ECREA WEEKLY digest ARTICLES

Dechun Zhang

Dear colleagues,

I am delighted to share that my book, Digital Nationalism and Affective Governance: Propaganda, Public Sentiment, and Soft Authoritarianism in China (Routledge, 2026), has now been officially released.

The book examines how digital propaganda in China operates as a platform-shaped practice under soft authoritarianism. It argues that nationalism functions as a discursive technology that organizes meaning, structures visibility, and channels public affect across digital platforms. Rather than operating solely through top-down control, propaganda emerges through the dynamic co-production of state narratives, platform affordances, and public emotions. Governance is enacted not only through censorship, but also through emotional guidance, algorithmic visibility, participatory cues, and discursive standardization. At the same time, citizens are not passive recipients. Online publics actively use nationalist discourse to express identity, perform loyalty, negotiate legitimacy, reshape official narratives, and voice critique. The result is a fragmented yet structured form of digital nationalism embedded within platformized governance. The book contributes to ongoing debates on digital politics, affective governance, propaganda, online participation, platform power, and authoritarian communication, while also offering broader insights into contemporary authoritarian and semi-authoritarian regimes beyond China.

The book is available here: https://www.routledge.com/p/book/9781041308775. You can also get your copy with 20% off using the discount code: CISYCDNAG20.

January 12-15, 2027

Lisbon, Portugal

Deadline: December 15, 2026

Human dignity is perhaps more at risk today than at any other time in recent memory. Subject to targeted threats like exploitation, misrepresentation and humiliation alongside the more subtle erosion caused by persistent violence, exclusion and inequality, most of us live within entrenched systems that deny us some form of recognition, agency and the right to speak freely or dissent from those in power. Exacerbated by the tumult and uncertainty of war, geopolitical tension, tribalism, exclusionary politics and victimization, today’s realities force growing numbers of individuals into silence, left unable to cope with loss, invisibility, worthlessness, disregard, displacement and dehumanization. Dignity flounders when suffering is normalized, empathy diminished and the protection of human rights abandoned. Today, even threats to dignity that were long avoided or banned—such as public shaming, brute objectification, ignominy, spectacles of violence and hate speech—are back in our lives with a vengeance.

So perhaps it is no surprise that dignity prompts more responses and questions than scholars can easily settle. Some see dignity as an unassailable right—echoing Immanuel Kant’s famous dictum that dignity requires treating individuals as ends, not means—while others maintain its vagueness undercuts its conceptual worth. Some perseverate whether dignity is a value or status, and others wonder whether the concept of dignity is primarily moral, legal or political in nature. Larger questions of impact—how dignity’s repudiation can best be stymied, against which institutions and structures does dignity need to be assessed or with which institutions and structures can it best thrive—remain out of reach. All the while, threats to human dignity continue to loom large, even as we have not figured out how best to identify them, much less wrestle with their resolution.

Hannah Arendt steers us toward the media as a solution to dignity’s predicaments. In her seminal work The Human Condition, she not only makes clear that totalitarianism destroys people’s dignity but also that the respect for human dignity entails recognizing others as “builders of worlds or cobuilders of a common world.” Respect for—or violation of—the right of others to live a dignified life is manifested not only in concrete actions but also in mediated narratives that cultivate empathy or hostility, shaping the humanization or dehumanization of individuals, communities and even nations. Dignity, therefore, is not only safeguarded or threatened by political institutions but is also continuously negotiated within media environments, through communicative practices and regimes of representation.

We aim, then, to shift the discussion of dignity by asking what role do the media play in dignity’s centering and assailment. How do the media help and hinder its presence? As sites of symbolic power, the media both witness and report on dignity’s ascendance and descendance as well as on the conditions that promote its intensification and diminishment. They also give it shape, by determining whose dignity matters and in which way, whose voices are heard and whose remain silenced. Can the media help ensure a more widespread sense of individual and collective worth, acceptance and belonging? And should we expect them to do so? 

In today’s challenging and uncertainty times, the 2027 Lisbon Winter School for the Study of Communication will discuss the interconnections between Media and Dignity. Dignity can be addressed from a wide range of perspectives, understood as a moral construct but also as a communicative practice that is enacted, negotiated, and either affirmed or violated through language, representation and public visibility. How do the media represent individuals, communities and nations that are presented as threats in political discourses? How do communication practices reproduce or contest stereotypes that legitimize discrimination? And what about those faced to live or flee war: how are their voices made (in)visible? Beyond the media, how do activists use different communitive tools to promote human dignity? Which strategies can be used to push back on exclusionary politics and its promotion of the “other” as unworthy of living a dignified life? How do online harassment, political intimidation and precarious labor conditions undermine journalists’ and media practioners’ capacity to act as advocates of human dignity? These are just some of the questions we aim to debate at the 7th edition of the Lisbon Winter School for the Study of Communication—a venture begun by the Faculty of Human Sciences (Universidade Católica Portuguesa) and the Center for Media@Risk (Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania)—and now coordinated by the Faculty of Human Sciences (Universidade Católica Portuguesa), the Annenberg Schools for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Southern California, the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s School of Journalism and Communication, the University of Helsinki’s Institute for Social Sciences and Humanities and The Europaeum.

We welcome proposals by doctoral students and early career post-doctoral researchers from all over the world to discuss the intertwined relations between media and dignity in different geographies and temporalities. The list below illustrates some of topics for possible consideration. Other topics dealing with media and dignity are also welcome:

-       Human dignity in war and tragedy

-       Covering loss, suffering and displacement

-       Media activism and the promotion of human dignity

-       Otherness and dignity

-       Loss of reputation

-       Us versus Them narratives

-       Stereotypes and misrepresentations 

-       Visibility and invisibility in the media 

-       Symbolic exclusion versus mutual recognition

-       The effect of sensationalism on representation 

-       Attacks on free speech

-       Online harassment and political threats and intimidation

-       Digital media and humiliation

-       Reality TV

-       Cyberbullying, trolling, image based violence and online harassment

-       Exclusionary politics and dehumanization 

-       Discursive eroding of human dignity

-       Human rights amidst war and exclusionary politics

-       Denouncing hate speech and aggression against gender, racial and religious minorities

-       The platformization of news: reducing journalists to content producers

-       Media, precarity and professional dignity

-       Algorithms, AI and human dignity

-       The eroding of human dignity in specific national or regional contexts

-       … 

PAPER PROPOSALS

Proposals should be sent to lisbonwinterschool@ucp.pt no later than 15 September 2026 and include a paper title, extended abstract in English (700 words), name, e-mail address, institutional affiliation and a brief bio (max. 100 words) mentioning ongoing research. Applicants will be informed of the result of their submissions by early October. 

