the study.
• The abstract should be between 250-300 words and in 10-point font.
• The word 'Öz' should have only the first letter capitalized.
• The title should begin 1.25 cm from the left margin.

Keywords 

• At least three words, at most six words, and should be in italics.
• The phrase "Keywords" should be bold and italic.
• It should start 1.25 cm from the left.
• Words should be in lowercase (except for proper nouns).

English Title 

It should be in all caps, bold, and centered with a 12-point font size.

Abstract 

• It should be consistent with the Turkish summary and in 10-point font size.
• The abstracts should briefly include information about the aim, method, results, conclusion, and originality of the study.
• "Abstract" should be written with only the first letter capitalized and in 10-point font size.
• The title should start 1.25 cm from the left.

Introduction 

It should include the problem, aim, significance, method, limitations, assumptions, etc. of the study.
There should be no numbering.

Main Text 

• The text should be written in "Times New Roman" font style.
• It should be aligned to both left and right.
• Single (1) line spacing.
• Written in 12-point font size using Microsoft Word.
• The paragraph spacing should be 6nk before and 0nk after.
• All headings and paragraphs should be indented (1.25 cm).
• All headings, except for the introduction and conclusion, should be numbered.
• Page numbers should not be included in the document.

Subheadings 

• All words in the headings, except for the main heading, should have only the first letter capitalized.
• All subheadings should start 1.25 cm from the left.
• Numbering should be included (except for the Introduction and Conclusion).

Conclusion and Discussion 

• Numbering should not be included.
• It should be at a level that can support the findings of your study.

Extended Abstract 

• Extended abstracts should be written in English for studies written in Turkish, and in Turkish for studies written in English.
• The extended abstract should consist of at least 750 and at most 1500 words.
• The abstracts should be placed immediately before the "References" section of each study.
• It should be written in 12-point font size.

References 

• It should be prepared according to the rules listed on our journal’s https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/inifedergi/writing-rules link.

Appendices 

• If there are any appendices, they should be placed after the references section.
• It should be in 11-point font size.

Figure - Table - Image - Graph, etc. 

• Tables, drawings, images, and graphs should be within the writing area.
• Images and photographs should be labeled as "Image," caricatures as "Caricature," and figures and graphs as "Figure."
• The format should be as follows: Table 1, Figure 1, Image 1, Graph 1, Caricature 1.
• Figures, images, tables, and graphs should be numbered sequentially.
• The titles of figures, images, graphs, and tables should be written at the top, in 11-point font, bold, and in Times New Roman, centered.
• The sources of figures, images, graphs, and tables should be provided at the bottom in 10-point font.
• Text within tables should be written in 10-point font (it can be reduced to 9-point if necessary) and in "Times New Roman" font style.
• The paragraph spacing within table texts should be 0nk before, 0nk after, and with a 1-line spacing.

CITATIONS OF REFERENCES

The in-text citations and references of the submitted works should be prepared according to the APA system. Authors are required to consider the 6th edition of the American Psychological Association. For access to the guide: www.tk.org.tr/APA/apa_2.pd

References should be given in the text in parentheses, with the authors' surnames, year, and page number listed in order.

If the author's name and date are mentioned in the narrative, they should not be repeated in parentheses.

In works with three or more authors, the abbreviation "et al." should be used.

If multiple works by the author are cited within the same year, they should be ordered from oldest to newest based on the publication date, and for works published in the same year, the labels “a, b, c, …” should be used.

Short quotations should be enclosed in quotation marks. Quotations over four lines should be written as a separate paragraph, indented 1 cm on both the left and right, in block format, and with a font size of 10 points. In this case, quotation marks should not be used.

In works written by legal entities, if the name of the legal entity is very long or if its abbreviated form is widely known, the abbreviation may be used after the first citation. If an abbreviation is to be used, the institution's full name should be written in the first citation, followed by the abbreviation in quotation marks. In subsequent citations, only the abbreviation should be used.

If multiple works are to be cited simultaneously, they should all be given within a single pair of parentheses, separated by semicolons. The citations within the parentheses should follow alphabetical order by the author's surname.

If multiple works by the same author are cited simultaneously, the works should be listed in chronological order, from the earliest to the latest, without repeating the author's name.

If the work's publication date is unknown, the abbreviation "n.d." (no date) should be used in the citation.

References should be added with hanging indentation of 1.25 cm.

Some examples of citing references in the text are given below:

Single-author reference citation: ..........(Kalafat, 2007, s. 195).

Citation of publications with two authors:……..(Kocabaş ve Elden, 2001, s. 18).

Citing more than one publication by the same author in the same year: ……..(Geray, 2006a, s. 30; 2006b, s. 120).

Citation of separate publications by the same author:……..(Şeker, 2007, s. 38; Şeker, 2008, s. 205).

