Plagiarism Policy

Lontar : Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi is committed to maintaining academic integrity, originality, and ethical standards in scholarly publishing. All manuscripts submitted to the journal must represent original scholarly work and properly acknowledge the ideas, words, data, and contributions of others.

The journal does not tolerate plagiarism, self-plagiarism, duplicate publication, or other forms of academic misconduct.

1. Plagiarism Screening

All submitted manuscripts are subject to plagiarism screening as part of the initial editorial assessment. Authors are required to check their manuscripts for similarity before submission and are encouraged to provide the similarity report through the Supplementary Files section in the online submission system.

Lontar : Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi uses Turnitin or other appropriate similarity-checking tools to assist the editorial team in identifying potential textual overlap with previously published works and other sources.

In accordance with the journal's Author Guidelines, manuscripts must comply with the journal's similarity requirements. The similarity score must be interpreted carefully, as a similarity report identifies textual matches but does not, by itself, establish whether plagiarism has occurred.

The editorial team will examine the similarity report, the nature of the matched text, the adequacy of citations, and the context of the overlap before making a decision.

2. Similarity and AI Detection Requirements

Authors must comply with the screening requirements specified in the journal's Author Guidelines:

  • Similarity score: The journal's stated Turnitin similarity threshold is 20%. The editorial team will assess the report to determine whether the manuscript contains inappropriate textual overlap.
  • AI detection: The journal's Author Guidelines specify a maximum AI detection threshold of 15%, assessed using the Turnitin AI detection service.

AI detection results are treated as indicators for further editorial assessment and should not be considered conclusive evidence of misconduct on their own. The editorial team may consider the manuscript's content, the authors' explanations, and other relevant evidence when evaluating concerns about inappropriate AI use.

Compliance with these thresholds does not automatically guarantee acceptance. Manuscripts must also meet the journal's standards of originality, scholarly quality, and publication ethics.

3. Forms of Plagiarism and Academic Misconduct

The following practices are considered unacceptable:

  • Direct plagiarism: Copying words, sentences, paragraphs, or other material from another source without appropriate quotation, citation, or acknowledgment.
  • Mosaic plagiarism: Combining or rearranging text, ideas, or expressions from multiple sources without proper attribution.
  • Idea plagiarism: Using another person's ideas, arguments, theoretical framework, or research contributions without appropriate acknowledgment.
  • Data and image plagiarism: Using another person's data, tables, figures, photographs, illustrations, or other research materials without appropriate attribution or permission where required.
  • Self-plagiarism: Reusing substantial portions of one's previously published work without appropriate citation or disclosure.
  • Duplicate or redundant publication: Submitting or publishing substantially overlapping manuscripts without appropriate disclosure and editorial approval.
  • Improper paraphrasing: Rewriting another person's work while retaining its essential ideas or structure without proper citation.
  • Citation manipulation: Misrepresenting sources or using citations in a manner that obscures the original source of ideas or findings.

All sources must be acknowledged accurately and consistently according to the journal's required APA 7th edition referencing style.

4. Use of Artificial Intelligence

The use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-assisted technologies must comply with the journal's Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy.

AI tools must not be used to conceal plagiarism, fabricate references, misrepresent sources, or present another person's work as original research. Authors remain responsible for verifying the accuracy, originality, and integrity of all submitted content, including AI-assisted material.

Substantive AI use must be disclosed in accordance with the journal's AI Policy. AI detection results may inform editorial assessment but must not be used as the sole basis for determining plagiarism or other research misconduct.

5. Editorial Actions

When potential plagiarism or inappropriate textual overlap is identified, the editorial team will evaluate the case according to its seriousness, context, and available evidence.

Depending on the findings, the journal may take one or more of the following actions:

  1. Request clarification, revisions, or additional documentation from the authors.
  2. Return the manuscript for correction of inadequate citations or inappropriate paraphrasing.
  3. Reject the manuscript if serious plagiarism or other significant ethical violations are established.
  4. Refer serious or unresolved cases to the authors' affiliated institutions or other appropriate bodies, where necessary.
  5. Publish a correction, expression of concern, or retraction if misconduct is identified in an already published article and the circumstances warrant such action.

The authors concerned will be given a reasonable opportunity to respond to allegations before an editorial conclusion is reached, where appropriate.

6. Responsibilities of Authors

Authors are responsible for ensuring that:

  • The manuscript is original and has not been published previously in a manner that violates the journal's policies.
  • All ideas, quotations, data, figures, and other materials from external sources are appropriately cited and acknowledged.
  • Any reuse of their own previously published work is properly disclosed and cited.
  • The manuscript complies with the journal's similarity screening and AI-use requirements.
  • All references are accurate, verifiable, and formatted according to APA 7th edition.
  • The manuscript does not infringe copyright or violate applicable research ethics requirements.

7. Post-Publication Cases

If plagiarism or other serious publication ethics violations are discovered after publication, Lontar : Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi will assess the available evidence and take appropriate action to protect the integrity of the scholarly record.

Such action may include issuing a correction, publishing an expression of concern, retracting the article, or notifying the relevant institution, depending on the nature and seriousness of the case.

8. Policy Implementation

Lontar : Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi reserves the right to reject manuscripts or take other appropriate editorial action when plagiarism or other forms of academic misconduct are established.

This policy should be read together with the journal's Author Guidelines, Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy, Publication Ethics, and Correction and Retraction policies.

The journal applies this policy to promote originality, transparency, accountability, and responsible scholarly communication in the field of communication studies.