FULL PAPER SUBMISSION 

Presenters will be required to submit full papers (max. 20 pages, 1.5 spacing) by 15 December 2026. The papers will be shared with the respondents but will not be published online. After the Lisbon Winter School, the authors of some of the best papers may be invited to publish their work in a special journal issue.  

ORGANIZERS

Nelson Ribeiro & Barbie Zelizer 

CONVENORS

Sarah Banet-Weiser,  Risto Kunelius & Francis Lee

For more information visit lisbonwinterschool.com

10–13 November 10-13,  2026

Online

VI MeLCi Lab Autumn School 2026

Organised by CICANT:  MeLCi Lab, AISIC, and InTouch Labs | Lusófona University, Portugal

Website: https://melcilab.cicant.ulusofona.pt/training/vi-melci-lab-autumn-school-2026-advanced-school-on-ai-research-practice-in-media-and-communication/

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Researchers in communication and media studies now face a structural tension. Artificial intelligence - particularly large language models - has entered the research pipeline as a tool for applications such as literature search, data annotation, audience segmentation, and discourse analysis. At the same time, AI has become an object of inquiry: a force reshaping civic cultures, media ecologies, and the conditions under which publics form. These two roles demand different competencies. Using AI as a method requires technical skill, prompt design, and validation protocols. Studying AI as a societal force requires critical frameworks drawn from political theory, media literacy, and the ethics of datafication. Most training programmes address one side or the other. This school addresses both and the friction between them.

The VI MeLCi Lab Autumn School invites applications from PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, and early-career scholars for a four-day intensive online programme. The school combines keynote lectures with hands-on workshops, structured around two complementary themes. Participants will work with media-specific datasets, confront the interpretative challenges particular to communication research, like bias in content classification, the instability of AI-generated annotations, and the opacity of recommendation systems, and develop both the technical and critical capacities the current research landscape requires.

No prior experience with AI or data science is assumed. Introductory modules provide the necessary foundations.

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Theme 1: AI in Research Practice: Foundations, Methods, and Ethics

AI tools have entered research workflows faster than the methodological standards needed to govern their use. Zero- and few-shot prompting now enables researchers with no computational training to perform tasks that previously required supervised classifiers or teams of human coders (Gilardi et al., 2023; Grossmann et al., 2023; Ziems et al., 2024). The accessibility is genuine. So are the risks: prompt instability, opaque model behaviour, and the absence of agreed reproducibility standards mean that convenience can outpace accountability (Barrie et al., 2025). This theme equips participants with the methodological foundations, practical skills, and ethical orientation to use AI tools rigorously.

1.1 Foundations of Current AI Tools

Large language models have transformed what is computationally tractable in text-based research. Prompting techniques that require no training data have achieved annotation accuracy comparable to - and in some cases exceeding - expert human coders. But the same flexibility that makes LLMs accessible also makes them fragile: minor prompt adjustments can shift outputs in ways that compromise replicability. This sub-track addresses the theoretical architecture of contemporary AI tools, the methodological principles governing their responsible use, and the best practices emerging for transparent, accountable deployment in communication research.

1.2 Accountable Literature Search Using AI Tools

AI-powered platforms such as SciSpace and Litmaps have accelerated literature discovery, enabling researchers to map citation networks, identify thematic clusters, and surface relevant work at a pace that manual search cannot match. The efficiency gain, however, introduces a new accountability burden. AI-assisted searches can silently exclude relevant literature, privilege certain databases, or present coverage as comprehensive when it is partial. This sub-track develops strategies for validating AI-generated search results, assessing coverage boundaries, and maintaining the transparent documentation practices that methodological rigour demands.

1.3 AI-Assisted Data Annotation in Research Pipelines

Data annotation anchors most empirical research pipelines. Where this task once relied exclusively on human coders, AI-based annotation now offers a viable and often highly effective alternative - particularly at scale. The central challenge is consistency. Barrie et al. (2025) demonstrate that prompt stability, i.e., the degree to which semantically equivalent prompts produce equivalent annotations, remains a significant source of variability. This sub-track introduces participants to AI-driven annotation workflows, focusing on practical approaches to assessing and improving annotation reliability through frameworks such as Prompt Stability Scoring (PSS) and integrating responsible validation practices into research design.

Theme 2: Communication, Audiences, and Civic Cultures in the Age of AI

AI does not only reshape how researchers work. It reshapes the media environments researchers study. Algorithmic recommendation determines what the public sees, platform architectures mediate how citizens engage, and the datafication of everyday life raises questions about equity, inclusion, and democratic participation that existing frameworks struggle to answer. This theme addresses AI not as a methodological resource but as a structural force within media ecologies - one that demands critical engagement from researchers who study communication, audiences, and civic cultures.

2.1 Civic Cultures and Artificial Intelligence

AI-driven platforms and recommendation algorithms now mediate core dimensions of civic life: how citizens encounter information, how activist networks form, and how media literacy is exercised or undermined (Sarafis et al., 2025). This sub-track examines the opportunities and challenges AI introduces for civic engagement, exploring how algorithmic mediation reconfigures the conditions under which publics participate in democratic processes.

2.2 Digital Citizenship and Media Literacy in an AI-Mediated World

The competencies required for informed participation in AI-mediated environments remain poorly defined. Critical media literacy now extends to skills that existing frameworks have not yet systematised: recognising AI-generated content, understanding how recommendation systems shape information exposure, and assessing the epistemic status of machine-produced outputs (Chiu et al., 2024). This sub-track examines what digital citizenship demands in an environment shaped by misinformation, deepfakes, and opaque algorithmic curation.

2.3 Data Ethics, Equity, and Inclusivity in AI Research

AI technologies carry biases embedded in their training data, design choices, and deployment contexts. The ethical implications of using these tools for knowledge production: who is represented, whose categories are imposed, and whose communities bear the risks of misclassification, remain insufficiently examined (Ferrara, 2024; Ntoutsi et al., 2020). This theme moves beyond the binary framing of AI as either a technological panacea or an existential threat. It addresses responsible research practice, equitable research design, and the specific obligations researchers hold when working with data from or about underrepresented communities.

Application Details

Deadline for submission: 15 September 2026

Notification of acceptance: 12 October 2026

Registration deadline: 28 October 2026

Interested participants should submit their application (in English) by 15 September 2026, including:

1. An updated curriculum vitae (max. 3 pages)

2. A research statement describing their doctoral dissertation or current research project, including research questions and methods (max. 2 pages)

3. A motivation letter describing their current engagement with AI, specific concerns or interests regarding AI's role in media research and practice, and their preferred theme (max. 2 pages)

Applications should be submitted as a single ZIP file to melci.lab@ulusofona.pt with the subject line: "Application for the VI MeLCi Lab Autumn School".

The school will be conducted online and in English.

