MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION

This page explains how to prepare a manuscript for Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi. Write your manuscript directly in the official MUKASI template, and read this page together with the Author Guidelines and the Focus and Scope.

A manuscript is assessed on its scholarly quality, its originality, its fit with the focus and scope of the journal, its research integrity, and the results of the peer review. Following the format alone does not guarantee acceptance.

1. General Format

Item	Requirement
File	An editable Microsoft Word file (.doc or .docx). OpenOffice and RTF files are also accepted.
Language	Academic Indonesian or academic English. A manuscript in English uses either British or American spelling, consistently. Abstracts are required in both languages.
Length	6,000 to 9,000 words
Page	A4 paper (210 x 297 mm). Margins: top 2 cm, bottom 2 cm, left 3 cm, right 3 cm.
Font and spacing	Times New Roman 12 pt for the main text, single line spacing, justified, with 0 pt spacing before and after each paragraph
Abstracts	150 to 200 words in English and 150 to 200 words in Indonesian
Keywords	3 to 6 keywords, separated by commas
Citation style	APA Style 6th Edition, in the form (author, year)
Header and footer	Keep those of the template. The editorial office completes the volume, issue, year, and pages during production.

Typography summary

The table below shows the format of every element of the manuscript. All text is in Times New Roman.

Element	Size	Style and alignment	Spacing
Title	15 pt	Bold, Title Case, centered	Not more than 12 words
Author names	10 pt	Bold, centered	Without academic titles
Affiliations and email	10 pt	Regular, centered	One line for each affiliation
Abstract (English)	12 pt	Heading bold italic and centered; text italic and justified	Single line spacing
Abstrak (Indonesian)	12 pt	Heading bold and centered; text regular and justified	Single line spacing
Section headings	12 pt	Bold, capital letters	6 pt before and after (CONCLUSION: 12 pt before, 6 pt after)
Subheadings	12 pt	Bold italic
Main text	12 pt	Regular, justified	0 pt before and after
Table and figure captions	12 pt	Regular, centered	6 pt before and after
Table content	12 pt	Regular	Margins as needed
Reference list	12 pt	Heading bold in capital letters; entries regular	Heading: 6 pt before and after

2. Title, Author Information, Abstract, and Keywords

Title

The title has no more than 12 words. It is concise, specific, and describes the content of the article.
It may be written in Indonesian or English, in Times New Roman 15 pt, bold, centered, with the first letter of each main word in capitals.
Avoid abbreviations that are not necessary and claims that the study does not support.

Author information

Write the names of the authors without academic titles.
Give each affiliation in this order: study program, faculty, institution, city, and country. Link each author to an affiliation with a superscript number.
Give the email address of every author, with the same superscript number as the author.
Mark the corresponding author with an asterisk (*).
When you submit the manuscript, enter the names and affiliations of all authors in the metadata of the submission.

Abstract

Write one abstract in English and one in Indonesian, each of 150 to 200 words in a single paragraph. Each abstract must be understandable without the rest of the article.
Each abstract states the purpose of the research, the method (how the data were collected), and the results and impact of the research. The results refer to the collected data and answer the research question.
Write the English abstract in good English, in italics. Write the Indonesian abstract in regular type.
Do not include citations, undefined abbreviations, or claims that the study does not support.

Keywords

Give 3 to 6 specific keywords or short phrases, separated by commas, in English after the English abstract and in Indonesian after the Indonesian abstract.
Avoid terms that are too general, and avoid repeating words that are already in the title.

3. Organization of the Main Text

The main text has the seven sections below, in this order. The template uses Indonesian headings, and a manuscript in English uses the English equivalents. The sections cannot be removed, except the acknowledgments, which are optional. Subsections may be added when they are needed, in bold italic, and each subsection should contain more than one short paragraph.

