Information, Communication & Society: A Complete Guide to the Journal, Research Scope, and Publication Process

1. Introduction

Information, Communication & Society (iCS) is an international, peer-reviewed academic journal that examines how information and communication technologies shape social, political, economic, and cultural life. Published by Taylor & Francis, the journal covers digital communication, social media, online political participation, artificial intelligence, digital inequality, privacy, surveillance, and the social effects of emerging technologies.

The journal began publication in 1998 and has developed into an established publication in communication and media studies. Its research brings together perspectives from sociology, political science, cultural studies, gender studies, information science, and computer science.

The journal examines questions such as how social media influences political discussion, how digital platforms affect work and relationships, and how online technologies change people’s access to information and public services.

For researchers, iCS provides a publication venue for theoretical, empirical, and critical studies of the relationship between technology and society. It is particularly relevant if your research investigates how people use digital technologies, how platforms shape communication, or how technology affects social institutions and everyday life.

You can access the journal through its official Taylor & Francis journal page.

2. General Information About Information, Communication & Society

The journal’s main publication details are summarised below.

These details are drawn from the publisher’s official journal information and the ISSN record.

The journal publishes research that examines digital technologies within their wider social context. Its scope includes both the practical use of communication technologies and the social structures, commercial interests, political processes, and cultural practices that influence their development.

The journal publishes 16 issues per year, according to its current publisher information. Its publication history extends back to Volume 1 in 1998.

Sources: Official journal information and ISSN International Centre record.

3. Aims and Scope of the Journal

The main aim of iCS is to publish high-quality research on the social, political, economic, and cultural consequences of information and communication technologies (ICTs).

The journal takes an interdisciplinary and international approach. It welcomes research that explains how technologies interact with existing social practices, institutions, identities, and power relationships.

Its main research areas include the following.

3.1 Social Media and Digital Communication

Social media has changed how people communicate, share information, maintain relationships, and participate in public discussions. iCS publishes research that examines these changes and their consequences.

For example, a researcher could investigate how people use Facebook, TikTok, Reddit, or other platforms to discuss public policy, exchange news, or organise community activities.

A strong study would explain the communication patterns it identifies and connect them to a broader question about social behaviour, public discussion, or media use.

3.2 Politics and Online Participation

Digital platforms have become important spaces for political communication and civic participation. Researchers can examine online campaigning, political mobilisation, public opinion, misinformation, and digital activism.

A study might compare how political parties use social media during election campaigns or investigate whether online calls to action are associated with greater participation in political activities.

The journal is relevant to research on digital citizenship, democratic participation, political communication, and the relationship between technology and political power.

3.3 Digital Inequality and Social Inclusion

Access to digital technologies differs according to income, education, age, geography, disability, and other social conditions. Having an internet connection does not necessarily mean that a person can use digital services effectively.

iCS provides a relevant publication venue for studies of digital inequality, digital literacy, and unequal access to online opportunities.

For example, a researcher could examine why people in rural communities experience difficulties accessing online education or government services, even when internet coverage is available.

3.4 Artificial Intelligence and Automated Systems

Artificial intelligence has introduced new questions about communication, decision-making, identity, work, and public trust. Research in this area may examine how people understand AI, how automated systems affect social interaction, or how algorithmic decisions influence public life.

A study could investigate how users respond to AI-generated news, how people form relationships with conversational agents, or how automated recommendation systems shape the information they encounter.

Research should connect the technology to a clear social or communication question rather than focus solely on technical performance.

3.5 Digital Culture, Identity, and Gender

Online spaces influence how people express identities, form communities, represent themselves, and experience social relationships.

The journal’s interdisciplinary scope includes gender and cultural studies. Relevant topics include online identity, digital communities, representation, discrimination, feminist approaches to technology, and cultural differences in digital participation.

For instance, a study could examine how gender affects the representation of individuals in AI-generated images or how online communities influence people’s understanding of identity.

3.6 Privacy, Surveillance, and Platform Power

Digital services collect, process, and analyse large amounts of personal information. These practices raise questions about privacy, surveillance, consent, commercial control, and government monitoring.

iCS welcomes research that examines the consequences of these practices for individuals and communities.

A researcher might study how users understand the privacy settings of a social media platform or examine how workplace monitoring software changes relationships between employees and employers.

3.7 Digital Work and Economic Life

Communication technologies affect employment, working conditions, organisational relationships, and commercial activity. Digital platforms have also created new forms of online labour and platform-based employment.