Citation of publications by more than two authors: ……..(İnceoğlu vd., 2004, s. 47).

Citation of multiple sources related to the same topic: ……..(İnal, 2006, s. 43; Atabek, 2008, s. 151).

Citation of publications whose author is unknown and accessed from the website: ……..(Türkiye Gazeteciler Cemiyeti, 2009).

Indication of the internet source: ……..(bik.gov.tr, 2020).

Indication of the source with unknown author: ……..(Basın Etiği ve Teorileri, 1981).

Citation of the work written by a legal person: ……..(İletişim Başkanlığı, 2020, s. 147).

Indication of indirect referencing source:……..(Sözen’den aktaran Balcı, 2004, s. 55).

Indication of the source of the interview: ……..(Mete Çamdereli ile yüz yüze görüşme, 22 Eylül 2014).

Note: The source citations above are for articles written in Turkish. In the source citations of articles written in foreign languages, the conjunctions used should be consistent with the language of the text. Explanations other than source citations should be provided under the heading 'Notes' on a separate page at the end of the document.

Some examples of reference citation in the references list are provided below:

Books:

Tokgöz, O. (2000). Temel gazetecilik. Ankara: İmge Kitabevi.

Tekinalp, Ş. ve Uzun, R. (2013). İletişim araştırmaları ve kuramları. (4. Baskı). İstanbul: Beta Yayınları.

McQuail, D. (1992). Media performance: Mass communication and the public interest. London: Sage Publications.

Grossberg, L., Wartella, E., Whitney, D. C. and Wise, J. M. (2006). Mediamaking: Mass media in a popular culture. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Translation Books:

Neuman, W. L. (2016). Toplumsal araştırma yöntemleri nitel ve nicel yaklaşımlar. (8. Baskı). (Çev. S. Özge). Ankara: Yayın Odası Yayınları.

Publication in a Book (Chapter or Article):
Önür, N. (2012). Türk sinemasında mekânlar ve iliştirilmiş kimliklerin temsili. V. Doğan Günay ve Alev. F. Parsa (Ed.), Görsel göstergebilim: İmgenin anlamlandırılması. (s. 173-210). İstanbul: Es Yayınları.

Hallahan, K. (2010). Being public: Publicity as public relations. In R. L. Heath (Ed.), The SAGE handbook of public relations, (p. 523-545). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Articles:

Nisan, F. (2015). 2014 Cumhurbaşkanlığı seçimindeki cumhurbaşkanı adaylarının karikatürlere yansıması. Selçuk Üniversitesi İletişim Fakültesi Akademik Dergisi, 9(1), 162-200.

Shin, J. H. and Cameron, G. T. (2005). Different sides of the same coin: Mixed views of public relations practitioners and journalists for strategic conflict management. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 82(2), 318-338.

Thesis:

Yılmaz, N. (2020). Kurumsal iletişimde diyalojik sosyal medya kullanımı: Vakıf ve devlet üniversiteleri açısından karşılaştırmalı bir değerlendirme. Selçuk Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Yayımlanmamış Doktora Tezi, Konya.

Proceedings:

Öğün, E. P. ve Çavdar, A. (2011). Yeni muhalefet eski dil: Bir siyasal iletişim aracı olarak mizah. Ulusal İletişim Kongresi Gülmenin Arkeolojisi ve Medyada Mizah Olgusu. Atatürk Üniversitesi İletişim Fakültesi Ulusal İletişim Kongresi Bildiri Kitabı, 13-15 Mayıs 2010, Erzurum: Mega Ofset.

Internet:

Bostancı, N. (2012). Kısa bir medya-siyaset ilişkisi tarihi, http://www.mostar.com.tr/Detay.aspx?YaziID=427, Erişim Tarihi: 04.03.2012.

Tigrel, A. (1999). Timetable: What will happen and when, http://europa.eu. int/euro/html, Erişim Tarihi: 27.09.1999.

Yüksek Seçim Kurumu (2021). Referandum kesin sonuçları, http://www.ysk.gov.tr/ysk/docs/2010 Referandum/KesinSonuc/ Sonuc.pdf, Erişim Tarihi: 14.01.2011.

PUBLICATION ETHICS

İnönü University Faculty of Communication Electronic Journal (INIF E-JOURNAL) aims to adhere to the guidelines and core practices set forth by several organizations, including the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines and the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing (joint statement by COPE, DOAJ, OASPA, WAME). These guidelines and recommendations are designed to promote transparency, integrity, and best practices in scholarly publishing.

By adhering to these standards, the journal aims to ensure that the research it publishes is of high quality and meets the ethical standards of the scientific community.

ETHICAL PRINCIPLES AND PUBLICATION POLICY

Ethics Committee Approval and Informed Consent

All research involving human subjects must be reviewed and approved by an ethics committee (e.g., IRB) before being conducted. The name of the ethics committee, approval number, and date should be included in the Methods section of the manuscript. Authors may also be required to provide a copy of the approval.