For enquiries, please contact: melci.lab@ulusofona.pt

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References

Barrie, C., Palaiologou, E., & Törnberg, P. (2024). Prompt stability scoring for text annotation with large language models. arXiv preprint arXiv:2407.02039. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2407.02039

Chiu, T. K., Ahmad, Z., Ismailov, M., & Sanusi, I. T. (2024). What are artificial intelligence literacy and competency? A comprehensive framework to support them. Computers and Education Open, 6, 100171. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.caeo.2024.100171

Ferrara, E. (2024). Fairness and bias in artificial intelligence: A brief survey of sources, impacts, and mitigation strategies. Sci, 6(1), 3. https://doi.org/10.3390/sci6010003

Gilardi, F., Alizadeh, M., & Kubli, M. (2023). ChatGPT outperforms crowd workers for text-annotation tasks. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 120(30), e2305016120. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2305016120

Grossmann, I., Feinberg, M., Parker, D. C., Christakis, N. A., Tetlock, P. E., & Cunningham, W. A. (2023). AI and the transformation of social science research. Science, 380(6650), 1108–1109. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adi1778

Ntoutsi, E., Fafalios, P., Gadiraju, U., Iosifidis, V., Nejdl, W., Vidal, M., ... & Staab, S. (2020). Bias in data-driven artificial intelligence systems — An introductory survey. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Data Mining and Knowledge Discovery, 10(3). https://doi.org/10.1002/widm.1356

Sarafis, D., Karamitsios, K., & Kravari, K. (2025). AI and civic engagement: A brief exploration of applications and opportunities. 2025 International Conference on Advancement in Data Science, E-learning and Information System (ICADEIS), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1109/icadeis65852.2025.10933183

Ziems, C., Held, W., Shaikh, O., Chen, J., Zhang, Z., & Yang, D. (2024). Can large language models transform computational social science? Computational Linguistics, 50(1), 237–291.

November 5–7, 2026

Online

Deadline: May 31, 2026

Photography Network's Annual Symposium

Photography practitioners, historians, and curators respond in a multitude of ways to political and cultural contexts that challenge their work. Moreover, in response to efforts to remove, omit, occlude, obscure, or manipulate, photographs often persist, transform, and recirculate, reformulating visual worlds. Photographs bear a complex relationship to political and social power; authorities might manipulate or remove photographs to further their goals, but forms of covering up, self-censorship, or self-fashioning might also function in the name of individual privacy, safety, or resistance. Furthermore, as the material capabilities and limitations of photography shift, new questions continually emerge about the role of photographic removal and photographic resilience in constricting cultural climates.

This symposium offers a platform for scholarship that investigates the adaptability of photography and photo history in the face of constraints, be them cultural, governmental, institutional, editorial, individual, or otherwise. What do historians, curators, and photographers do when limitations are placed on their work, and what do the limitations themselves reveal about photography? Relatedly, when is restriction, refusal, or withdrawal protective, strategic, or empowering? Finally, what, if anything, has changed about how the medium navigates social or cultural boundaries—what can we learn from how practitioners have done this in the past that might shed light on present-day questions? We welcome interdisciplinary approaches, and we especially encourage international scholars to submit.

We invite submissions of 15-minute talks related to topics such as:

• Photographic exhibitions in complex political or social contexts
  
• Collecting institutions' navigation of political pressures
  
• Image circulation and content moderation on social media
  
• Privacy and surveillance
  
• Photographic archives and repatriation
  
• Photojournalism, political figures, war imagery
  
• Image withdrawal, refusal, or veiling as a form of justice,
  
• resistance, or repair
  
• Challenges in conducting scholarship on controversial imagery
  
• Cancelled exhibitions, publications, and public history projects
  
• Archives and historical erasure
  
• Cancelled negatives, "killed" negatives
  
• The aesthetics of photographic concealment—the blur, the black rectangle, the crop

We also, of course, encourage approaches to these questions beyond what we have outlined here.

To submit, please send a 250-word abstract and your CV to photographynetworksymposium@gmail.com by May 31, 2026.

October 21-23, 2026

Online

1) Definition

The World Summer School “Communication, Information Integrity, Social Justice and Democracy” is a three-day academic online event to be held from 21 to 23 October 2026. The official language of the activities is English.

Designed as a virtual initiative, the Summer School is aligned with the IAMCR Conference 2026 theme and will combine remote panels and roundtables, enabling broad international participation and fostering dialogue among senior scholars, early-career researchers, and master’s and doctoral students from diverse geographical, institutional, and epistemic contexts.

The proposal is grounded in the theoretical and normative framework of the IAMCR Working Group on Communication, Justice and Democracy (CJD), addressing communication as a central arena in struggles over information integrity, democratic governance, and social justice.

The activities involved people from the WG and also from the Latin American Association of Communication Researchers (ALAIC) and other entities indicated below.

In a global context shaped by platformization, algorithmic power, data extraction, media education, political polarization, and persistent inequalities in visibility and participation, the event seeks to examine how communication systems both reproduce and challenge power asymmetries.

The activities include debates on “peripheries and connections” through analytical and political lenses, rather than as fixed geographical categories. Peripheries are understood as relational positions shaped by history, political economy, race, gender, language, colonial legacies, institutional marginalization, and unequal access to communicative resources. At the same time, the concept of connections highlights transnational circulations of narratives, regulatory models, technological infrastructures, and resistance practices.

The event invites participants to reflect on how peripheral perspectives contribute to alternative understandings of democracy, justice, and information integrity, while also examining the tensions and possibilities created through global interconnections.It seeks to foster a critical dialogue on how knowledge produced from the margins can challenge dominant frameworks, illuminate overlooked experiences, and propose new conceptual and methodological approaches to addressing contemporary social, political, and communicative challenges.

Special emphasis will be placed on information integrity as a multidimensional concept encompassing disinformation and misinformation, platform governance, digital rights, media regulation, and media and information literacy. From this perspective, information integrity is not limited to the verification of facts, but also involves the social, technological, institutional, and cultural conditions that shape the production, circulation, and reception of public information. The event will therefore encourage participants to examine how unequal access to reliable information, algorithmic visibility, political polarization, and regulatory asymmetries affect democratic participation and public debate. It will also invite reflection on the role of education, civic engagement, and cross-regional cooperation in strengthening more inclusive, transparent, and accountable information environments.

Drawing on comparative and interdisciplinary approaches, the World Summer School aims to explore how information integrity is negotiated across different political, cultural, and regulatory environments, including, but not limited to, the Global South and European contexts. This focus resonates with ongoing international efforts to address disinformation while safeguarding freedom of expression and democratic participation.

The academic program will consist of thematic panels, paper sessions, and dialogical roundtables, in the format of a “summer school”, encouraging both empirical and theoretical contributions.