Section	Purpose
PENDAHULUAN (INTRODUCTION)	Presents the problem, the earlier studies, the novelty, and the purpose of the article
TINJAUAN PUSTAKA (LITERATURE REVIEW)	Presents the theories and concepts, the research questions, and the measurement of concepts
METODE (METHOD)	Explains how the research was carried out
HASIL DAN PEMBAHASAN (RESULTS AND DISCUSSION)	Reports and interprets the findings
PENUTUP (CONCLUSION)	Answers the purpose of the article and gives suggestions
UCAPAN TERIMA KASIH (ACKNOWLEDGMENTS)	Optional. Thanks and sources of funding
DAFTAR PUSTAKA (REFERENCES)	Lists every source that is cited in the text

Writing rule. Do not use numbering (1, 2, 3 or a, b, c) or bullets in the main text. Write all ideas in sentences and paragraphs. Avoid pages that have large empty areas.

Introduction

State the context and the background of the problem.
Review briefly the related studies that already exist.
Show the research gap and the difference from the earlier studies, so that the novelty of the research is clear.
State the purpose of the article and its scientific benefits.
Describe briefly the research method that is used.
Do not use the introduction for a long discussion of general literature or general definitions. Such material belongs in the literature review.

Literature Review

Review the theories or concepts that are related to the research, and adjust them to the research paradigm. In positivist and post positivist research, make sure that a theory is used as a reference.
Use at least 10 references in this section, and at least 70 percent of them should be journal articles. Use recent references, except for classic works.
State the research questions clearly. If there is more than one, write them as Research Question 1, Research Question 2, and so on, each on its own line.
In quantitative research, explain how every concept will be measured, by giving the variables, the dimensions, and examples of indicators.

Method

The method must agree with the purpose of the research and with the theory that is used. State the approach (quantitative or qualitative) and the method (for example a survey, an experiment, a case study, ethnography, or netnography). Where it applies, also describe the research context, the participants or informants, the data or materials, the instruments, the procedure, and the software or tools that were used. Explain a new method in enough detail for others to repeat it. For an established method, it is enough to name it and cite the source.

Quantitative research must explain	Qualitative research must explain
The sampling method The unit of analysis The technique of data analysis The techniques of reliability and validity	The method (case study, netnography, ethnography, phenomenology, or another method) The technique of data collection The technique of data analysis

If the research involves human participants, state how permission and informed consent were obtained. If the data were taken from social media or other online platforms, state how the data were collected and how the privacy of the account holders was protected.

Results and Discussion

Present the findings in a logical order that follows the purpose or the research questions. The findings may be presented under subheadings.
Base the findings on the field data that were obtained through questionnaires, surveys, documents, interviews, observations, and other techniques of data collection.
Analyze the results through interpretation and through synthesis with specific theories.
Do not repeat the same data in the text, in a table, and in a figure at the same time.
In the discussion, interpret the findings, relate them to earlier studies, explain their significance, and discuss alternative explanations and the limitations of the study. The discussion must answer the research questions. Present results that are uncertain in an objective way.

Conclusion

Summarize the answer to the purpose of the article.
Describe the possible application or further development of the research, and give suggestions for future research.
Do not include new findings, citations, or a simple repetition of the abstract. Write the conclusion in paragraphs, not in a numbered list.

Acknowledgments

This section is optional. Use it to thank the people who helped with the research and to state the sources of funding, facilities, and support from other parties.

4. Tables, Figures, and Other Display Material

Tables and figures give a further explanation of the results. Place them in the text at the point where they are discussed, and refer to each of them in the text. In a manuscript in Indonesian the labels are Tabel and Gambar, and in a manuscript in English they are Table and Figure.

Rule	Tables	Figures
Numbering	Numbered in the order of first appearance (Table 1, Table 2, and so on; Figure 1, Figure 2, and so on)
Caption position	Number and title above the table	Number and title below the figure
Caption format	Times New Roman 12 pt, regular, centered, with 6 pt spacing before and after
Appearance	Only a horizontal line at the top and a horizontal line at the bottom. No vertical lines and no horizontal lines in the middle.	Clear colors, a suitable size, and easy to read at the published size. Do not rely on color alone; add labels, patterns, or symbols.
Content	Times New Roman 12 pt, regular, with margins as needed. Make it an editable table, not a screenshot or a picture. Give clear column labels and units, and explain abbreviations in a note below the table.	The figure must be an important part of the research results. Do not use blurred images.
Source	If the table or figure comes from another source, write the source at the bottom left. If it is reproduced or adapted from another work, permission must be obtained, as described in the Copyright Notice and Licensing pages.

