Welcome to the site for the Journal of 20th Century Media History. We are a new peer-reviewed academic journal that will publish original scholarship across a wide and interdisciplinary range of subjects related to the history of media and mass communication in North America. Submissions are open for the first issue, which we intend to publish in Spring 2023. Please see the Call for Submissions below for information about suitable topics for our journal. We are an open access journal and all of our published content will be freely available on this site.

See the Aims and Scope for complete information about the journal.

Call for Submissions

The Journal of 20th Century Media History, a new fully online academic journal, is soliciting original scholarly article manuscripts for its first issue. The journal is designed to be broadly interdisciplinary and address current scholarship across a wide range of subject areas. As the title suggests, we are looking to publish historical work about topics that, in the main, focus on people, events, ideas, and practices from 20th century North America. Article submissions that make use of innovative research techniques and methodologies are highly encouraged, as is research that draws attention to previously marginalized or under-represented groups or forms of media practice. Possible subject areas for articles include:

Journalism and news

Broadcasting (entertainment or non-fiction programming)

Film

Propaganda and public opinion

Political communication

Books, publishing, and print culture

Digital communication

Media technologies

Law and ethics

Advertising and public relations

Visual communication and visual culture studies

Biographical studies

Article manuscripts should be submitted through the link on the left hand column of the journal website. Because the publication is entirely digital, we do not have a set word count or page limit. However, manuscripts should be carefully focused and written in a format commonly used in academic publishing. Submissions should not be previously published or under consideration with another journal and authors should secure any necessary permissions prior to submitting the manuscript. Please use the current edition of The Chicago Manual of Style as a guide to formatting and usage. Citations should take the form of endnotes.

The journal is edited by Dr. Robert Rabe (Marshall University, rabe@marshall.edu) and Dr. Cory Pillen (Fort Lewis College, cjpillen@fortlewis.edu). Questions about the journal or the submission process can be addressed to them. The journal will also publish reviews and scholars interested in reviewing should contact the editors.