This summer school format presupposes student-centredness, multi-voiced feedback, and a sustained effort towards dialogue and respect for diverse perspectives and opinions, without diminishing the need for academic rigor and critical thinking.

In the first hours of each day, panels will feature academics who will give presentations and discuss topics directly or indirectly related to the research conducted by master's and doctoral students.

After a 2-hour break, students will present their research projects and receive constructive feedback from peers, senior researchers, and invited academics. This format will allow participants to refine their theoretical frameworks, methodological strategies, and research questions, while also learning from the diverse academic traditions and regional experiences represented in the event. The program will encourage horizontal exchange, collaborative discussion, and the development of academic networks among master’s and doctoral students. Cultural and social activities will also be promoted as part of the learning experience, fostering dialogue, integration, and long-term cooperation among participants.

Proposed themes include: information disorders and democratic resilience; communication rights and social justice; platform regulation and accountability; media, extremism, and polarization; community, alternative, and public service media; digital citizen participation and depolarization; journalism and media education, decolonial, feminist, and Global South epistemologies; and the role of media education in strengthening democratic cultures.

Dedicated sessions for graduate students and early-career researchers will promote mentorship, feedback, and academic exchange. These spaces will offer participants the opportunity to present their ongoing or recently completed research, receive constructive comments from peers and senior scholars, and strengthen the theoretical, methodological, and communicative dimensions of their work. They will also help participants identify publication strategies, explore future research collaborations, and build academic networks beyond their home institutions. For recent graduates, the program will provide a valuable transition space between formal academic training and the development of a more autonomous research agenda.

As a consequence of universities´network, the initiative seeks to consolidate North–South and South–South dialogues, strengthen international research networks, and contribute substantively to the IAMCR CJD Working Group’s mission.

Ultimately, the Summer School aims to position communication scholarship as a key field for advancing social justice, democratic values, and information integrity in an increasingly unequal and interconnected world. It also aspires to strengthen collaborative networks among master’s and doctoral students, encouraging them to develop research that is not only theoretically rigorous but also socially relevant and attentive to the voices, experiences, and struggles of diverse communities.

2) Estimated number of participants: 60 PhD or Master’s students

3) Date and time: From 21 to 23 October 2026, being:

a)    From 5 am to 8 am and from 10 am to 1 pm, CST (Central Standard Time) – UTC-6, the time zone used in countries such as Mexico and Costa Rica;

b)    From 8 am to 11 am and from 1 pm to 4 pm (BRT), defined as UTC-3, the time zone used in countries such as Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil;

c)    From midday to 3 pm and from 5 pm to 8 pm, UTC, the time zone used in countries such as the United Kingdom and Portugal;

d)    From 1 pm to 4 pm and from 6 pm to 9 pm, UTC+1, the time zone used in countries such as South Africa, Morocco, Senegal, Spain and Germany;

e)    From 4.30 pm to 7.30 pm and from 9.30 pm to 12.30 am, (IST) defined as UTC + 5:30, the time zone used in countries such as India and Sri Lanka;

f)    From 7 pm to 10 pm and from midnight to 3 am (CST – China Standard Time), which is UTC+8, the time zone used in countries such as China, the Philippines and Singapore;

g)    From 8 pm to 11 pm and from 1 am to 4 am, UTC+09:00, used in countries such as Korea and Japan;

h)    From 10 pm to 1 am and from 3 am to 6 am, defined as AWST; summer time, UTC+11:00, the time zone used in countries such as Australia.

If you have any queries regarding the timetable, we recommend checking the World Summer School website (www.alaic.org) and/or contacting the Organising Committee. Unfortunately, it is not possible to offer the course during working hours in all countries.

4) Costs

For this inaugural edition of the World Summer School, registration and participation are free of charge.

5) Schedule

Registration for interested postgraduate students: From 18 May to 12 June, following this Call and form available at: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Eny_JYTmcKxIkM_SRAyo3N_R-fL4EhnKogEmev97PMU

Evaluation and selection of participants: From 15 June to 7 July

Announcement of selected participants: 10 July

World Summer School, online, from 21 to 23 October 2026, times above

6) Selection criteria and certificate

Those interested in participating in the World Summer School should submit their personal details and information about their current postgraduate research via the link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Eny_JYTmcKxIkM_SRAyo3N_R-fL4EhnKogEmev97PMU

Below are the selection criteria for choosing participants. Each criterion is worth between one and ten points, with a maximum total of 50 points. The Organising Committee’s decision is final and cannot be appealed:

a) Research Problem (1–10 points)

Present the problem addressed by your research and conclude the text by explicitly stating the research question that guides your investigation (maximum 500 words).

b) Theoretical Framework (1–10 points)

Describe the main theoretical foundations that support your research (maximum 500 words)

c) Methodology (1–10 points)

Describe the methodology used in your research. Please explain the methods, data collection techniques, data analysis procedures, participant groups and/or the corpus to be analyzed (maximum 500 words).

d)    Preliminary Results (1–10 points)

Describe the preliminary results of your research, if available (maximum 500 words).

e)    Interest and Expectations Regarding Participation (1–10 points)

Explain why you are interested in participating in the World Summer School and describe your expectations regarding participation in the program.

The participants will only receive a participation certificate if I submit a paper that follows the Organizing Committee’s guidelines, attend the working groups online, and submit a participation report.

7) Initiatives involved

a)    Organisers

IAMCR Communication, Social Justice and Democracy Working Group, Latin American Association of Communication Researchers (ALAIC), University of Brasilia, Sao Paulo State University (Unesp), and Federal University of Santa Catarina (Brazil).

b)    Supporters

CIESPAL, ECREA, AMIC, World Journalism Education Council (WJEC), SOCICOM, Intercom, Iberoamerican Organization of Public Defenders (OID. Capes (Brazil), Latin American Federation of Faculties of Social Communication (FELAFACS) and DAAD (Germany).

8) Organizing and Scientific Committee and/or Instructors

Vaia Doudaki

Associate Professor at Charles University. Her work is driven by social constructionist approaches, focussing on the study of representations, discursive practices, and the social construction of identities and social phenomena, in media and communication. Her fields of study include: democracy, participation and communication; media, conflict and crisis; justice and communication; environmental communication; theory and practice of news-making and journalism.

Tanius Karam

Professor at the Autonomous University of Mexico City, México, specialized in media ethics, journalism education, and discourse analysis. His research addresses freedom of expression, media responsibility, and communication theory in Latin America. He has contributed to regional debates on journalism training and democratic communication.

Tania Rosas-Moreno

Professor of Journalism and Media Studies at Loyola University Maryland, USA. Her research focuses on global journalism, media history, and Latin American media systems. She examines transnational media flows, representation, and press freedom.

