May 30, 2023, 9:00 - 17:00 (local time)

Charbonnel Lounge, St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto (81 St. Mary Street, Toronto)

Abstract deadline: February 6, 2022

Hybrid Conference: In-person and online

Division affiliation: Philosophy, Theory & Critique

Fee: Participation is free but registration is required

Description: The role knowledge and science play with regard to a socially more just and sustainable society is highly topical both in media ethics and in neighboring disciplines. At present, there are discussions on why the current structures of knowledge generation and communication are violent in themselves and how transformation processes can be successful.

While both practical and intercultural philosophy offer approaches to questioning and deconstructing universalisms, media ethics provides an understanding of how master narratives shape societal perceptions of knowledge and science. But how do even these approaches exert epistemic violence and thereby obstruct the vision of greater participation and socio-ecological justice? How does an inclusive understanding of knowledge relate to the value of authenticity? Can the ethics of authenticity (Taylor 1991) help to overcome epistemic injustice? 

When exploring the term ‘epistemic injustice’, general inequalities regarding the dissemination of epistemic goods such as information or education come to mind first. According to Fricker (2007: 1), however, we can also find testimonial and hermeneutical injustice: “Testimonial injustice occurs when prejudice causes a hearer to give a deflated level of credibility to a speaker’s word; hermeneutical injustice occurs at a prior stage, when a gap in collective interpretive resources puts someone at an unfair disadvantage when it comes to making sense of their social experiences.”

In the context of intercultural hermeneutics, there is general skepticism regarding the concepts both of relativism and of universalism when it comes to discussing cultures. In contrast, intercultural hermeneutics search for overlaps or common grounds between cultures (Mall 2014). Furthermore, the concept of identity as an either commensurable or incommensurable set of values, beliefs applying to cultures, religions, etc., is also being questioned. Extreme identities are interpreted as ideologies trying to find clarity and purity (Shotwell 2016) whereas intercultural philosophy seeks to argue that knowing and understanding are always concepts based on and reproducing existing power relations and therefore exert epistemic violence and hegemony.

But how can these constellations be overcome? One suggestion is the perspective of “epistemic modesty” (Mall 2014) that bears in mind our generally biased epistemic positions when it comes to intercultural discourse: We have certain historical, cultural, national, etc., backgrounds we cannot simply put aside, even if we try to do so. But this should not result in a situation of extreme political correctness where less and less can be expressed. Instead, epistemic modesty includes a readiness to learn about cultures “from the outside” – even about our own – in order to broaden the cultural overlap that exists between (all?) cultures.

The objective of our post-conference is

• to identify and name mechanisms of epistemic violence,
  
• to highlight the role of the media in the debate around epistemic violence, and finally
  
• to examine the relationship between the phenomenon of epistemic violence and the value of authenticity.
  

We are particularly interested in research that examines the role of the media in maintaining and spreading epistemic violence and injustice. We also invite scholars to look into the construction of authenticity when it comes to intercultural discourse and digitally mediated authentic experiences, be they non-conscious and habitual, spectacular and deeply meaningful.

We welcome a wide array of methodological approaches – qualitative, quantitative, speculative, creative, participatory, collaborative, and others. We are open to different formats of intervention, from traditional papers to research-creation. We also welcome proposals for short workshops (1 hour length), demonstrations and other modes of collaborative inquiries. The conference will consider both theoretical and empirical papers for review. Accepted authors will be invited to present their papers at the conference as well as considered for an edited volume of proceedings.

Deadline: Please submit abstracts of 150-200 words to ica2023.fbmd@h-da.de by February 6th, 2023. Notices of acceptance will be sent by 3rd of March 2023.

Organizers:

■  Claudia Paganini (Munich University of Philosophy, Germany)

■  Lars Rademacher (Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences, Germany)

■    Paolo Granata (University of Toronto, Canada)

For inquiries and information, please contact the organizing committee at ica2023.fbmd@h-da.de