Members or students of a certain profession typically read professional journals and papers. They are intended to spread word of new research in a certain field or reflect original views on a prior topic that has been discussed among professionals.
Academic professional journals are peer-reviewed and offer the most up-to-date and original papers and reports on a subject. Other scholars and professionals in the field review each paper that is sent into a journal for publication in order to make sure that the paper has something new to say about a subject, which makes scholarly journals particularly fresh and relevant for the topics they cover. These publications target students, educators and professionals in specific academic fields.
Nonacademic journals do not have as intensive a peer-review process for papers that are published. These publications speak to a more general audience and can be accessed by individuals both within and outside of a profession. They are meant to get new information regarding a profession, technical specialty or academic area into the hands of interested readers among the general public.