An example of the table format is shown in section 6 of the Author Guidelines.

5. Abbreviations, Equations, and Quotations

Abbreviations and terms

Define every non standard abbreviation when it first appears. Use technical terms consistently throughout the manuscript.

Equations

Write equations with an equation editor and number them in order, in parentheses at the right margin, for example (1) and (2).
Explain every variable or symbol in a sentence after the equation, and refer to numbered equations in the text.

Numerical data

Keep the precision of numbers consistent. State the units, the sample size, and the statistical measures that are used, for example the mean, the standard deviation, and the level of significance.

Quotations

Separate a quotation clearly from your own sentences. This applies to quotations from interviews, documents, social media content, and other publications.
Give the source and, where possible, the page number, in APA Style 6th Edition. A quotation of fewer than 40 words is placed in double quotation marks within the sentence. A quotation of 40 words or more is set as a separate block without quotation marks.
If you translated a quotation, say so in the text.

6. Citations and References

Topic	Rule
Style	APA Style 6th Edition. In the text, cite in the form (author, year), for example (Boy, 2017) or (Boy et al., 2015). If you cite a page, put it after the year, for example (Bili, 2017, p. 50).
Match between text and list	Every citation in the text must appear in the reference list, and every entry in the reference list must be cited in the text.
Order	The reference list is arranged alphabetically by the surname of the first author.
Number and type of sources	Use at least 10 primary sources, published mostly within the last five years, except for classic works. A primary source is a report of original research, such as a journal article or a conference paper. At least 70 percent of the references should be journal articles.
Complete details	Give full bibliographic details, including the page range or the article number where it applies.
DOI and URL	Give the DOI of every reference that has one, preferably as a link in the form https://doi.org/xxxxx. For an online source without a DOI, give the URL.
Format of the list	The heading DAFTAR PUSTAKA (REFERENCES) is in Times New Roman 12 pt, bold, capital letters, with 6 pt spacing before and after. The entries are in Times New Roman 12 pt.
Reference manager	Mendeley, Zotero, or EndNote may be used with the APA 6th Edition style. The authors remain responsible for checking the details of the sources and the match between the citations and the list.

Examples of citations and of reference entries for each type of source are given in section 7 of the Author Guidelines.

7. Declarations and Disclosures

The template does not have a separate section for declarations. Funding and support are stated in the acknowledgments, and permission and consent for research with participants are explained in the method section. Other topics follow the policies in the table below, and any statement that a policy requires must be included. The editors may ask for additional statements during the review.

Topic	Where to state it	Policy
Funding and support	Acknowledgments	Publication Ethics
Permission and informed consent	Method	Publication Ethics
Authorship and contributions	Comments for the editor, when you submit	Authorship and Contributorship
Conflicts of interest	As the policy requires	Conflicts of Interest
Availability of research data	As the policy requires	Data Sharing Policy
Generative AI and automated tools	Method, if the tool is part of the research. Acknowledgments, if it was used for language editing or translation.	Generative AI Policies
Originality and similarity of text	Letter of Originality, submitted with the manuscript	Plagiarism Policy

8. Supplementary Material

Supplementary material is optional. It may include research instruments, such as questionnaires, interview guides, observation sheets, and coding sheets or codebooks for content analysis, as well as datasets.

Give each file a consistent label and a descriptive title, and refer to it in the text.
Describe the content of each file, its relation to the article, and the software that is needed to open it.
Supplementary material complements the article. It does not replace the explanation of the main contribution in the manuscript.
Sharing of data follows the Data Sharing Policy. Upload the supplementary files together with the manuscript when you submit.

Related Instructions and Assistance

The Author Guidelines give a general orientation, the steps of submission, and a checklist for the preparation of the manuscript. If the template and these instructions differ, or if you have a question about the template, please contact the editorial office before you submit.