Sivaldo Pereira

Professor at the University of Brasília (UnB), Brazil. His research focuses on digital communication, internet governance, data politics, and platform regulation. He works on issues related to disinformation, digital rights, and democratic accountability.

Santiago Gómez Mejía

Colombian scholar serving as Executive Secretary of FELAFACS. His work focuses on communication studies, digital strategies, and higher education innovation. He has designed graduate-level programs on artificial intelligence in education and digital political communication, promoting ethical communication, democratic values, and regional cooperation in Latin America.

Rafael González Pardo

President of the Latin American Federation of Social Communication Faculties (FELAFACS). His career integrates university governance, international academic cooperation, communication studies, and strategic institutional development across Latin America, especially in areas concerning the future of communication education in the digital age and epistemologies of communication.

Nico Carpentier

Extraordinary Professor in the Institute of Communication Studies and Journalism at Charles University and Visiting Professor at Tallinn University. His research focuses on media and democracy, participation, discourse theory, conflict studies, and community media, also using arts-based research. He is widely known for his contributions to participatory communication studies and critical media theory.

Milena Marra

Journalist, filmmaker, and researcher whose work focuses on audiovisual communication, documentary practices, and human rights. Her research and creative projects address memory, social justice, and the role of media in amplifying marginalized voices. She is engaged in academic and cultural initiatives that connect communication, art, and democratic participation.

Maximiliano Peret

Communication scholar specializing in digital media, journalism, and innovation. His research addresses new journalistic practices, technological transformations, and the relationship between communication and democracy. He collaborates in international research networks on media and digital governance.

Marta Rizo García

Research Professor at the Universidad Autónoma de la Ciudad de México. She conducts research on epistemology and communication theories, intersubjective communication, and the relationship between gender, communication, and emotions. Since 2018, she has served as Vice-Coordinator of the ALAIC Working Group on Theory and Methodology of Communication Research.

Mariana Ferreira Lopes

Professor at the University of Brasília, researcher in digital communication, journalism, and platform studies. Her work explores disinformation, algorithmic governance, and the impacts of digital technologies on democratic processes. She contributes to interdisciplinary projects on information integrity and media literacy.

Marcos Urupá

Communication scholar and activist working on diversity, inclusion, and media democratization. His research and professional activities focus on communication rights, social participation, and the representation of marginalized groups in media and public policies. He is actively engaged in national and international networks promoting equity in communication.

Luisa Ochoa

Professor of Communication at the Universidad de Costa Rica, specializing in journalism studies, media systems, communication policy, and gender studies in Latin America. Her research examines media governance, press freedom, gender representation, and the relationship between journalism and democratic institutions. She actively collaborates in regional and international academic networks focused on communication rights, gender equality, and journalism education.

Liziane Guazina

Professor at the University of Brasília (UnB), Brazil, specializing in political communication and journalism studies. Her research focuses on media and politics, election coverage, gender and representation, and the relationship between journalism and democracy. She has contributed extensively to debates on media systems and democratic accountability in Brazil and Latin America.

Lena Garbovtzky

Researcher in media and communication with expertise in journalism, gender, and political communication. Her work examines representation, media discourses, and the intersections between communication, power, and social inequalities. She has participated in comparative and international research projects.

Laura Martínez Águila

Researcher and professor specializing in journalism, communication policy, and freedom of expression. Her work explores media regulation, digital governance, and the role of journalism education in democratic societies. She participates in international networks dedicated to media reform, press freedom, and communication rights in Latin America and beyond.

Juliano Domingues da Silva

Professor of Communication and President of Intercom (Brazilian Society of Interdisciplinary Studies in Communication). His research focuses on media regulation, digital platforms, competition policy, and the political economy of communication in Brazil. He has also contributed to public debates and regulatory processes related to digital markets and media systems.

Jonas Valente

Researcher at the Laboratory of Communication Policies (UnB), he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, United Kingdom, and holds a PhD in Sociology from the University of Brasília.

Jairo Faria

PhD in Communication, researcher at the Community Communication Project (University of Brasília) and at the OUTROCAMPO Project (University of Tocantins). He was a postdoctoral researcher at the Erich Brost Institute (TU Dortmund). He currently pursues a Teaching Degree in Theatre at University of Tocantins (UFT).

Janara Nicoletti

Postdoctoral researcher and lecturer at the University of Siegen and a research fellow at the Erich Brost Institute for International Journalism (TU Dortmund). Her research addresses work precarity, journalists’ safety, and gender-based violence, particularly in Brazil and Latin America.

Jair Vega Casanova

Professor of Communication at Uninorte, Colombia, researcher in communication, citizenship, and social change in Latin America. His work explores community communication, participatory media, and communication for development. He has led international projects on media, democracy, and civic engagement.

Gabriel Kaplún

Uruguayan communication scholar, MSc in Education and PhD in Latin American Cultural Studies. Professor at the University of the Republic, where he currently coordinates the Laboratory of Participation and Technologies (ParticipaLab). He was President of ALAIC (Latin American Association of Communication Researchers).

Fernando Oliveira Paulino

Professor at the University of Brasília; coordinator of the Communication Policies Lab; president of the Latin American Association of Communication Research; and Co-Chair of the “Communication, Social Justice and Democracy Working Group.”

Eliseo Colón

Professor of Communication at the University of Puerto Rico and a leading scholar in cultural and media studies. His research focuses on media, globalization, popular culture, and the political economy of communication in Latin America and the Caribbean. He has published widely on communication theory, digital culture, and the transformations of contemporary media systems.

Diogo Lopes de Oliveira

Professor at the Federal University of Campina Grande, scholar in Communication and Journalism Studies, with research focused on media regulation, journalism education, and democratic governance. His work examines freedom of expression, public communication policies, and the institutional frameworks shaping journalism in contemporary societies. He collaborates in international academic networks dedicated to media freedom and communication rights.

Deqiang Ji

Professor of International Communication at the Communication University of China. He is the Deputy Dean of the Institute for a Community with Shared Future and a Research Fellow of the State Key Laboratory of Media Convergence and Communication at CUC. He was a visiting researcher at Simon Fraser University (2010–2011) and City University of Hong Kong (2009).

Danilo Rothberg

Professor at São Paulo State University (UNESP), Brazil. His work focuses primarily on the sociology of communication, journalism theory and ethics, public communication, communication and politics, health communication, and the popularization of science.

Daniela Monje

Professor at the National University of Cordoba, Argentina, researcher in communication, media policies, and digital governance. Her research examines media regulation, information integrity, and the impact of digital platforms on democracy in Latin America. She collaborates with regional and international academic networks on communication policy.

Cristina Gobbi

Professor of Communication at the State University of São Paulo and a leading scholar in Latin American communication studies. Her research focuses on media, education, and scientific communication, with strong engagement in international academic cooperation. She has held leadership roles in regional and global communication associations.

