ECREA WEEKLY digest ARTICLES

November 5-6, 2026

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

Submission Deadline: 20 June 2026

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

Conference Dinner (optional): 40 EUR

Website: https://emerge.ifdt.bg.ac.rs/

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.

Mediapolis – A Journal of Cities and Culture

Mediapolis – A Journal of Cities and Culture is an interdisciplinary open access online journal, drawing a connection between culture and the built environment – understood in the broadest sense. We publish research in different forms, from research articles to Q&A interviews and readings list, and across different academic fields, including but not limited to media studies, urban studies, geography, architecture and art history as well as digital humanities. 

Mediapolis publishes three issues each year – in April, September and December – featuring a themed dossier edited by a guest editor, as well as contributions edited by the journal’s section editors. For the upcoming issues, we are currently accepting suggestions for themed dossiers: A selection of 6-8 articles (max. 3.000 words each) that are connected through a shared theme. For example, recent dossiers have focused on Projection Activism, Lightscapes/Nightscapes and Playable Cities. We also accept dossiers that emerge out of (small) conferences and symposia. While primarily an academic journal, Mediapolis aims to foster a responsive, robust, and inclusive debate by publishing work that is broadly accessible to a public audience. As a ‘small-gauge’ journal, we are particularly interested in publishing timely contributions that engage with current topics and objects at the intersection of cities and culture, and that feature original thought and work-in-progress rather than reviews of the existing literature. In doing so, Mediapolis aims to counter the often slow and potentially exclusionary nature of traditional publishing models by opening up a space for debate and discussion. All work published in Mediapolis is rigorously edited by the editorial board, and all dossier articles undergo peer review. 

If you are interested in editing a themed dossier for an upcoming issue of Mediapolis, please reach out with a theme, brief description and short bio for the guest editor(s) via email to editor@mediapolisjournal.com. More info here. 

Yaşar University

Applications are now open for our fully-funded doctoral scholarship designed to support and empower future academics.

 What’s Included?

• Full Tuition Fee Coverage
  
• Monthly Stipend
  
• Free Meal
  
• Free Accommodation
  
• Academic Incentives

Application Deadline: July 10, 2026

Open to both national and international applicants

Program Language: English

Application Conditions:

Turkish Applicants: https://lnkd.in/dFgzPwVh

International Applicants: https://lnkd.in/d7QHxRgJ

Online Application Form: https://lnkd.in/d5q2ph9r

More information: lee.yasar.edu.tr

Edited by: Tim Raats, Catalina Iordache

Streaming Europe explores how global streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video have reshaped the audiovisual landscape across Europe.

Since Netflix’s arrival in 2012, the European media environment has undergone a rapid transformation, affecting every level of the industry—from production and distribution to policy and audience engagement. This book offers the first comprehensive, empirical, and comparative examination of these changes across different European markets. Written by a team of leading media scholars, it balances accessible analysis with evidence-based insights to examine how streamers have altered production practices and business models, shifted established power dynamics, and challenged long-standing broadcasting legacies. The book examines global streamers’ market-entry strategies, the use of diversity and inclusion as competitive positioning, and the tensions between producers over rights retention and local authenticity. It analyses how public and commercial broadcasters across large and small European markets have both emulated Netflix and sought to differentiate themselves from US streamers, and how governments have responded with a patchwork of policy tools such as prominence regulation, quotas, and investment obligations, raising questions about their long-term effectiveness. Finally, it explores how different genres—including teen drama, documentary, European film, scripted television, and web series—both shape and are shaped by global streamers’ evolving strategies.

With its strong foundation in research and pan-European scope, Streaming Europe goes beyond single-country perspectives to present a timely and nuanced understanding of how the streaming revolution is shaping Europe’s cultural industries. It will be highly relevant to researchers in the field of media industries, media economics, audiovisual industries and media policy.

The Open Access version of this book, available at https://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.

Purchase HERE.

September 14-19, 2026

Poznań, Poland

Deadline: July 20, 2026

The summer school will be organized by the International Political Science Association, the Polish Political Science Association and the Faculty of Political Science and Journalism of Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań (Poland).  

The IPSA-PPSA Summer School in Poznań will offer a series of workshops, each related to one of the cutting-edge techniques in political and communication research. The program provides participants with a review of theories and concepts frequently employed in political science and communication.  

In particular, this Summer School focuses on advancing education in political science and communication methodology, with particular emphasis on the challenges of digital and AI-driven environments. The Summer School aims to create a supportive and intellectually stimulating learning environment, fostering respectful but critical dialogue between participants and leading scholars in the field.  

This 5-day program is designed for PhD students and early-stage scholars (up to 5 years after receiving the PhD diploma) from around the world. It aims to improve the quality of research by strengthening their methodological competencies and analytical skills. 