Research may examine remote work, content moderation, influencer marketing, platform workers, digital entrepreneurship, or the use of automation in organisations.

For example, a study could investigate how content moderators experience the psychological and organisational demands of reviewing online material.

3.8 Education, Health, and Everyday Life

The journal’s scope includes the effects of ICTs on education, healthcare, family relationships, friendships, leisure, and other everyday activities.

Researchers can investigate how digital communication affects student participation, how people obtain health information online, or how families manage communication through messaging applications.

The journal’s official aims and scope provides the best starting point for deciding whether a particular research topic fits.

4. Types of Research Published in iCS

The journal publishes research that examines communication technologies and their social consequences through different theoretical and methodological approaches.

Common approaches include:

• • Empirical research: Studies based on interviews, surveys, observations, experiments, or other collected data.

• • Qualitative research: Interviews, focus groups, ethnography, discourse analysis, and thematic analysis.

• • Quantitative research: Statistical analysis of surveys, platform activity, communication patterns, or other datasets.

• • Digital methods: Research using social media data, platform interfaces, online communities, and digital traces.

• • Critical and theoretical research: Studies examining power, inequality, ideology, identity, and the social implications of technology.

• • Comparative research: Studies comparing platforms, countries, social groups, institutions, or political settings.

• • Review research: Structured reviews and other forms of scholarly synthesis, where suitable for the journal’s current article categories.

For example, a paper on political misinformation could combine content analysis of social media posts with interviews about how people judge the credibility of online information.

A paper on digital inequality might combine household survey data with interviews to understand why some groups face greater difficulties using online services.

The central requirement is a clear research contribution to understanding communication, information, technology, or society. The use of a popular platform or a new technology does not automatically make a manuscript suitable for the journal.

5. Journal Metrics and Academic Standing

Journal metrics provide one way to assess a journal’s citation activity, readership, and publication process. The figures below were listed on the official Taylor & Francis journal information page when checked on 24 October 2026.

Source: Taylor & Francis journal metrics.

Understanding the reported metrics

The Journal Impact Factor measures citations received by relevant journal content over a two-year period. The reported value of 3.6 relates to the 2025 metric year.

The five-year Impact Factor uses a longer citation window. Its value of 5.8 offers a broader view of citation activity over time.

CiteScore is calculated using Scopus data over a four-year period. The reported value of 10.4 reflects the journal’s citation performance under that measure.

Q1 indicates that the journal falls within the top 25% of journals in at least one relevant subject category for the specified ranking. It does not mean that the journal ranks first in every field.

SNIP adjusts citation performance for differences in citation practices between disciplines. SJR weights citations according to the standing of the journals from which they come.

The journal reports approximately 1.5 million annual downloads and views. This figure reflects usage on the publisher’s platform, rather than the number of unique readers.

Understanding the review and publication times

The reported average time from submission to first decision is five days. This figure includes editorial decisions made before peer review, such as desk rejections. It should not be interpreted as the expected time for a manuscript to complete peer review.

The reported 114 days to the first post-review decision gives a more useful reference for manuscripts that proceed to external review. However, individual papers may take longer or shorter depending on reviewer availability, revisions, and editorial requirements.

The 14-day period from acceptance to online publication describes the publisher’s reported production timeline after acceptance. It does not include the earlier stages of review and revision.

The reported acceptance rate is 10%. This indicates that publication is competitive, although the rate can change over time.

Taylor & Francis explains that its usage and acceptance figures are updated annually, while review-speed figures are updated periodically. Check the official page again before using these numbers in a formal report, research proposal, or academic evaluation.

6. Indexing and Abstracting Databases

Indexing helps researchers find journal articles through academic search platforms and subject-specific databases. The official Taylor & Francis page lists iCS in several established indexing and abstracting services.

These include:

• • Scopus: An abstract and citation database used for literature searches and research evaluation.

• • Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI): Part of the Web of Science Core Collection.

• • Communication and Mass Media Complete: A specialist database for communication and media research.

• • International Bibliography of the Social Sciences (IBSS): A bibliographic resource covering social science literature.

• • PsycINFO: A database covering psychology and related research.

• • Sociological Abstracts: A resource for sociology and related social science literature.

• • Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA): A database covering library and information science.

• • INSPEC: A database covering scientific and technical literature, including computing and information-related subjects.

• • EBSCO services: Academic research and discovery resources.

• • Worldwide Political Science Abstracts: A resource for political science research.

• • Risk Abstracts and SafetyLit: Subject-focused resources listed by the publisher.

