ECREA WEEKLY digest ARTICLES

University of Passau

The University of Passau owes its strong visibility and good repute to excellent research, innovative teaching and its tight-knit international academic networks. Some 12,000 students from 100 countries and more than 1,200 staff study and work on our University campus, which is located a stone’s throw from the historical Old Town of Passau and combines state-of-the-art technical infrastructure with award-winning architecture. Internationally successful high-tech companies and a vibrant start-up scene, coupled with a rich culture and Lower Bavarian traditions, give Passau and the surrounding area a special appeal that makes it a great place to live and work.

The Chair of Political Communication with a Focus on Eastern Europe and the Post-Soviet Region (Professor Florian Toepfl) invites applications for the position of

Assistant Professor – Akademische Rätin/Akademischer Rat auf Zeit (1.0 FTE)

for immediate start. This is a 1.0 full-time equivalent (FTE) position, based on a fixed three-year contract with the option of extension. Remuneration is in accordance with pay grade E13 of the German public-sector collective agreement TV-L; the salary step is dependent on your qualifications and experience. If you meet the criteria, you may receive temporary civil servant status (‘Beamter auf Zeit’) and obtain remuneration in accordance with pay grade A13.

Job description

• Working largely independently, you will have manifold opportunities to advance your own research agenda and develop an internationally competitive track record of publications with leading academic journals or publishing houses, centred on the field of political communication.

• You will have the chance to collaborate and exploit synergies of your own work with the ERC RUSINFORM research group (please visit www.rusinform.uni-passau.de for details).

• You will plan, administer and deliver classes of five teaching contact hours per week (i.e. you will teach approximately 2.5 courses per semester). Your teaching efforts will be centred on the discipline of communications. The courses you will teach may range from introductory classes for bachelor’s programmes all the way to advanced, research-oriented seminars for master’s programmes. In addition, some of your classes will reach out to students of other social science disciplines with a strong interest in Eastern Europe and the post-Soviet Region.

• You will take on responsibility for a fair share of administrative and organisational tasks at the Chair of Political Communication (www.phil.uni-passau.de/en/political-communication).

Person specification/selection criteria

• An excellent doctorate in the discipline of communications or an adjacent social science. You need to have your doctoral certificate in hand by the time you start the position.

• A master’s degree or equivalent in communication science, a related social science discipline such as sociology or political science, or an interdisciplinary, social-science-oriented course of study with a geographical focus on the post-Soviet region.

• Evidence of an emerging, strong track-record of peer-reviewed publications in major international communications journals, or of book publications with internationally leading publishing houses.

• A strong interest to pursue research that focuses on Russia, Eurasia, or Eastern Europe.
• Highly motivated candidates with or without prior work experience are strongly encouraged to apply.

• Experience with the application of traditional (qualitative or quantitative) methods of socialscience research (essential).
• Knowledge and experience with new computational methods (highly desirable).
• Excellent English-language skills (essential).
• Good knowledge of German or willingness to learn German (essential).
• Very good knowledge of at least one language spoken in the post-Soviet region (highly desirable).

• Evidence of ability and willingness to work as part of a team of researchers (desirable).
• Evidence of flexibility, autonomy and creativity (essential).
• Evidence of strong communication skills (desirable).
• Evidence of strong analytical and critical skills and clear academic writing (essential).
• Willingness to assist in organisational and support functions (essential).

What we offer

• This postdoctoral position comes with an internationally competitive salary, stipulated in accordance with the German collective agreement for the public sector (TV-L E13; minimum gross salary: 49,900 euros per annum) or the A13 pay grade for civil servants (both at the 1.0 full-time equivalent level).

• You will have the opportunity to cooperate closely with the RUSINFORM ERC consolidator research group, its principal investigator, Professor Florian Toepfl, and leading international scholars affiliated with this research project. The community of researchers affiliated with the Chair of Political Communication with a Focus on Eastern Europe and the Post-Soviet Region aspires to be a vibrant, friendly and energetic academic environment with flat hierarchies, in which everyone has great enthusiasm for their shared research interests.

