Editorial

Dear Readers and Scholars,

Greetings from Journal of Communication and Computational Media (JCCM)!

We have started this peer-reviewed, open-access journal under the publisher-ship of Maharishi Bhardwaj Research Foundation. We hope the journal will provide a scholarly forum for original research at the intersection of communication studies and computational media. The purpose behind starting this journal is to provide an interdisciplinary scholarly platform for researchers, academicians, practitioners, and scholars who are interested in understanding the rapidly changing relationships between communication, media, computers, and society.

Communication and media have constantly evolved hand in hand with technology. From the advent of print and broadcasting to now social media, every technological change has transformed the way information is disseminated. Today, we are seeing major changes in communication systems in the era of artificial intelligence.

We will incorporate the major research areas, which include social media, digital media, media and its association with society, media economics and policy, gender/culture with media and communication aspects, and science & technology communication. We have also included audience studies, which are a major part of media and communication research, along with global and comparative perspectives, media management, and communication theories and analysis.

Along with that, we have also extended the scope of the journal to include journalistic practices, applications of new technologies in the news and media industry, international communication, human–computer interaction, and media ethics & policies.

Research work can be published and promoted in various ways. Over time, there have been major changes in the drafts for presenting research. Regarding the types of articles, we have incorporated all major categories. Along with traditional research articles, the research journal also includes review articles and media reviews.

Media reviews encompass critical reviews of books and films. Along with appropriate research formats, conceptual papers and commentaries will also be published in the research journal to ensure that both new and old formats of research publication receive a proper opportunity to be published.

Over time, there have been significant changes in media and communication research. Although modern media research started in the U.S., over time it expanded widely across the world. Major research methods have also been equally employed in all countries.

When needed, media research methods have also changed as per the requirements of society. In the beginning, methods like surveys and interviews were more common, while in the mid-years, content analysis became a major method in media research.

Nowadays, a mixed-methods approach is used for research, combining two or more methods in an integrated way to complete a study. Along with changing times, we have also seen significant changes in how these methods are used. The current journal will publish research based on what is relevant today.

The use of technology in the field of media research has increased, especially after the advent of digital media and computers. In this research journal, studies will be published that are connected to digital media and computer-based research.

One goal of starting this research journal is also to give wider exposure to the latest progress and promotion in communication technology and research so that communication experts and researchers around the world can become aware of it.

Media research has been diverse from the very beginning. At the start, communication research was connected to linguistics and social sciences. Communication research has undergone significant changes with technology. With the latest technological systems, communication research has moved towards digital media.

Even after the industrial era, and now in the information age and the network era, media and communication research continue to move towards the next generation in alignment with technology. In the era of artificial intelligence, media research has also expanded in this direction.

Nowadays, in media research, along with content analysis of social media messages, practical research methods like thematic analysis, narrative analysis, and textual analysis are also being used.

At the same time, computer-aided analysis methods have started being used in the field of media and communication research as well. Furthermore, innovative research methods like sentiment analysis are being applied as needed.

Overall, it is clear that new dimensions of progress are continuously being created in the field of media research, and the journal will contribute in this direction.

This is the inaugural issue of the journal, and we are fully committed to academic integrity, strict peer review, originality, the ideas of scholars from different fields, and ethical research.

The journal follows a double-blind peer review process, which will encourage creative scholarly discussion. Our view is that a journal is not just a platform for publication but also an academic community where ideas get a scientific basis after mutual deliberation.

We hope that JCCM will become a platform where both current communication systems and emerging communication technologies can be critically examined.

With this first issue, we are starting the journey of quality research in media studies. We are grateful to all the authors, reviewers, editorial board members, advisors, and collaborators whose contributions have made it possible to launch the Journal of Communication and Computational Media.