The publisher also lists Applied Sciences Abstracts, Computer Science Index, Electronic Collections Online, and Social Services Abstracts.

For the full list, consult the official journal information page.

If you are selecting a journal for a master’s thesis, doctoral research, promotion application, or funding requirement, verify the relevant indexing record directly. For example, if your institution requires a journal indexed in SSCI, check the current Web of Science record rather than relying only on a journal’s general indexing statement.

7. Editorial Leadership and Peer Review

The journal’s Editor-in-Chief is Dan Mercea of City St George’s, University of London, UK. The editorial team also includes associate editors and regional editors responsible for different aspects of the journal’s work.

The publisher lists Maria Kyriakidou, Michael Saker, and Stefania Vicari among its associate editors. It also identifies editorial roles covering data and ethics, reviews, social media, and regional representation.

This structure reflects the journal’s international and interdisciplinary scope.

Peer-review process

According to Taylor & Francis, published articles undergo initial editorial screening followed by double-anonymised peer review involving at least two reviewers.

In a double-anonymised process, the reviewers do not receive the authors’ identifying details, and the authors do not receive the reviewers’ identities through the review process.

The process generally involves the following stages:

1. 1. Initial submission: The editorial team checks the manuscript for suitability and compliance with basic requirements.

1. 1. Editorial screening: The editor decides whether the manuscript should proceed to external review.

1. 1. External peer review: At least two reviewers assess the paper’s quality, contribution, methods, and presentation.

1. 1. Editorial decision: The editor may reject the paper, request revisions, or make another decision under the journal’s procedures.

1. 1. Revision and reassessment: If revisions are requested, the authors respond to reviewer comments and submit a revised manuscript.

1. 1. Acceptance and production: Accepted papers proceed to copy-editing, proof preparation, and online publication.

Peer review does not guarantee acceptance. Authors should also understand that a desk rejection can occur when a manuscript falls outside the journal’s scope or does not meet its publication standards.

The current editorial team and peer-review policy are available through the official journal page.

8. How to Submit a Manuscript to Information, Communication & Society

If you plan to submit your research to iCS, begin by assessing whether your paper addresses a question that fits the journal’s scope. The quality of the research, its theoretical contribution, and its relevance to communication and society should guide your preparation.

Step 1: Check the journal’s scope

Read the aims and scope and review recent articles in your research area.

Ask yourself three questions:

• • Does the paper address a meaningful issue involving information, communication, technology, or society?

• • Does it offer a clear contribution to relevant scholarship?

• • Will the journal’s readers find the research useful or relevant?

For example, a study of TikTok use among university students should explain what the findings contribute to research on identity, communication, digital culture, political participation, or another relevant social issue. A simple description of how often students use the platform may be insufficient without a clear research contribution.

Step 2: Prepare a strong manuscript

Follow the current author instructions for the manuscript structure, abstract, keywords, references, figures, tables, and supplementary material.

Your manuscript should explain:

• • The research problem and its academic context.

• • The theoretical framework or relevant literature.

• • The research questions or hypotheses.

• • The methods and data collection process.

• • The findings and their interpretation.

• • The contribution, limitations, and implications of the study.

Use clear language and explain specialist terminology when necessary. Readers may come from different disciplines, so the paper should make its reasoning understandable beyond a narrow specialist audience.

Do not assume that a particular abstract length, word limit, or reference style applies without checking the current instructions.

Step 3: Explain your methodology

The journal’s interdisciplinary readership makes clear methodological reporting especially important.

For qualitative research, describe participant recruitment, data collection, analytical procedures, and the process used to interpret the evidence.

For quantitative research, report the sample, measures, analytical methods, and relevant statistical results.

For digital research, explain how you collected platform data, what period the data cover, how you handled missing or deleted content, and what limitations affect your findings.

For example, if you study misinformation on social media, explain how you defined misinformation, selected posts, identified relevant accounts, and assessed the reliability of your classification method.

Step 4: Address ethics and data protection

Research involving people, online communities, or personal information requires careful attention to ethics.

Consider informed consent, confidentiality, privacy, institutional ethics approval, and the risks of identifying participants through publicly available information.

Publicly accessible posts are not automatically free of ethical concerns. Researchers should consider the context in which users shared the material and the potential consequences of reproducing it.

Follow the publisher’s current requirements for ethics statements, declarations, and data availability. Where applicable, explain whether supporting data can be shared and identify any restrictions caused by privacy, consent, copyright, or platform terms.

