October 20-21, 2022

The University of Manchester’s campus and online

Contact: vitaly.kazakov@manchester.ac.uk & dmitrijs.andrejevs@manchester.ac.uk

Programme: please find the full programme here: http://man.ac.uk/MVt7hN

Registration: please register your attendance here: https://forms.gle/JvC9RPjiiWUCeU1j6 

The concept of ‘nation projection’ subsumes classic public and cultural diplomacy efforts and ‘soft power’ activities, such as the hosting of sport and entertainment events. The term also refers to state-sponsored campaigns of external influence activities including international broadcasting and covert meddling in the affairs of foreign states. This hybrid symposium will expand on debates and bring together comparative perspectives on how nation projection differs across: 1) sporting, popular culture, and international media events and channels; 2) liberal and illiberal contexts; 3) different kinds of illiberal regimes; and 4) various media formats and technological platforms.

This multifaceted focus is reflected in the two day programme (access the detailed schedule and programme here: http://man.ac.uk/MVt7hN):

Day 1: 20 October

Panel 1: Nation projection through sport: ‘soft power’, ‘sportswashing’, ‘sports diplomacy’

Participants: Paul Michael Brannagan and Seth Joseph Perkin; James Dorsey; Kaixiao Jiang; Adam Dinsmore; and Laeed Zaghlami.

Keynote 1: “Sport and the ‘Illiberal Turn’: Globalization, Soft Power, and International Development”: Richard Giulianotti

Panel 2: Nation projection through sport: Governance, Values, and Sport Diplomacy Participants: Barrie Houlihan; Solomon Ilevbare; Malte Frank; Michael Skey; and Chris Harvey.

Keynote 2: “The Hard Edge of Soft Power: Mega-Events, Geopolitics, and Making Nations Great Again”: Sven Daniel Wolfe

Panel 3: Sporting events’ legacies and audiences

Participants: Tom Fabian; Jiri Zakravsky; Valerio della Sala; James Saunders; and Richard Arnold 

Day 2: 21 October

Panel 4: Nation projection through media: the case of Russia

Participants: Rui Wang; Maxime Audinet; members of the RUSINFORM research project; Maksim Alyukov; Mikhail Batuev; and Anton Shekhovtsov (presentation on Day 1) 

Keynote 3 “Rethinking agency in il(liberal) nation projection: representing, resisting and reconstructing the nation in wartime”:Precious Chatterje-Doody

Keynote 4 “Projecting Russia in a Mediatized World: Recursive Nationhood”: Stephen Hutchings

Panel 5: Nation projection through cultural production and outputs: cross-regime and historical perspectives

Participants: Pınar Özdemir; Peter Rollberg; Kanika Ahuja; Jonathan Ervine; and Marco Biasioli.

We look forward to seeing you in person or online!

Members of the organising committee are grateful to the NWSSDTP, ESRC, and the University of Manchester for their support of this symposium.