Claudia Lago

Professor at the University of São Paulo, where she teaches and researches journalism, communication, and diversity. Her academic work focuses on media representation, gender, race, intercultural communication, and epistemological perspectives in communication studies. She is widely recognized for her contributions to critical media studies and for promoting inclusive and socially engaged approaches to journalism and communication research in Brazil. Claudia Lago has also participated in national and international academic networks dedicated to communication, democracy, and social justice.

César Bolaño

Professor of Communication and Political Economy of Communication at the Federal University of Sergipe (UFS), Brazil. A leading scholar in critical media studies, his research focuses on media industries, digital capitalism, and cultural production in Latin America. He is widely recognized for his contributions to the political economy of communication and for his leadership in international academic networks.

Camila Sánchez Delgado

Communication researcher focusing on journalism, media literacy, and digital cultures. Her work explores the role of communication in promoting democratic participation and social inclusion. She is involved in academic and civic initiatives on information integrity and communication rights.

Anderson Santos

Professor at the Federal University of Alagoas (UFAL), Brazil, and President of SOCICOM (Brazilian Federation of Scientific and Academic Communication Associations). His research focuses on communication, citizenship, public policies, and the social role of media. He is actively engaged in strengthening academic cooperation and promoting diversity and inclusion in communication studies

9) Short description

Communication, Information Integrity, Social Justice and Democracy

This event will take place online from October 21 to 23, 2026. Its primary objective is to foster meaningful dialogue and collaboration among senior scholars, early-career researchers, and master’s and doctoral students representing a range of geographical, institutional, and epistemic backgrounds. In addition to panel discussions and individual presentations, the event will offer interactive workshops and networking opportunities designed to encourage knowledge exchange an  interdisciplinary engagement.

Grounded in the theoretical and normative framework of the IAMCR Working Group on Communication, Justice and Democracy (CJD), the event approaches communication as a central arena in contemporary struggles over information integrity, democratic governance, and social justice. In a global landscape shaped by platformization, algorithmic power, data extraction, political polarization, and persistent inequalities in voice and visibility, the Post-Conference seeks to critically examine how communication systems simultaneously reproduce and contest power asymmetries.

The concept of “peripheries and connections” is mobilized as an analytical lens rather than a fixed geographical distinction. Peripheries are understood as relational positions shaped by historical, political, economic, and cultural inequalities, while connections emphasize transnational circulations of narratives, regulatory frameworks, technologies, and resistance practices.

With a strong focus on information integrity, the program will address disinformation, platform governance, digital rights, media regulation, and journalism and media education through comparative and interdisciplinary perspectives. Organized in a summer school–style format, the event will include thematic panels, paper sessions, and roundtable discussions to strengthen international research networks and advance communication scholarship committed to democracy and social justice.

10) Contact

If you have any questions, please email: contactoalaic@gmail.com, copying the message to: paulino@unb.br and fopaulino@gmail.com

Astana, Kazakhstan

August 8–16, 2026  

 Deadline for applications: May 31, 2026

The Kazakhstan Sociology Lab in partnership with the School of Sciences and Humanities at Nazarbayev University and with support of International Communication Association (ICA) invites applications for the Young Scholar Conference & Research School AI & Methods in Computational Communication (AIM-CC 2026).

Computational social science is undergoing a profound transformation driven by artificial intelligence. Methods that once relied on limited automation and classical analytical approaches are now being reshaped by large language models, embedding-based techniques, generative agents, and AI-assisted experimental designs. These developments open new analytical possibilities while simultaneously raising important methodological and epistemological questions.

AIM-CC 2026 is designed to address these transformations directly. The Conference & School provides structured methodological training in major areas of Computational Social Science and Computational Communication Research, while systematically integrating AI-related developments into each course.

The program is designed for PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, advanced Master’s students, and early-career scholars working in Computational Communication Research, Computational Social Science, digital sociology, political communication, network science, AI & Society, and related fields. Alongside intensive methodological training, participants will have a chance to present their research in a poster session and receive feedback from instructors and mentors, with the opportunity to further refine and present updated versions of their work.

Instructors

• Taha Yasseri – Director, TCD–TU Dublin Joint Centre for Sociology of Humans and Machines (SOHAM), Full Professor and Chair of Technology and Society, Trinity College Dublin & Technological University Dublin
  
• Ivan Smirnov – research consultant for AI in Research and Researcher Training, University of Technology Sydney; External Faculty Member, Complexity Science Hub Vienna
  
• Olessia Koltsova – Director,  Laboratory for Social and Cognitive Informatics, Professor, Department of Sociology, HSE University
  
• Basak Taraktas - Assistant Professor of Political Science at Bogazici University
  
• Miriam Schirmer – Postdoctoral researcher, LINK Lab, Northwestern University

Courses and workshops:

• Instrument and Object: Navigating the AI Revolution in Computational Social Sciences
  
• Sociology of Humans and Machines: Using Online Experiments in Computational Social Sciences
  
• Political and Social Network Analysis: Formation, Resilience, and Inference
  
• LLM for computational social science research 
  
• Workshop: Scaling Content Analysis: Generative AI, Algorithmic Constraints, and Human Judgement 
  
• Workshop: The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Misinformation - Current Trends, Detection, and Mitigation 
  
• Workshop: Applied usage of AI-agents for Computational Social Sciences

Contact  

More details on the eligibility criteria, application process and travel information are available on the AIM-CC 2026 website. For inquiries, please contact: aim_cc26@kazsoclab.kz

Neil Thurman

Media change is constant, but it is rarely straightforward. While some shifts in the media landscape are rapid and transformative, others unfold slowly, unevenly, or even stall and reverse. Media Change: Contemporary Cases, Consequences, and Conceptualizations examines this complexity through a series of contemporary, self-contained case studies. Each of the nine core chapters explores a specific example of media transformation, such as AI-driven content production, evolving regulatory landscapes, and media business models.

Situating media change within broader historical and conceptual frameworks, Neil Thurman reveals how today’s most pressing issues in media are part of longer trajectories of change, shaped by forces such as technological innovation, economic pressures, and cultural resistance. By combining rich empirical evidence with a long historical view, this book illuminates the social, industrial, and technological drivers of transformation and their impact on media practices, products, and audiences. Its nine case studies not only offer depth on contemporary issues, but also prompt reflection on broader patterns of continuity and disruption in media systems.

Drawing on an original ‘six Rs’ framework – revolution, remediation, resistance, rapidity, regulation, and reversals – Media Change offers an accessible and fresh insight into contemporary communication, balancing global perspectives, challenging common assumptions about the media environment, and demonstrating how change can be incomplete, uneven, and historically contingent.

