Journal rankings · indicator year 2017
Choose a field to open its ranking, or a journal to find its row in its subfield’s list.
Subfield ranking · 2017
Communication journal rankings 2017
71 ranked journals · Subfield in Social Sciences
Communication has 71 ranked journals in 2017. Its median journal scores above the world average: OJR 1.59 against 1.00, up 0.03 on 2016. A journal needs OJR 2.60 to reach Q1. The top three are Journal of Communication, Communication Theory, and Journal of Studies in International Education.
Ranks and citation indicators: 2017. Journal access status and listed APC: source snapshot September 23, 2026.
Journals whose main subfield sits in this category and that published at least 30 citable documents (articles, reviews and conference papers) in 2014–2016, the window the 2017 score is computed on.
The OpenJournalRank Indicator (OJR) is a free, publicly available metric of a journal’s field-normalized citation impact, computed from open OpenAlex citation data. It compares citations to a journal’s papers from the previous three years with the world average for papers of the same subfield, year and type, so 1.00 is the world average and values can be compared across fields. It is computed with the NCI3 method.
The middle OJR among ranked journals in this category: half score higher, half lower. 1.00 is the world average for papers of the same subfield, year and type.
The dot is this category, the solid tick is the median of all ranked journals and the dashed line is the world average.
Share of ranked journals in this category that are fully open access, so every paper is free to read. Hybrid journals, which sell subscriptions and open single papers for a fee, are not counted.
Median list price of the article processing charge, in US dollars, among ranked journals in this category that list a price above zero. Journals with a listed APC of $0 and journals with no known price are left out of this median. The At a glance table below gives a second median that includes the $0 prices.
Subfields of Social Sciences (22)
71 ranked journals
Filters
Rank is the position by OJR within the list on screen; 1 is the highest. | OJR is field-normalized 3-year citation impact: 1.00 is the world average for papers of the same subfield, year and type, so values compare across fields. The badge is the journal’s quartile in this list. | Citations per paper over a two-year window, counted from OpenAlex. It is not field-normalized, so compare it only between journals of the same field. ▲ or ▼ is the change from 2016. This is OpenJournalRank’s own count, not Clarivate’s Journal Impact Factor. | Citable documents (articles, reviews and conference papers) published in 2014–2016, the window the 2017 OJR is computed on. A journal needs at least 30 to be ranked. | Share of the journal’s 2014–2016 papers that are free to read in any open-access form. The green OA tag next to a title marks a fully open-access journal. | List price of the article processing charge in US dollars. “$0 listed” means the listed price is zero; a dash means no price is listed. | The line is the journal’s OJR from 2008 to 2017. | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1Journal of CommunicationOxford University Press · United States | 9.00Q1 | 4.65 1.62 down from 2016 | 197 | 14% | $4,235 | ||
2Communication TheoryWiley · United States | 7.79Q1 | 4.22 0.60 up from 2016 | 84 | 4% | $4,235 | ||
3Journal of Studies in International EducationSAGE Publishing · United States | 6.06Q1 | 3.10no change | 67 | 33% | $3,650 | ||
4Political CommunicationTaylor & Francis · United States | 5.72Q1 | 3.97 1.26 up from 2016 | 123 | 21% | — | ||
5The International Journal of Press/PoliticsSAGE Publishing · United States | 5.63Q1 | 3.84 0.49 up from 2016 | 71 | 44% | $3,900 | ||
6Journal of Public Relations ResearchTaylor & Francis · United States | 5.01Q1 | 2.22 0.99 down from 2016 | 59 | 30% | — | ||
7Journal of Knowledge ManagementEmerald Publishing Limited · United Kingdom | 4.92Q1 | 4.30 0.78 up from 2016 | 207 | 22% | — | ||
8Digital JournalismTaylor & Francis · United Kingdom | 4.84Q1 | 2.87 1.54 down from 2016 | 195 | 28% | — | ||
9Discourse & CommunicationSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 4.30Q1 | 2.40 1.05 up from 2016 | 66 | 25% | $3,650 | ||
10Journal of Information Technology & PoliticsRoutledge · United States | 4.02Q1 | 3.57 0.15 down from 2016 | 67 | 32% | — | ||
11Journalism & Mass Communication QuarterlySAGE Publishing · United States | 3.48Q1 | 2.12 0.45 up from 2016 | 221 | 9% | $3,900 | ||
12Media and CommunicationOACogitatio · Portugal | 3.29Q1 | 1.85 1.15 up from 2016 | 93 | 100% | $1,132 | ||
13Journalism PracticeTaylor & Francis · United Kingdom | 3.13Q1 | 2.08 0.34 down from 2016 | 238 | 10% | — | ||
14Journalism StudiesRoutledge · United Kingdom | 3.04Q1 | 1.71 0.55 down from 2016 | 270 | 26% | — | ||
15JournalismSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 2.95Q1 | 2.14 0.28 up from 2016 | 254 | 22% | $3,900 | ||
16Corporate Communications An International JournalEmerald Publishing Limited · United Kingdom | 2.78Q1 | 2.08 0.79 down from 2016 | 93 | 17% | — | ||
17CommunicationsDe Gruyter Mouton · Germany | 2.64Q1 | 1.22 0.60 down from 2016 | 68 | 30% | $2,712 | ||
18Journal of Communication ManagementEmerald Publishing Limited · United Kingdom | 2.60Q1 | 1.77 0.05 up from 2016 | 79 | 14% | — | ||
19European Journal of CommunicationSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 2.53Q2 | 1.19 0.01 up from 2016 | 257 | 12% | $3,650 | ||
20Cross Cultural Management An International JournalEmerald Publishing Limited · United Kingdom | 2.50Q2 | 2.55 0.76 up from 2016 | 58 | — | — | ||
21Media War & ConflictSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 2.43Q2 | 1.10 0.31 down from 2016 | 69 | 31% | $3,650 | ||
22Public Relations ReviewElsevier BV · United States | 2.38Q2 | 2.07 0.20 up from 2016 | 331 | 14% | $4,310 | ||
23International Journal of Strategic CommunicationTaylor & Francis · United States | 2.24Q2 | 1.44 0.14 down from 2016 | 65 | 13% | — | ||
24Annals of the International Communication AssociationTaylor & Francis | 2.16Q2 | 1.74 0.30 down from 2016 | 40 | 35% | $3,368 | ||
25Journal of International and Intercultural CommunicationTaylor & Francis · United Kingdom | 2.09Q2 | 1.08 0.06 down from 2016 | 75 | 56% | — | ||
26Communication Research and PracticeTaylor & Francis · Australia | 2.06Q2 | 1.34 0.09 up from 2016 | 65 | 26% | — | ||
27Global Media and CommunicationSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 2.04Q2 | 0.69 0.44 down from 2016 | 51 | 14% | $3,650 | ||
28International Journal of Cross Cultural ManagementSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 1.94Q2 | 1.37 0.29 down from 2016 | 42 | 30% | $3,650 | ||
29Journal of Global Mobility The Home of Expatriate Management ResearchEmerald Publishing Limited · United Kingdom | 1.92Q2 | 1.98 0.36 up from 2016 | 61 | 35% | — | ||
30Journal of Political MarketingTaylor & Francis · United States | 1.91Q2 | 1.35 0.21 up from 2016 | 81 | 19% | — | ||
31International Communication GazetteSAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 1.87Q2 | 1.14 0.17 up from 2016 | 130 | 20% | $3,650 | ||
32Knowledge Management Research & PracticeTaylor & Francis · United Kingdom | 1.71Q2 | 1.27 0.42 up from 2016 | 86 | 23% | — | ||
33Asian Journal of CommunicationRoutledge · United Kingdom | 1.70Q2 | 1.05 0.04 down from 2016 | 130 | 2% | — | ||
34Journal of International StudentsOAEditors of the journals · United States | 1.70Q2 | 1.34 0.33 down from 2016 | 148 | 100% | — | ||
35The Journal of Media InnovationsOAUniversity of Oslo, Centre for Research on Media Innovations (CRMI) · Norway | 1.63Q2 | 0.79 0.78 down from 2016 | 37 | 100% | — | ||
36Journal of Intercultural Communication ResearchTaylor & Francis · United Kingdom | 1.59Q2 | 1.02 0.07 up from 2016 | 71 | 13% | — | ||
37Nordicom review/NORDICOM reviewOADe Gruyter Open · Sweden | 1.54Q3 | 0.89 0.21 up from 2016 | 105 | 100% | — | ||
38Journal of Deliberative DemocracyOAUnited Kingdom | 1.42Q3 | 1.06 0.10 up from 2016 | 80 | 100% | — | ||
39Electronic Journal of Knowledge ManagementOAAcademic Conferences and Publishing International · United Kingdom | 1.40Q3 | 0.94 0.61 down from 2016 | 30 | 100% | — | ||
40Public Relations InquirySAGE Publishing · United Kingdom | 1.38Q3 | 1.03 0.19 down from 2016 | 48 | 37% | $3,650 | ||
41El Profesional de la InformacionOAEdiciones Profesionales de la Informacion SL · Spain | 1.37Q3 | 1.40 0.01 up from 2016 | 264 | 100% | — | ||
42Media International AustraliaPublisher not listed | 1.29Q3 | 0.95 0.35 up from 2016 | 198 | 17% | $3,650 | ||
43Journal of International CommunicationTaylor & Francis · United Kingdom | 1.28Q3 | 0.83 0.38 up from 2016 | 47 | 5% | — | ||
44Electronic NewsSAGE Publishing · United States | 1.28Q3 | 1.12 0.03 up from 2016 | 51 | 5% | $3,650 | ||
45Studies in Communication SciencesOAElsevier BV · Switzerland | 1.27Q3 | 0.80 0.01 down from 2016 | 68 | 100% | — | ||
46Journal of Teaching in International BusinessTaylor & Francis · United States | 1.09Q3 | 1.08 0.10 down from 2016 | 56 | 11% | — | ||
47Romanian Journal of Communication and Public RelationsOANational University of Political Studies and Public Administration (SNSPA), College of Communication and Public Relations, Bucha · Romania | 1.03Q3 | 0.52 0.39 up from 2016 | 54 | 100% | — | ||
48Newspaper Research JournalSAGE Publishing · United States | 1.03Q3 | 0.77 0.46 up from 2016 | 105 | 7% | $3,200 | ||
49International Journal of Knowledge ManagementOAIGI Global · United States | 1.01Q3 | 0.78 0.45 down from 2016 | 51 | 5% | — | ||
50Studies in Communication and MediaOANomos · Germany | 0.98Q3 | 0.63 0.33 up from 2016 | 55 | 100% | — |
Subfields of Social Sciences, with Communication highlighted.