With an understanding of the interplay between media institutions, communication professionals, algorithms, and audiences, participants will be encouraged to critically reflect on the transformation of contemporary political communication and democratic processes. 

Registration is open!

For more details please check: https://www.ptnp.org.pl/en/ipsa-ppsa-summer-school/

Des Freedman

Polity 2026

Capitalism is the most powerful, creative and destructive social system the world has ever seen. Vigorously celebrated and fiercely contested, it provides the backdrop for the pipelines and platforms that supply audiences with entertainment, information and connection.

This book provides an accessible introduction to the key characteristics of capitalism and illustrates how they shape and distort our media and communications landscapes. Exploring concepts including accumulation, exploitation, ideology, oppression, commodification and colonization, the book discusses the impact of these processes on everything from our experiences online and the dynamics of algorithms to the power of oligarchs and the media's role in the escalating environmental crisis.

At a time when technology is often heralded as either the cause or the solution to issues of polarization, disinformation and atomization, an understanding of the simultaneous resilience and fragility of capitalism is essential. Capitalism and the Media is important reading for students of media, communications, cultural studies and politics and provides a valuable resource for scholars and activists.

ECREA members can order the book directly from politybooks.com and receive a 30% discount using the code DFM30.

Full details at: https://www.politybooks.com/bookdetail?book_slug=capitalism-and-the-media-key-concepts-for-understanding-communications-and-technology--9781509565306

mediastudies.press

Deadline: July 31, 2026

mediastudies.press, the scholar-led and nonprofit OA publisher, is happy to announce our annual proposal window from 1 June to 31 July, 2026. During this date window, authors are encouraged to submit a proposal for review.

mediastudies.press welcomes submissions from scholars across media, communication, and film studies. We currently publish in five series:

• Media Manifold series — monographs and other book-length works of contemporary media scholarship
  
• Public Domain series — reprints of neglected classics, in new critical editions anchored by framing introductions
  
• Open Reader series — themed collections of openly licensed, public domain, and linked materials curated and introduced by leading experts
  
• History of Media Studies series — monographs and other original scholarly works centered on history of media, communication, and film studies
  
• Goffman in the Open series — public domain texts, monographs, translations, and other original scholarly works centered on the Canadian-American sociologist Erving Goffman
  

We are small and artisanal by mission, and aim to publish just five books a year. Given the volume of proposals that we receive—and with our production schedule in mind—we maintain an annual proposal window (1 June to 31 July), for the review of manuscripts slated for publication in the following calendar year. You are welcome to send informal queries outside these dates, but our general practice is to only consider proposals within the annual window. Each year, we review proposals with an initial reply by August 30, with the aim to conduct peer review of proposals of expressed interest by the end of October.

mediastudies.press is an open-access publisher for the media and communication studies fields. The press is nonprofit and scholar-led. We publish living works, with iterative updates stitched into our process. And we encourage multi-modal submissions that reflect the mediated environments our authors study. 

Publishing with mediastudies.press is free on principle. Our aim is to demonstrate, on a small scale, an open-access publishing model supported by libraries rather than author fees, via the Open Book Collective. Open access for readers, we believe, should not be traded for new barriers to authorship. 

All our published works are rigorously peer-reviewed, and receive unusual editorial attention. We prioritize discoverability through careful metadata, library records, and directory listings. As a scholar-run operation, our publicity outreach is uncommonly informed by the fields’ intellectual contours. 

We kindly ask that proposals be submitted as a single PDF. Proposals should include the following elements, in addition to at least one draft chapter:

• Proposed title and subtitle
  
• A 500- to 1000-word narrative description of the book
  
• Short bios of author(s) and/or editor(s)
  
• Proposed series (see above)
  
• Tentative table of contents, preferably annotated
  
• Estimated word count
  
• Multi-modal components, if any
  
• Status of the book (i.e., expectation of completion date, the portion now complete)
  
• At least one draft chapter
  

To submit your work to mediastudies.press please follow our submission link. 

If you have any questions at all about the proposal process for books, please contact us at press@mediastudies.press

Dave Park, co-director of mediastudies.press

Jeff Pooley, co-director of mediastudies.press

October 15-16, 2026

Krakow, Poland, Institute of Journalism, Media and Social Communication at Jagiellonian University 

Deadline: June 14, 2026

Dear ECREA members,

We cordially invite you to participate in the 7th Conference of the series "Knowledge – Communication – Action. Forecasting the Future: Between Media, Technology and Society",which will take place on 15–16 October 2026 at the Institute of Journalism, Media and Social Communication of the Jagiellonian University in Kraków. This year's edition is, for the first time, international in scope.

Registration via the online form is now open and will remain available until 12 July 2026.

Panel proposals should be submitted by 14 June 2026 via e-mail to: idmiksuj@uj.edu.pl. Following panel submission, each participant is required to register individually through the online form.