Written in a clear and accessible style, Media Change: Contemporary Cases, Consequences, and Conceptualizations is an essential resource for those seeking to understand how media systems are transforming. Whether used in its entirety or as stand-alone chapters, it is ideal for undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students in media, communication, journalism, and cultural studies programs, offering discussion questions to stimulate crucial reflection.

Purchase here: https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Media+Change%3A+Contemporary+Cases%2C+Consequences%2C+and+Conceptualizations-p-9781394293568

GI_Forum Journal (special issue)

Deadline: June 14, 2026

The Special Issue “Maps in/as Media - On the Mediated Production of Geographical Knowledge” takes maps as a central element of media ecologies and asks how geographic visualizations participate in the production, circulation and contestation of spatial knowledge. Maps are not only means, tools and instruments for the representation of spatial facts and relations; they function as mediating instances that stand between world and viewer and thereby constitute specific forms of spatial knowledge. As geomedia, maps actively produce spatial realities and enable - or prevent - certain ways of thinking, knowing and experiencing space.

In contemporary media environments, maps circulate within heterogeneous constellations: in journalistic formats, on digital platforms, in social media and in fictional media worlds. Embedded in complex media-technological assemblages, their epistemic, aesthetic and social functions shift: maps become dynamic interfaces in which human and non-human actors, data flows and algorithmic processes intertwine, and in which spatial knowledge is newly formed in relational, processual and situational configurations.

The Special Issue of the GI_Forum “Maps in/as Media” invites contributions that examine these configurations in depth and situate them within broader debates in critical cartography, media and communication, design studies, GIScience, human geography, and spatial theory. We are particularly interested in the role of cartographic visualizations within media ecologies: as epistemic tools, carriers of narration, visual arguments and affect amplifiers as well as sources of spatial imaginaries. 

Key Questions and Themes

We welcome theoretical, methodological and empirical contributions that address, among others, the following questions and themes:

• How does the role of cartographic visualizations change through its embedding in digital media environments (e.g. as map-mashups, platforms, dashboards, apps, XR environments)?
  
• Which new actors (platform companies, data providers, civic tech communities, AI systems, crowds) and production logics (datafication, platformization, automation, personalization) shape the (big spatial) data economies of maps in/as media?
  
• How do algorithmic processes, real-time data streams and Big Geo Data transform the production, circulation and reception of maps in and across media?
  
• Maps in journalistic formats: news cartographies, evidentiary functions of maps, epistemological foundations of data journalism, crisis and conflict mapping and the news, visual rhetorics of urgency and (un)certainty, Mappings of local news ecosystems
  
• Maps on digital platforms and in locative media: maps as navigational interfaces, underlying recommendation logics, platform governance, everyday navigation and the quantification of movement and mobility
  
• Maps in social media: virality, memetic cartographies, activist and antagonistic mappings, platformed counter-mapping.
  
• Maps in fictional and audiovisual media: imagined geographies, maps in digital and analogue games, speculative mapping, world-building and spatial storytelling.
  
• Affective, aesthetic and sensory dimensions of maps in/as media: atmospheres, styles, genres and design languages of cartographic representations.
  
• Critical and decolonial perspectives on cartographic representations in/as media: counter-publics, marginalized perspectives, Indigenous and community mapping, feminist and anti-racist cartographies.
  
• Critical accounts on strategic uses of maps for propaganda, disinformation and geopolitical narration, as well as practices of resistance, exposure and evidencing through counter-maps.
  
• Maps as infrastructural and epistemic interfaces: integration into data infrastructures, smart city systems, sensor networks and decision-support environments.
  
• Pedagogical and educational uses of maps as media, including their role in (geo)media literacy and critical spatial citizenship.
  

Submissions may engage with these topics from inter- and transdisciplinary perspectives, including (but not limited to) media and communication studies, GIScience, cartography, geography, design research, science and technology studies, urban studies, political science and education.

Types of Contributions

The Special Issue welcomes a range of contribution types, provided they align with the journal’s focus on innovation in education, science, methodology, technologies and communication in the spatial domain, and contribute to a more just, ethical and sustainable science and society. Possible formats include:

• Conceptual and theoretical papers (e.g. media-theoretical, infrastructural, critical cartographic or STS-inspired framings of maps as media)
  
• Empirical studies (qualitative, quantitative or mixed methods) of specific map-media constellations
  
• Methodological and design-oriented contributions (e.g. critical data visualization, participatory and counter-mapping approaches, experimental interfaces)
  
• Reflexive accounts of practice-based research, co-creation and collaboration across academia, civil society, public institutions or artistic practice
  

All submissions must be original, unpublished work and will undergo double-blind peer review according to GI_Forum’s standard procedures. Only English-language contributions can be considered for publication.

Important Dates

• Abstract submission deadline: 14 June 2026
  
• Notification of invitation to submit full paper: early July 2026
  
• Full paper submission deadline: end-November 2026
  
• publication planned for spring 2027
  

(Exact dates for full papers and subsequent review rounds will be communicated with invited authors.)

Submission Guidelines

Authors are invited to submit an extended abstract (max. 500–800 words) outlining: title, authors and affiliations, research questions, theoretical framework, methodology, empirical material (if applicable) and expected contribution to the theme of the Special Issue.

Based on the abstracts, selected authors will be invited to submit full papers through the GI_Forum online submission system. For full papers, the journal recommends a maximum of 5,000 words at initial submission so that there is sufficient room for revisions; in any case, manuscripts must not exceed 7,000 words (excluding references).

Detailed author guidelines, including formatting requirements, referencing style, and information on the Open Access policy (CC BY-ND), can be found on the GI_Forum journal website. GI_Forum implements a double-blind peer review process via its Open Journal System, with quality assured by an international team of established scholars. 

GI_Forum is published by the Austrian Academy of Sciences; article processing charges apply, but authors may apply for a fee waiver in cases where institutional or project funding is unavailable. https://www.austriaca.at/GI_Forum 

Submission and Contact

Please submit your abstract by 14 June 2026 via e-mail to the Editors of the Special Issue and indicate “GI_Forum Special Issue ‘Maps in/as Media’ – Abstract Submission” in the subject line. Invited full papers must then be submitted via the GI_Forum OJS platform (see “For Authors” on the journal website). https://www.austriaca.at/GI_Forum 

Editors for this special issue:

• Pablo Abend, https://pabloabend.de/ 
  
• Helena Atteneder, https://uni-tuebingen.de/de/206967 
  

For questions about the Special Issue’s scope or suitability of a contribution, please contact us via e-mail: kontakt@mediengeographien.de

We look forward to receiving your submissions and to collectively exploring how maps in/as media shape the epistemic, aesthetic and political conditions of spatial knowledge today.