• Assistant professors may invite leading scholars in their field to join this community for a limited period of time in the framework of the visiting fellows’ programme of the ERC project.

• You will be encouraged to vigorously pursue your own ideas, strengthen your track record of independent academic publications, and energetically advance your own academic career.

• Generous support for participation in a wide range of conferences, workshops and methods-training courses.

• A high level of freedom when it comes to establishing your work processes.
• An enjoyable work climate in a family-friendly research environment, in a medium-sized town offering a high quality of life, on a modern, verdant university campus situated a few minutes’ walk from the historic Old Town.

As the University of Passau wishes to raise the proportion of women in research and teaching, female academics are expressly encouraged to apply. This post may be available part-time, provided a suitable number of candidates are willing to work on a work-share basis. Furthermore, this post is suitable for those who are registered disabled. Registered disabled persons are given preference over non-disabled applicants who do not otherwise have statutory preferential status if their overall personal aptitudes, skills and qualifications are equal.

How to apply

Your full application (in English or German), sent as a single e-mail attachment in PDF format, should include the following documents:

• Your curriculum vitae.
• Your bachelor’s and master’s degree certificates as well as your doctoral certificate.
• Letter of motivation (maximum two pages) stating why you would like to join the Chair of Political Communication, the avenues of independent research you would like to explore, and potential areas of collaboration with the RUSINFORM project. Please provide evidence with regard to the selection criteria listed above.

• One to three pieces of academic writing (for instance, your doctoral thesis, a book chapter, or a journal article).

• Contact details and phone numbers of one to three referees (at least one academic, for instance, the supervisor of your master’s or doctoral thesis).

Please send your application by e-mail to sarah.miedl@uni-passau.de, using the subject line ‘POLCOMM-PROF’, by 1 November 2020 (whilst we may be able to consider applications received after this date, this is not guaranteed.)

We look forward to receiving your application! If you have any questions related to this vacancy, please feel free to contact Professor Florian Toepfl (florian.toepfl@uni-passau.de), Sarah Miedl (sarah.miedl@uni-passau.de) or one of the doctoral researchers at the Chair.

Once the application process has been completed, we will retain your application on file for six months before deleting it from our computer systems. Please visit www.unipassau.de/en/university/current-vacancies for our data privacy statement.

The University of Passau

The University of Passau owes its strong visibility and good repute to excellent research, innovative teaching and its tight-knit international academic networks. Some 12,000 students from 100 countries and more than 1,200 staff study and work on our University campus, which is located a stone’s throw from the historical Old Town of Passau and combines state-of-the-art technical infrastructure with award-winning architecture. Internationally successful high-tech companies and a vibrant start-up scene, coupled with a rich culture and Lower Bavarian traditions, give Passau and he surrounding area a special appeal that makes it a great place to live and work.

The University of Passau is conducting a five-year ERC (European Research Council) Consolidator project (2019–2024) titled The Consequences of the Internet for Russia’s Informational Influence Abroad (RUSINFORM). Receiving approximately two million euros in funds from the European Research Council, RUSINFORM will involve six researchers and a series of visiting fellows. The project aims to investigate how, and with what consequences, new Internet-based technologies have contributed to the emergence of novel resources, techniques and processes by which political elites in Moscow can influence media audiences abroad. More information is available at www.rusinform.uni-passau.de/en.

For the RUSINFORM project, the Chair of Political Communication with a Focus on Eastern Europe and the Post-Soviet Region (Professor Florian Toepfl) invites applications for the position of

Doctoral student – Graduate Research Assistant (0.65 FTE)

for immediate start. This is a 65% full-time equivalent (FTE) position, based on a fixed three-year contract with the option of extension for an additional year. Remuneration is in accordance with pay grade E13 of the German public-sector collective agreement TV-L; the salary step is dependent on your qualifications and experience.