Step 5: Check formatting and declarations

Before submission, confirm that the manuscript follows the journal’s current requirements.

Check the title page, abstract, keywords, citations, reference list, tables, figures, and supplementary files. Include any required statements about funding, competing interests, ethics approval, and data availability.

If the journal requests anonymised files for peer review, remove identifying details from the appropriate manuscript files and inspect document properties where necessary.

Step 6: Submit through the official portal

Start with the journal’s official Taylor & Francis page and follow the link to the submission system.

Complete the requested information, upload the manuscript and supporting files, and review the submission carefully before finalising it.

Use the official journal information and author guidance to check the latest instructions. Requirements may differ by article type, so follow the guidance for your specific submission.

Step 7: Respond to reviewer comments

If the editor requests revisions, prepare a response document that addresses each comment.

Explain what you changed and where the changes appear in the revised manuscript. If you disagree with a comment, provide a reasoned explanation supported by evidence or methodological considerations.

Avoid brief responses that simply say a comment has been addressed. Specific replies make it easier for editors and reviewers to evaluate the revision.

9. Open Access Options and Publication Fees

Information, Communication & Society is a hybrid open-access journal within Taylor & Francis’s Open Select programme.

Authors can generally choose between the standard publication route and an open-access option.

Standard publication

If you publish through the standard subscription-based route, readers may need access through a subscription or an institution that provides access. According to the publisher, this route does not carry an open-access article publishing charge.

Open-access publication

If you select open access, your published article becomes freely available online under the applicable licence. This can make your research accessible to readers who do not have access to a university library or subscription service.

Open-access publication may involve an article publishing charge (APC). However, an author may qualify for full or partial coverage through an institutional agreement, research funder, or publisher arrangement.

How to check the cost

Before submitting, review the current Taylor & Francis open-access and publishing information.

Check the applicable APC, licence options, funding arrangements, and institutional agreements. Do not rely on a fee quoted for another journal or an earlier year, because charges and agreements can change.

If you are a student or researcher working with limited funding, ask your university library or research office whether it has an agreement with Taylor & Francis. Confirm the conditions before choosing the publication route.

10. Examples of Research Published in Information, Communication & Society

Reviewing published articles can help you understand the journal’s expectations, research interests, and preferred level of analysis. The following examples illustrate the range of work associated with iCS.

Example 1: Political participation through social media

The journal has published research on online political participation, including A typology of political participation online: how citizens used Twitter to mobilize during the 2015 British general elections.

The study examines how citizens used Twitter in the context of a national election. It represents a broader line of research on how digital communication supports political mobilization and participation.

This topic is relevant to researchers investigating election campaigns, digital activism, online public discussion, and the relationship between social media and democratic participation.

Example 2: Digital sovereignty and cloud infrastructure

The journal’s 2026 publication record includes Andreas Baur’s article, European ambitions captured by American clouds: digital sovereignty through Gaia-X?

The paper addresses digital sovereignty through the case of Gaia-X and European ambitions for digital infrastructure. It connects technology governance with questions about economic power, infrastructure, and political autonomy.

This example shows how research on information and communication technologies can examine institutions and political decisions as well as everyday technology use.

Example 3: AI, social representation, and digital culture

The journal’s recent publications include Black technofeminism as critique of biological essentialism in AI anthropomorphization, by Melissa C. Brown.

The article examines artificial intelligence through questions of race, gender, representation, and cultural assumptions. It illustrates the journal’s interest in critical approaches to emerging technologies.

This research area may be useful if you study algorithmic representation, digital identity, gender and technology, or the social implications of AI systems.

Example 4: Digital resilience in childhood

A recent article listed by the journal is How does young children’s digital resilience operate within and across homes and communities? A thematic analysis of parents and early years educators’ experiences, by Simon P. Hammond and co-authors.

The study examines children’s digital resilience through the experiences of parents and early-years educators. Its focus connects digital technology with family life, education, and children’s everyday experiences.

This example demonstrates the journal’s interest in how technology affects social relationships and institutions.

The article was listed as published online on 22 October 2026. You can locate it through the journal’s official homepage.

These examples cover political communication, digital infrastructure, AI and representation, and children’s experiences with technology. Together, they illustrate the journal’s interdisciplinary approach.

When reading these papers, examine how the authors develop their research questions, connect their arguments to existing literature, explain their methods, and discuss the wider significance and limitations of their findings.

11. Advantages and Limitations for Researchers

Information, Communication & Society may be a suitable journal for research that examines the relationship between digital technologies and social life.