- Sociology and Political Science1,300
- Education698
- Political Science and International Relations318
- Communication71
- Gender Studies63
- Health53
- Safety Research52
- Public Administration51
- Transportation48
- Linguistics and Language47
- Law46
- Urban Studies45
- Anthropology41
- Library and Information Sciences41
- Demography40
- Geography, Planning and Development28
- Cultural Studies9
- Development4
- General Social Sciences3
- Human Factors and Ergonomics1
- Archeology0
- Life-span and Life-course Studies0
Journals
Citations made in 2017. Corpus-wide, 77.7% of core-journal articles and reviews published that year have at least one matched reference; the share varies by journal and field.
19 additional Communication journals with metrics are unranked under this release’s eligibility rules: a journal needs at least 30 citable documents in 2014–2016, at least 80% of them with a subfield, and a positive world-average expectation. Ranks are within the whole category; filters hide rows without re-ranking. OJR excludes self-citations.
At a glance
Indicator year: 2017. Publication window: 2014–2016. How these summaries are calculated
- Ranked journals
- 71
- Window papers (baseline)
- 33,284 +13.1% from indicator year 2014
- Median OJR
- 1.59 +6.9% from indicator year 2014
- Rising journals (2025)
- 3
Window papers are the baseline paper population: citable papers (articles, reviews and conference papers) from 2014–2016 in all journals of the world-average baseline, including non-core journals, counted by each paper’s own subfield. They are not the papers of the ranked journals alone.
| Measure | Year series | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranked journals | 28 | 30 | 32 | 36 | 35 | 35 | 38 | 38 | 43 | 48 | 52 | 52 | 54 | 57 | 66 | 65 | 68 | 71 | 74 | 74 | 79 | 75 | 77 | 73 | 72 | 71 | |
| Window papers (baseline) | 6,625 | 7,353 | 8,060 | 9,040 | 9,893 | 11,132 | 12,598 | 14,308 | 16,130 | 18,165 | 20,333 | 22,525 | 25,150 | 27,541 | 29,419 | 31,115 | 32,404 | 33,284 | 33,565 | 34,506 | 36,327 | 39,973 | 43,466 | 44,324 | 43,348 | 42,854 | |
| Median OJR | 0.692 | 0.54 | 0.691 | 0.67 | 0.94 | 1.31 | 1.570 | 1.66 | 1.47 | 1.86 | 1.80 | 1.85 | 1.67 | 1.72 | 1.49 | 1.74 | 1.56 | 1.59 | 1.54 | 1.333 | 1.42 | 1.326 | 1.48 | 1.62 | 1.68 | 1.565 |
How to read these rankings
- OJR, the OpenJournalRank Indicator
- A field-normalized 3-year citation impact, computed from OpenAlex with the NCI3 method. It divides the citations a journal’s papers received by the world average for papers of the same subfield, year and type, so 1.00 is the world average and 2.00 means twice as many citations as expected. Because it is normalized, it can be compared across fields. Read the methodology
- Quartiles
- Q1 to Q4 split the ranked journals of the list you are viewing into four equal groups by OJR. A journal’s quartile depends on the list: the same journal can be Q1 in its subfield and Q2 among all journals.
- Impact factor (2-year)
- Citations per paper over a two-year window, counted from OpenAlex. It is easy to compare with familiar impact factors but is not field-normalized, so compare it only within a field. It is not Clarivate’s Journal Impact Factor. Why it differs from the Journal Impact Factor
- Rank ranges
- Each rank in the latest year carries a likely range from 1,000 resamples of the journal’s papers. Where two journals’ ranges overlap, the data cannot tell them apart, so treat neighbouring ranks as ties.