Scope and ethical guidelines
Scope of WJLMC World Journal of Language, Media and Culture (WJLMC) is an open access, peer-reviewed journal that accepts submissions from scholars who work in the areas of language, media, communications, and cultural studies. WJLMC seeks to promote critical, theoretical, and empirical contributions addressing the interconnections of language, media practices, cultural identity, and communications at local and global levels.
This statement describes the ethical behaviour required of every participant involved in the journal’s publishing process—authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher.

Ethical guideline for journal publication
Publication of an article by WJLMC is part of the development of an authoritative and consistent body of scholarly knowledge. Maintaining high ethical standards guarantees scholarly work integrity as well as credibility. All participants of the publication process—writers, reviewers, editors, and the publisher—are called on to follow agreed ethical obligations.
As the publisher of WJLMC, Pierre Online Publications (pierreonline.uk) is committed to upholding ethical integrity at every level of the publishing process. We are independent of commercial considerations, advertising, or reprint income in making editorial decisions. We are similarly committed to collaboration with other journals and publishers where this is appropriate.

Editorial duties
Publication decisions
The editor is responsible for choosing articles for publication on the basis of the merit, novelty, and value of the work, according to the editorial board policy and relevant legal requirements, such as those covering defamation, copyright, and plagiarism.

Fair play
Editors judge the manuscripts purely on the basis of scholarly merit without discrimination on the grounds of gender, religion, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political opinion.

Disclosure and conflict of interest
Manuscripts along with accompanying communications are considered to be confidential and shared only with those participating members of the editorial process. Disclosure and conflict of interest Editors are prohibited from utilizing unpublished data revealed within a submission for their own research without specific permission from the author.

Reviewer responsibilities

Contribution to editorial decisions
Reviewers provide objective, constructive feedback that informs the editor’s decision and helps authors improve their manuscripts.

Timeliness
Reviewers unable to meet deadlines or provide informed feedback should notify the editor promptly.

Confidentiality
All review materials must be treated as confidential and not shared or discussed without authorisation.

Objectivity and professionalism
Reviews should be free from personal bias and supported by clear, reasoned arguments.

Acknowledgement of sources
Reviewers should identify uncited relevant literature and inform the editor of any potential overlaps with other published work.

Conflicts of interest
Reviewers must not evaluate manuscripts where personal or professional relationships may compromise objectivity.

Author responsibilities

Reporting standards
Authors must present an accurate and honest account of their research. The manuscript should provide sufficient detail and references to permit replication. Misrepresentation or fabrication of data is unethical.

Data access and retention
Authors should retain raw data and provide access upon request during the review process or post-publication when appropriate.

Originality and plagiarism
Submissions must be original work. Any use of others’ work must be properly cited. Plagiarism in any form is unacceptable.

Use of generative AI
Authors must disclose any use of generative AI tools during manuscript preparation.

• If AI tools were not used:
  Text to include:
  “Generative AI or AI-assisted technologies were not used in any way to prepare, write, or complete essential authoring tasks in this manuscript. The author(s) confirm that they are the sole author(s) of this article and take full responsibility for the content therein, as outlined in COPE recommendations.”

• If AI tools were used:
  Text to include:
  “I acknowledge the use of [insert AI system(s) and link] to [specific use of artificial intelligence]. The prompts used include [list of prompts]. The output from these prompts was used to [explain use]. While the authors acknowledge the usage of AI, the author(s) maintain that they, [AUTHOR(s) NAME(s)], are the sole author(s) of this article and take full responsibility for the content therein, as outlined in COPE recommendations.”

This policy reflects the COPE position that authors are accountable for all content, including that generated with AI tools.

Multiple, redundant or concurrent publication
Authors should not submit the same manuscript to multiple journals. Publishing substantially similar work in more than one outlet is unethical.

Acknowledgement of sources
All references to the work of others must be properly cited, and sources that influenced the research should be acknowledged.

Authorship
Only individuals who have made substantial contributions to the research and writing should be listed as authors. All co-authors must approve the final manuscript and consent to its submission.

Disclosure of conflicts of interest
Authors should declare any financial or personal relationships that may influence the manuscript. All sources of funding should also be acknowledged.

Corrections and retractions
If a significant error is discovered post-publication, authors are obliged to notify the editor promptly to initiate correction or retraction procedures.