Job description

• Working largely independently, you will pursue research that makes important contributions to the success of two of the subprojects (work packages 1 and 2) of the RUSINFORM project. The work packages’ titles are ‘Foreign audiences as co-creators and disseminators of Russia’s strategic narratives in Belarus, Germany and Estonia’ and ‘The audiences of Russia’s domestic media abroad’. In pursuing the research efforts required to accomplish these work packages, you will co-operate closely with the other doctoral students and the principal investigator of the project.

• Simultaneously, you will develop, design and conduct independent research that will qualify you for the award of a doctoral degree. The topic of this independent doctoral research should be closely related to the central topic of the research group. It may – but need not necessarily – be grounded in data collected in the framework of the RUSINFORM project.

• You will have the chance to author, or contribute as a co-author to, publications of the RUSINFORM research group.

• You will also support other work packages of the RUSINFORM project, if this is required and your specific project-related skills are needed.

• You will contribute to efforts in the area of project administration and outreach. The ERC project will organise a series of public events and workshops, invite visiting scholars from across the globe, and maintain a website and several social media accounts. Although routine tasks in these areas will be carried out by an administrative assistant and a student/research assistant, doctoral students are expected to take on management responsibilities and other leading roles in this work.

• You will present the results of your research at national and international conferences across the globe. 

Person specification/selection criteria

• A master’s degree or equivalent in communication science, a related social science discipline such as sociology or political science, or in a social-science-oriented, interdisciplinary course of study focusing on Russia or Eastern Europe as a geographical region. Highly motivated candidates with or without prior work experience are strongly encouraged to apply.

• Good knowledge of and/or experience with the application of traditional methods of socialscience research, ideally with a focus on survey research and/or the conduct of semistructured interviews.
• Good knowledge or willingness to acquire extensive skills in the application of new, so-called computational methods of social-science research, with a focus on the automated collection and analysis of web content.

• Excellent English-language skills (essential).
• Good knowledge of German (desirable)
• Very good knowledge of one or more of the following languages: Russian, Belarusian, or Estonian (desirable)

• Evidence of ability and willingness to work as part of a team of researchers (desirable).
• Evidence of strong self-management skills, as required to successfully complete a four-year doctoral project (essential).

• Evidence of intellectual flexibility, autonomy and creativity (essential).
• Evidence of strong communication skills (desirable).
• Evidence of strong analytical and critical skills and clear academic writing (desirable).
• Willingness to assist in organisational and support functions (essential).

We offer

• The doctoral position comes with an internationally competitive salary, which will be stipulated in accordance with the German collective agreement for the public sector (TV-L E13 at a 0.65 full time equivalent). Depending on the candidate’s work experience, the initial annual gross salary will be at least 32,400 euros (i.e. approximately 2,600 euros per month). From this gross salary, contributions to the German pension scheme, health insurance and other social insurances will be automatically deducted. Depending on the family situation, the doctoral candidate’s initial net salary will thus amount to at least 1,680 euros a month.

• The ERC group offers doctoral candidates a vibrant and international academic environment with flat hierarchies. In the course of the project, doctoral students will receive hands-on training in conducting world-class communication research. They will be closely supervised and supported by the principal investigator of the ERC research group, members of academic staff at the University of Passau, and international scholars affiliated with the project. Doctoral candidates will be encouraged to pursue their own ideas, make strong individual contributions to the success of the research project and develop an initial track record of independent academic publications that will qualify them for a career in academia.

• Generous support for participation in a wide range of project-related conferences, workshops and methods-training courses.

• A high level of freedom when it comes to establishing your work processes.
• A great work climate in a family-friendly city offering a high quality of life, on a modern, verdant university campus situated a few minutes’ walk from the historic Old Town.