Several features are worth considering.

• • Interdisciplinary readership: The journal attracts research from communication, sociology, political science, cultural studies, gender studies, and information science.

• • Established publication history: Its publication record dates back to 1998, providing a substantial body of literature for prospective authors to review.

• • Strong citation indicators: The publisher reports a 2025 Impact Factor of 3.6 and a CiteScore of 10.4, with Q1 status in the respective best-quartile indicators.

• • International scope: The journal considers questions that extend across geographical and cultural settings.

• • Multiple research approaches: Its scope supports qualitative, quantitative, theoretical, critical, and interdisciplinary research.

• • Open-access choice: Authors can consider standard and open-access publication routes, subject to the applicable terms.

There are also practical limitations to consider.

First, the journal has a broad but defined scope. A paper about technology may not fit if it lacks a meaningful connection to communication, society, culture, politics, or related questions.

Second, the reported 10% acceptance rate indicates that publication is competitive. A manuscript needs a clear argument, sound methods, and a contribution that readers can identify.

Third, the journal’s strong metrics do not guarantee that every published paper will receive many citations. Evaluate your manuscript’s suitability based on its subject, audience, methods, and contribution.

Finally, review timelines and publication fees can change. Authors should check the latest journal information before setting expectations or committing research funds.

12. Practical Checklist Before Submitting

Use this checklist to review your manuscript before submission.

• • The paper addresses a clear question about information, communication, technology, or society.

• • The research makes a specific contribution to relevant scholarship.

• • The introduction explains the problem and establishes the research context.

• • The theoretical framework and literature review support the argument.

• • The methods are appropriate and clearly documented.

• • The findings are supported by the data and analysis.

• • The discussion explains the contribution and acknowledges limitations.

• • The manuscript follows the current author guidelines.

• • The abstract, keywords, references, tables, and figures meet the journal’s requirements.

• • Ethics approval and other relevant declarations are included where required.

• • Data availability and confidentiality issues have been addressed.

• • Anonymised files are prepared if required for peer review.

• • The manuscript is not being considered by another journal.

• • The publication route, licence, and possible fees have been checked.

The journal’s current author instructions should determine the final manuscript format. Review them immediately before submission.

13. Conclusion

Information, Communication & Society is an established international journal that examines how information and communication technologies affect society, culture, politics, economics, and everyday life. Published by Taylor & Francis since 1998, it covers a wide range of topics, including social media, digital inequality, political participation, artificial intelligence, privacy, surveillance, and digital work.

Its interdisciplinary scope and established indexing make it a journal worth considering for researchers whose work connects technology with social or communication questions.

If you plan to submit your research, start by reading recent papers in your subject area and checking the journal’s aims and scope. Develop a clear research question, explain your theoretical contribution, document your methods, and discuss your findings in relation to existing scholarship.

Before submission, verify the current journal metrics, indexing records, author guidelines, review policy, and publishing costs through the official publisher.

For reliable information, use the official journal homepage, aims and scope and journal metrics, and list of published issues.

References and Research Sources

1. 1. Taylor & Francis. Information, Communication & Society: Official Journal Page. https://www.tandfonline.com/journals/rics20

1. 1. Taylor & Francis. Aims and Scope, Journal Metrics, Editorial Board, and Indexing Information. https://www.tandfonline.com/journals/rics20/about-this-journal

1. 1. Taylor & Francis. List of Issues: Information, Communication & Society. https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rics20

1. 1. ISSN International Centre. Information, Communication & Society, Online ISSN 1468-4462. https://portal.issn.org/resource/ISSN/1468-4462

1. 1. Taylor & Francis. A Typology of Political Participation Online: How Citizens Used Twitter to Mobilize During the 2015 British General Elections. Available through the journal website.

1. 1. Baur, A. European Ambitions Captured by American Clouds: Digital Sovereignty Through Gaia-X? Available through the journal’s 2026 publication listings.

1. 1. Brown, M. C. Black Technofeminism as Critique of Biological Essentialism in AI Anthropomorphization. Available through the journal’s latest publications.

1. 1. Hammond, S. P., et al. How Does Young Children’s Digital Resilience Operate Within and Across Homes and Communities? A Thematic Analysis of Parents and Early Years Educators’ Experiences. Available through the journal’s latest publications.

Research checked on 24 October 2026. Journal metrics, editorial appointments, indexing information, and publishing policies can change. Verify current details with Taylor & Francis before using this article for formal academic or institutional purposes.