About the Journal

GI_Forum Journal is an international, peer reviewed Open Access journal that provides a forum for the critical examination of spatial enquiry. It publishes high quality original research across the transdisciplinary field of Geographic Information Science (GIScience), Media Geographies and Geomedia Education. The journal provides a platform for dialogue among GI-Scientists and educators, technologists, social scientists, and critical thinkers in an ongoing effort to advance the field and ultimately contribute to an informed GISociety.

Submissions focus on innovation in education, science, methodology, technologies and communication in the spatial domain and their role towards a more just, ethical, and sustainable science and society. The journal explicitly welcomes contributions that emphasise efforts to address spatially relevant issues from an inter- and transdisciplinary, theoretical as well as empirical perspectives.

GI_Forum Journal is a journal of the Austrian Academy of Sciences. 

Comunicação e Sociedade, Estudos em Comunicação, Media & Jornalismo,  Observatorio (Special issue)

Deadline: September 30, 2026

Four Portuguese free-to-read and free-to-publish journals in the field of Communication Studies (published by public universities) – Comunicação e Sociedade, Estudos em Comunicação, Media & Jornalismo, and Observatorio (OBS*) – have decided to jointly launch a special issue with the aim of fostering reflection on the policies and logics of sharing scientific knowledge.

With the aim of charting a counter-trend path (and within an unprecedented collaborative initiative), we seek submissions that interrogate the material and institutional conditions of conducting research in Communication Studies, including the role of digital platforms in the circulation of knowledge, the limits and potential of open access, and the tensions between quantitative evaluation and the substantive quality of reflection and critical thought.

Suggested Topics

• Marketization of science and academic capitalism;
  
• Academic freedom and university autonomy;
  
• Forms of cultural and organizational resistance;
  
• The nature and reconfiguration of scientific reputation;
  
• Science and language policies;
  
• Academic and scientific rankings;
  
• Oligopolies and scientific publishing;
  
• Metrics, quantification, and impact;
  
• Open access policies and repositories;
  
• The impact of AI on scientific writing and review;
  
• Invisibility, bias, and inequality in scientific citations;
  
• Big Tech, platformization, and publishing ecosystems;
  
• Algorithmic regimes of visibility and classification;
  
• Research independence and innovation agendas;
  
• Research assessment, DORA, and alternatives.
  

Full manuscripts may be submitted in English, Spanish, or Portuguese.

Submission Period: April 20 to September 30, 2026.

Publication Period: 1st Semester of 2027.

More information here:

https://obs.obercom.pt/index.php/obs/announcement/view/3 

https://impactum-journals.uc.pt/mj/announcement/view/352 

https://revistacomsoc.pt/.../revist.../announcement/view/128 

https://ojs.labcom-ifp.ubi.pt/ec/announcement/view/99 

November 5-6, 2026

Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory, University of Belgrade, Kraljice Natalije 45, 4th Floor, Belgrade, Serbia

Deadline: June 5, 2026

Conference Fee: Free of charge (no participation fees). Participants cover their own travel and a.

Conference Dinner (optional): 40 EUR

Contact: emerge@ifdt.bg.ac.rs

Technological futures are not given. They are made, and they can be made differently. EMERGE 2026: Contested Futures takes place at a moment when AI systems have become central to the organization of economic power, political control, and social sorting, while democratic institutions struggle to keep pace and ecological costs mount. Rather than treating technological change as inevitable or neutral, the conference invites critical reflection on how emerging technologies are developed, governed, narrated, and contested.

As AI and digital infrastructures become increasingly embedded in everyday life, they reshape democratic processes, social relations, environmental conditions, education, design, media, and cultural production. These futures are shaped not only by technical innovation, but also by struggles over labor, resources, values, knowledge, and social organization. EMERGE 2026 therefore asks what is at stake, but also what is already being done, by whom, under which conditions, and what alternatives are being built, demanded, and practiced.

At the core of this year’s conference are several guiding questions. How are AI and emerging technologies reshaping power, governance, and public life? What forms of inequality, exclusion, and extraction do they reproduce, intensify, or obscure? How are technological futures narrated, legitimized, and contested across media, culture, platforms, and everyday life?

These questions extend to emerging methods, practices, and alternatives. How is synthetic research, understood as the use of AI-generated data, personas, and simulations to model human behavior, being used across disciplines, and what risks arise when its findings inform decision-making processes? What kinds of critical, speculative, and practice-based approaches might help us reimagine and enact more just, democratic, and sustainable alternatives? What alternatives are already being imagined, built, practiced, and defended, and whose work makes them possible?

EMERGE 2026 welcomes interdisciplinary contributions that critically examine dominant technological paradigms and engage with resistant, alternative, and transformative approaches. Submissions may come from philosophy, sociology, political theory, media and communication studies, cultural studies, art theory, education, design, computer science, and related disciplines, exploring how digital futures are shaped, contested, and reimagined. Contributions grounded in case studies, action research, policy analysis, and practice-based inquiry are especially welcome alongside theoretical and empirical work.

Topics include, but are not limited to:

• Digital democracy, governance, and technological power
  
• AI ethics, justice, and social inequality
  
• Environment, extraction, sustainability, and digital degrowth
  
• Art, culture, and critical AI practices
  
• Agency, resistance, and subjectivity in the age of AI
  
• Education, AI-assisted learning, and digital literacy
  
• Media and communication: platforms, algorithms, and technological imaginaries
  
• Synthetic research: methods, risks, and epistemic challenges
  
• Human-machine communication: power, design, and human-AI relations
  
• Speculative and alternative technological futures
  

Submission Guidelines

All abstracts must be submitted exclusively through the abstract submission form. Each submission should include:

• Title
  
• Abstract (500–600 words)
  
• 3–5 keywords
  
• Name, current position, affiliation, email address, and a short biography (no more than 200 words) of all authors
  

Authors are required to use the provided abstract template. Submit via: https://forms.gle/vTQBWAJCmU1vQnk38

For inquiries regarding submissions: emerge@ifdt.bg.ac.rs

Organizers

The 2026 edition is co-organized by the Digital Society Lab of the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory, University of Belgrade and the Institute for Artificial Intelligence of Serbia. EMERGE is an event organized by the Digital Society Lab of the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory, University of Belgrade, dedicated to exploring the social, ethical, political, environmental, and cultural implications of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies. Combining an annual forum with a biannual academic conference, it brings together scholars, researchers, artists, policymakers, and practitioners for critical interdisciplinary exchange.

Interdisciplinary Scope

The conference welcomes contributions from philosophy, sociology, political theory, media and communication studies, cultural studies, art theory, education, design, computer science, and related disciplines. Contributions grounded in case studies, action research, policy analysis, and practice-based inquiry are especially welcome alongside theoretical and empirical work.

We look forward to your submissions and to the conversations EMERGE 2026 will open.