Further details about the conference can be found on our website: https://idmiksuj.edu.pl/en 

We look forward to seeing you in October and encourage you to register!

On behalf of the Organizing Committee

Roksana Gloc, Patrycja Hewelt, Paweł Nowak

January 12-13, 2027

City St George’s, University of London (in-person)

Deadline for abstracts (max 250 words): September 7, 2026

Joint annual conference of the Political Studies Association’s Media and Politics Group (MPG) and Technology, Internet, and Policy (TIP) Group

You are warmly invited to submit papers for presentation at the joint annual conference of the Political Studies Association’s Media and Politics Group & Technology, Information and Policy Group. This year’s conference theme, “Dis(mis)information and the Public Sphere in the Age of AI,” will explore how Information Communication Technologies (ICT) are impacting the public sphere and whether social media facilitates an electronic agora. For advocates of a digital democracy, the abundance of unfiltered information streams, platforms and podcasts could enable ‘net’ citizens (or ‘Netizens’) to connect on a many-to-many or peer-to-peer basis. Such viral engagements can enhance grassroots political causes, social movements and direct-action campaigns. Conversely, critical theorists argue that social media has created societal, economic and political dislocations which have eroded rational debates into ideological polarisations. Further, through such political communication networks and nodes, normative editorial and journalist practices are under threat, impacting trust and accuracy of information and eventually leading to dis(mis)information. This conference seeks to critically examine the opportunities and risks ICTs present to the public sphere.

The conference can be attended in person only and will be held in City, St George’s, University of London (Clerkenwell Campus, Northampton Square, London EC1V 0HB, UK), on 12-13 January 2027. 

The conference will include three keynote presentations:

• Steven Barnett, University of Westminster

• Jennifer Birks, University of Nottingham

• Jean Seaton, University of Westminster

Additionally, two panels will bookend the conference:

- Public Service Media (PSM) and information technologies. Two of our keynotes, Steven and Jean, will be providing a detailed commentary with their expert insider-based analyses.

- Artificial Intelligence, Communications Policy, Regulation and Popular Cultural content Panellists:  Ali-Abbas Ali (Ofcom officer), Pete Johnson (CEO, British Screen Forum), James Peatty (Lecturer and filmmaker, Richmond University), Paul MacDonald (King's College London, TBC). Format: roundtable.

We welcome paper submissions that address any of the following topics:

* Do ICTs and digital platforms impact citizen engagement, connection and political participation, thus democratising the public sphere?

* What role do deepfake and AI-generated images play in shaping the modern online public sphere?

* What is the role of ICTs and digital platforms in political campaigning? Are they reshaping campaign strategies, political marketing, civic and voter engagement?

* How do social media algorithms impact political discussion in the public sphere?

* Do ICTs and online platforms provide reliable information or do they misinform citizens?

* What are the ethical implications of dis(mis)information and what is the impact of dis(mis)information on the rational public sphere?

* Are digital platforms providing spaces for democratic movements, especially in regimes that oppress freedom of expression?

* What regulatory and policy developments should be initiated to make digital platforms trustworthy and accountable?

* Can the 2022 landmark EU regulations Digital Services Act (DSA) and Digital Markets Act (DMA) as well as the 2023 UK Online Safety Act ensure a safer and fairer digital space?

We encourage submissions from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, including but not limited to political science, media studies, communication, sociology, law, and technology studies. Submissions are welcomed from scholars at all career stages, including PhD candidates and early-career researchers, as well as practitioners engaged in media, politics or related fields.

While the main theme of this conference is “Dis(mis)information and the Public Sphere in the Age of AI”, the MPG and TIP operate an open and inclusive policy, and papers dealing with any aspect of media, technology and politics are welcome. Papers may focus on areas from political communication and journalism to data, artificial intelligence, social media and tech policy; but also include a broader view of the political sphere within such areas as television, cinema and media arts, both factual and fictional. In addition to academic research, the conference will also welcome practice-based work in art, film and performance related to the area of media and politics.

Key dates

• Monday 7th Sept 2026. Deadline for paper submission outlining the title, synopsis, and chair details, as well as the abstracts for each contributor (no more than 250 words each).
  
• Monday 28th Sept 2026. Paper proposers notified of the decision by the conference committee. Conference registration opens.
  
• Friday 11th December 2026. Extended abstract deadline for James Thomas Memorial Prize applicants.
  
• 12-13 January 2027. Conference held in City St George’s, University of London.
  

Submitting proposals

We welcome both paper and panel proposals for this conference. Paper proposals should be for 15-minute presentations. Submitted abstracts should be no more than 250 words (excluding references). 

If you wish to submit a panel proposal, please note the following stipulations: 

* Panel proposals should include a panel overview (max. 300 words), outlining the title, synopsis, and chair details, as well as the abstracts for each contributor (no more than 250 words each).