If the study is exempt from ethics approval, authors must provide a statement from the ethics committee explaining the exemption. If a manuscript is submitted without ethics approval, the journal will follow COPE's guidelines to assess the ethical concerns. Manuscripts lacking approval may be rejected if the issue is deemed significant.

Informed consent details must be included in the Methods section, along with relevant information about the research process.

For studies involving human subjects, authors must confirm that written informed consent was obtained from all participants, and the consent form should be kept by the researchers. For research involving children under 18, consent must be obtained from the parent or guardian. In surveys or interviews, participants’ consent for data use must also be confirmed. Personal details should be de-identified unless explicit consent for naming is given.

Authors are responsible for protecting participant anonymity and confidentiality, especially in photographs. Signed releases must be obtained for any images, ensuring consent for publication and specifying any conditions. This approval must be noted in the Methods section.

PLAGIARISM AND ETHICAL MISCONDUCT

All submissions undergo multiple screenings during the peer review and/or production processes using similarity detection software. When citing previous works, ensure that all material is properly referenced. Copying text, tables, or illustrations from any source (journal articles, books, theses, electronic media, etc.) and presenting them as one's own is considered plagiarism, even if a reference is provided. Listing the source in the 'References' section does not absolve authors of responsibility for plagiarism.

Authors are strongly encouraged to avoid any form of plagiarism or ethical misconduct, as illustrated below:

• Citation Manipulation: Refers to inflating citation counts through self-citation, excessive citation of the same journal, or citation stacking, which distorts academic recognition.
• Self-Plagiarism (Text Recycling): Involves reusing sections or sentences from an author's prior work without proper citation, constituting a form of plagiarism.
• Salami Slicing: The unethical practice of publishing multiple articles using the same data set, hypotheses, and methods from a single study.
• Data Fabrication: The creation of false data not supported by actual research or experiments, considered a serious breach of research integrity.
• Data Manipulation/Falsification: Involves altering data, such as modifying images or removing outliers, to mislead or misrepresent findings.

In cases of suspected misconduct (e.g., plagiarism, citation manipulation, or data falsification), the Editorial Board will follow COPE guidelines to ensure fair, transparent, and consistent handling of allegations.

ADVERTISING POLICY

İnönü University Faculty of Communication Electronic Journal (INIF E-JOURNAL) accepts digital advertisements on its website, provided they are approved by the journal's Editorial Board and management. All advertisements must be clearly labeled as such. Advertisers have no influence on editorial decisions or advertising policies.

For advertising inquiries, please contact the Editorial Office (inueditorial@inonu.edu.tr).

PEER REVIEW DETAILS

İnönü University Faculty of Communication Electronic Journal (INIF E-JOURNAL) maintains a rigorous and transparent double-anonymized peer-review process to ensure the highest standards of academic integrity. Manuscripts are subjected to this process, where both authors and reviewers remain anonymous to one another.

Each manuscript is evaluated by at least two independent external reviewers who are experts in the relevant field. While authors may suggest potential reviewers, the final selection is made by the editor, who is not obliged to follow the author's recommendations. Confidentiality is paramount throughout the review process, and reviewers must keep the manuscript confidential, sharing it only with the editor's consent. Reviewers provide timely, unbiased, evidence-based, and constructive feedback to improve the quality of the manuscript. Any suspected research misconduct must be reported to the editor confidentially to uphold the process's integrity. The journal ensures transparency by publicly sharing information about the review process, selection criteria, and appeals procedure and publishing key metrics like acceptance rates and publication timelines. The final decision on whether a manuscript is accepted, revised, or rejected rests with the Editor-in-Chief, who considers recommendations from Field Editors.

Reviewers must disclose any potential conflicts of interest before accepting an invitation to review, and all communications between editors and reviewers are confidential.

External editors handle manuscripts submitted by editorial board members to ensure impartiality, and these external editors must also disclose any conflicts of interest. If the peer-review process deviates from standard procedures, the type of review will be indicated in the article to maintain transparency and accountability.

REVISION DETAILS

Manuscripts that require "minor revision" or "major revision" will receive a decision letter from the Editor-in-Chief, which includes the reviewers' and editors' comments, along with a deadline for resubmission. Authors must submit a revised manuscript and a detailed "Response to the Reviewers" document, which addresses each comment individually. The response should explain the revisions made and specify the corresponding line numbers in the manuscript. An annotated version of the manuscript highlighting the changes must also be provided. Revised manuscripts must be submitted within the deadline specified in the decision letter. Failure to meet the deadline may result in the rejection of the revision. If additional time is needed, authors should request an extension before the original deadline expires.

