May 22-23, 2026

Bucharest, Romania

Deadline: April 10, 2026

Venue: Faculty of Letters, Bucharest / Department of Communication Sciences & National University of Theatre and Cinematography "I.L. Caragiale", Bucharest / Animation Department

Email for inquiries and submission: eugen.istodor@unibuc.ro

Format: Hybrid / The conference has a section for online presentations

Open to: Undergraduate students, Master’s students, PhD candidates, and Academic Faculty/Researchers

The conference organizers do not provide accommodation or meals. There is no participation fee.

 Call for Papers

We live in an era of "polycrisis," where the absurdity of reality seems to surpass any fiction. From the trenches of Eastern Europe to the ruins of the Middle East, and from the courts of digital public opinion to the algorithms that curate our reality. Under these conditions, humor has ceased to be merely a form of entertainment. It has become a weapon, a survival mechanism, a propaganda tool, and, sometimes, the last refuge of freedom.

This conference aims to explore the functions, failures, and mutations of humor in the present day. How can we still laugh when the news cycle is dominated by images of atrocity? Are there any "harmless jokes" left in the age of ideological surveillance?

We invite researchers, critics, and practitioners to submit proposals addressing the following critical themes:

1. Humor Under Siege: Cancel Culture and the New Blasphemies

In a cultural climate marked by hypersensitivity and social vigilantism, comedy has become a minefield.

Humor as the last bastion of free speech vs. social responsibility. Is the comedian a hero defending the truth at any cost (even if it offends), or an opinion leader who must take care not to incite hate or "punch down"?

Analysis of comedian "deplatforming" mechanisms. Pressure on content hosts to sanction speech deemed offensive. Algorithmic censorship on social networks (*shadowbanning*). Access to an audience — a privilege conditioned by moral conformity.

Cancel Culture as a form of Censorship (The New Inquisition). It is not the state that censors you, but your neighbors. In "Cancel Culture," the sentence (deplatforming) precedes the trial, and context is often ignored in favor of a 10-second out-of-context clip.

The "Chilling Effect" (Self-censorship). The homogenization of art and the forced "sanitization" of discourse.

The tyranny of the vocal minority which succeeds in intimidating corporations and organizers. The impossibility of forgiveness: Cancel Culture tends to judge past actions (from 10-20 years ago) through the moral lens of the present, without offering a clear path to rehabilitation.

2. Laughter in the Time of Algorithms: Techno-Feudalism and Meme Warfare

In an era defined by what Yanis Varoufakis calls "techno-feudalism," humor is a commodity and a currency.

Memes as tools of political propaganda and radicalization.

How do TikTok and X (Twitter) algorithms shape the collective sense of humor?

Ownership of laughter: Who owns the joke in platform capitalism? Post-internet irony and digital alienation.

3. Dark Humor and the Horrific: The War all around

Can humor coexist with tragedy in real-time? How does satire transform in the face of extreme violence?

Humor as a coping mechanism (psychological survival) for populations under bombardment. The memeification of war: From "Saint Javelin" to frontline soldiers' TikToks.

The role of political caricature in contemporary asymmetric conflicts.

4. NSFW: Eroticism, the Grotesque, and Taboo

In a society increasingly puritanical in public discourse but saturated with pornography in private, NSFW (*Not Safe For Work*) humor becomes a space for contestation.

The return of the grotesque and bodily humor (scatological, sexual). Pornography and parody: Cultural intersections.

The limits of obscenity: What is still considered "shocking" today? OnlyFans, performative sexuality, and humor as a fetish.

We are also open to any theme related to humor as the main character of these times.

Submission Guidelines

Please submit an abstract of maximum 300 words, accompanied by a short author biography (max. 100 words), to the email address: eugen.istodor@unibuc.ro

Proposals are accepted in: Romanian, English.

Important Dates:

• Submission Deadline: April 10, 2026
  
• Notification of Acceptance: April 20, 2026
  
• Conference Date: May 22-23, 2026
  

The organizing committee:

Nina Mihăilă, Matei Branea, National University of Theatre and Cinematography "I.L. Caragiale", Bucharest

Eugen Istodor, Faculty of Letters Bucharest