* Panels usually consist of three to four papers and a chair.

* Panels should aim to reflect the diversity of the profession.

Please submit all proposals to Petros Iosifidis: p.iosifidis@city.ac.uk and Mark Wheeler: m.wheeler@londonmet.ac.uk / mbdoctormark@gmail.com 

Potential outputs

The Journal of Digital Media and Policy (https://www.intellectbooks.com/journal-of-digital-media-policy), which Petros edits, will publish a special edition. The theme and call for papers will be outlined closer to the conference time and will be featured on the journal’s website.

Book launch

We will be having the launch of the De Gruyter Handbook of Digital Political Communication that Mark and Petros have edited. The book will be published shortly. See https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/isbn/9783111386034/html?srsltid=AfmBOop0qVVIU4nfp3HrNIz6OPrwpC43_pqu3vUjCpMancYWahFkr_WP

Registration fees

* Full-time delegate conference fee (PSA member): £150

* Full-time delegate conference fee (non-PSA member): £180

* PG doctoral candidate, retired or unwaged fee (Member/Non-Member): £95/£125 

This covers lunches, coffee breaks, a drinks reception and the annual dinner.

We will be seeking to establish an appropriate set of hotel/hostel deals for those colleagues who will be visiting London. 

Financial support

The PSA offers a limited number of travel subsidies (up to the value of £100) to support postgraduate student participation in this event. Postgraduate students interested in applying for these subsidies should please note this when submitting. 

James Thomas Memorial Prize 

Extended abstracts of a maximum of 2000 words submitted by postgraduate students will be entered into the James Thomas Memorial Prize. This annual award is presented to the most outstanding paper by a postgraduate student at the Media & Politics Group Annual Conference. Postgraduate students wishing to be considered for the prize should send extended abstracts to Petros Iosifidis: p.iosifidis@city.ac.uk and Mark Wheeler: m.wheeler@londonmet.ac.uk / mbdoctormark@gmail.com by Friday, 11th December 2026.

About the PSA

The Political Studies Association (https://www.psa.ac.uk/) is the UK’s leading association in the study and research of politics. The Media and Politics Group and Technology, Information and Policy Groups are welcoming and inclusive. The conference welcomes contributions both from members and non-members of the Political Studies Association.

Organising team

* Petros Iosifidis. City St George’s, University of London https://www.citystgeorges.ac.uk/about/people/academics/petros-iosifidis 

* Mark Wheeler. London Metropolitan University https://www.londonmet.ac.uk/profiles/staff/mark-wheeler

Steering committee

Charles Lees. City St George’s, University of London

Stephanie Baker. City St George’s, University of London

Chris Rojek. City St George’s, University of London

Jean Chalaby. City St George’s, University of London

Wendy Stokes. London Metropolitan University

Liam McLoughlin. Edge Hill University

Università della Svizzera italiana

The Institute of Media and Journalism at the Università della Svizzera italiana, located in Lugano, Switzerland, is seeking a highly motivated PhD candidate.

The position will be supervised by Prof. Colin Porlezza (http://usi.to/dvg), Head of the Institute, who leads research on digital journalism, journalism innovation and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, as well as media accountability. The PhD candidate is expected to contribute to the chair’s main research areas. In addition, he or she will collaborate to the development of the institute’s research agenda. 

What we offer

• A fully funded PhD position for four years starting in September 2026.

• Enrolment in the doctoral educational programme of the Faculty of Communication, Culture and Society.

• An international and multidisciplinary team of scholars that adopts multiple perspectives and methods and promotes a culture of cooperation and mutual support to generate new knowledge and societal impact. 

• Excellent opportunities for national and international networking. 

• The opportunity to present papers at scientific conferences, publish in high-ranking scientific journals, acquire further academic qualifications, and contribute to academic service within the Institute.

Candidates’ profile

• A Master’s degree (or equivalent title) in journalism, media studies, communication sciences, or a related discipline.

• A strong personal interest in digital journalism and artificial intelligence, journalism innovation. Interest in journalism ethics, journalism epistemology and authority, or accountability is an advantage.

• Knowledge of qualitative and ethnographic research methodologies is an advantage, quantitative methods.

• Proficiency in English is mandatory, excellent oral and writing skills in German and/or Italian are an advantage.

• Good organisational skills; intellectual independence and the ability to work in a team and engage in scientific dialogue with colleagues and other members of the Institute.

• Interest in teaching and tutoring students.

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted online. Applications received before 26 June 2026, will be given priority. The entire call as well as the application link can be found here: https://content.usi.ch/sites/default/files/storage/attachments/imeg/imeg-phd-digital-journalism-2026.pdf 

Requests for further information can be sent to the Head of the Institute of Media and Journalism, Prof. Colin Porlezza (colin.porlezza@usi.ch).