AUTHORSHIP CRITERIA

Authors of submissions reporting research findings must meet all four criteria established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE):

1. Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work;
2. Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content;
3. Final approval of the version to be published;
4. Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work, ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Before submission, authors should determine who qualifies for authorship and in what order authors will be listed. The editors of the Inönü University Faculty of Communication Electronic Journal (INIF E-JOURNAL) do not resolve authorship disputes. Any changes to the number or order of authors after the initial submission must be explained in writing to the Editor-in-Chief. The editors reserve the right to refer any authorship irregularities to the research officer or appropriate academic ethics authority at the institution or employer of the first or corresponding author.

Authors may use CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy) to provide information about individual contributions at the time of submission.

Declaration of Interests

Any potential financial or non-financial competing interests, including relationships with editorial associations, commercial editing companies, medical communications companies, or other organizations interested in the submission, must be disclosed at the end of the manuscript, just before the References section.

Funding Information

All sources of funding must be acknowledged at the end of the manuscript. Authors should specify the role of the study sponsor(s), if applicable, in the study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, report writing, and the decision to submit the manuscript for publication. If the funding source had no involvement in these areas, the authors should clearly state this.

GENERATIVE AI AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) USE POLICY

1. Use of AI Tools in Manuscript Preparation
According to the ICMJE recommendations, authors must disclose any use of generative AI or AI-assisted technologies (e.g., ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini) in the preparation of their manuscript. This includes specifying the tool's name, version, and purpose in the appropriate section of the manuscript (e.g., Acknowledgments for writing assistance, or Methods for data analysis).

As emphasized by the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), AI tools should only be used to improve language or readability under human oversight. Authors remain fully responsible for the integrity, accuracy, and originality of their work. AI tools cannot be listed as authors or cited as such.

2. Authorship and Accountability
In line with COPE’s position statement, authorship implies responsibilities that can only be fulfilled by humans. Every listed author must approve the final version, ensure the originality of the work, and take accountability for all aspects of the manuscript. AI cannot meet these requirements and must not be attributed authorship.

3. Use of AI in Figures and Visual Content
According to Elsevier’s AI policy, AI-generated images or figures are generally not permitted, except when AI is part of the research methodology (e.g., in AI-assisted medical imaging). In such cases, full transparency is required in the Methods section, including tool name, version, and technical parameters. Any AI-generated visual content must be clearly labeled as such.

4. Use of AI by Reviewers and Editors
Reviewers and editors are discouraged from using generative AI tools to evaluate or summarize manuscripts. If AI tools are used, the use must be disclosed, and confidentiality must not be compromised (COPE, 2023).

POST-PUBLICATION CORRECTION REQUESTS AND RETRACTIONS POLICY

All post-publication correction requests are subject to editorial review. The Editorial Board evaluates the necessity and appropriateness of corrections based on the nature of the error, its impact on the article, and the supporting evidence. If approved, the correction will be made in the journal’s archive. The journal follows the COPE guidelines.

Article Withdrawal (Pre-Publication)

Withdrawal applies only to articles in press, which are early versions of articles that may contain errors, accidental duplicate submissions, or ethical violations (e.g., multiple submissions, fraudulent data, or plagiarism). Withdrawn articles will have their HTML and PDF content removed, replaced by a statement indicating the withdrawal and linking to the journal’s withdrawal policy.

Article Retraction (Post-Publication)

Retractions are issued for serious ethical violations, such as plagiarism, data fabrication, authorship fraud, or publication without co-author consent. Retraction notices include:

- A formal retraction note titled “Retraction: [Article Title],” published in a subsequent issue.

- A watermark on the PDF of the original article, marking it as "Retracted."

- A removal of the HTML version, ensuring transparency in corrections while preserving academic integrity.

Article Removal (Legal & Safety Concerns)

In rare cases, an article may need to be permanently removed from the journal’s online database due to legal issues, court orders, defamation, or significant health risks. While the metadata (title and authors) will be retained, the article content will be replaced with a legal notice explaining the removal.

Article Replacement

If an article poses a serious health risk, authors may request a replacement with a corrected version. In such cases, a retraction notice will be published with a link to the revised article, ensuring a transparent record of updates.

Self-Archiving Policy

Authors are permitted to self-archive their published work on institutional or personal websites, as well as in open-access repositories. When sharing their articles, they must appropriately cite the original publication and include the DOI number. Additionally, authors are encouraged to provide a link to the publisher’s official website, ensuring the authenticity and integrity of the scientific record. The version published on the publisher’s website is considered the definitive version of record.

DISCLAIMER

The views and opinions expressed in published manuscripts belong solely to the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the editors, editorial board, or publisher. The editors, editorial board, and publisher are not responsible for the content of published manuscripts and do not endorse the views expressed within them.

Authors are fully responsible for the accuracy and integrity of their work. While the journal serves as a platform for disseminating research to the scientific community, it does not guarantee the validity of the content.