More information about the project is available at www.rusinform.uni-passau.de/en.As the University of Passau wishes to raise the proportion of women in research and teaching, female academics are expressly encouraged to apply. Furthermore, this post is suitable for those who are registered disabled. Registered disabled persons are given preference over non-disabled applicants who do not otherwise have statutory preferential status if their overall personal aptitudes, skills and qualifications are equal.

How to apply

Your full application (in English or German), sent as a single e-mail attachment in PDF format, should include the following documents:

• Your curriculum vitae.
• University entrance qualification (usually your secondary-school leaving certificate) and bachelor’s or master’s degree certificate.

• Letter of motivation (approximately one page) stating why you would like to pursue doctoral study within the research group, envisaged doctoral thesis topic (or type of research you could imagine pursuing) and how you think you could contribute to the success of the project. Please also provide evidence with regard to the selection criteria listed above.

• One or two pieces of academic writing (for instance, a seminar essay, your bachelor’s dissertation or master’s thesis).

Contact details and phone numbers of one to three referees (at least one academic, for instance, the supervisor of your master’s thesis).Please send your application by e-mail to sarah.miedl@uni-passau.de, using the subject line ‘RUSINFORM–DOC’, by 1 November 2020 (whilst we may be able to consider applications received after this date, this is not guaranteed.)

We look forward to receiving your application! If you have any questions related to this vacancy, please feel free to contact the Principal Investigator of the ERC project (florian.toepfl@unipassau.de) or a doctoral student in the project.

Once the application process has been completed, we will retain your application on file for six months before deleting it from our computer systems. Please visit www.unipassau.de/en/university/current-vacancies for our data privacy statement.

October 14, 2020

Virtual seminar

Deadline: October 12, 2020

The Department of Culture, Media and Creative Industries at King's College London has the pleasure of hosting a research seminar.

Speaker: Professor Ursula Huws

Date & Time: Wednesday 14th October, 16.00-18.00 (London time)

This is a virtual seminar.

In this special event, Ursula Huws (Professor of Labour and Globalisation, University of Hertfordshire) will talk about digital labour during the Covid-19 pandemic. Responses and questions are welcome after her presentation. The event is open to all.

Please register at: https://cmci-seminar-series-huws.eventbrite.co.uk (open until 12.10.2020). Joining instructions will be sent the day before the event.

Biography: Ursula Huws’ most recent books include Reinventing the Welfare State: Digital Platforms and Public Policies (2020) and Labour in Contemporary Capitalism: What Next? (2019). She has been carrying out pioneering research on the economic and social impacts of technological change, the restructuring of employment and the changing international division of labour, for many years. She lectures, advises policy-makers, and has written numerous books.

Call for book chapters

Deadline:  November 30, 2020

Editors

• Tendai Chari (PhD), Senior Lecturer, University of Venda, South Africa
• Martin N. Ndlela (PhD), Associate Professor, Inland Norway
• University of Applied Sciences, Norway & Northwestern University-Qatar

The mass media have an enormous responsibility to disseminate truthful, accurate and up-to- date information to the public during pandemics. Yet, pandemics pose serious ethical conundrums to the media in that their informational role can easily be undermined by their tilt towards sensational reporting and scare-mongering, thereby undermining public trust (Thomas & Senkpeni, 2020). Pandemics are in great measure evolving, highly unpredictable, and in most cases panic inducing. This makes the media’s capacity to disseminate balanced and credible information timely more compelling than ever. COVID 19 has reawakened the media to their ethical responsibilities by bringing to the fore unique ethical issues, challenges and dilemmas, and has also reincarnated ethical debates associated with reporting of previous pandemics such as negative stereotypes, stigmatization, protecting the confidentiality of sources, dealing with bereavement, privacy issues, thus underscoring the fact that pandemics are not just health crises, but information crises as well.

While the media have played a positive role in helping shape positive public health behavior, and by extension promoting human security, there has been fear that media reporting of pandemics is fueling “infodemic” epitomized by fake news, conspiracy theories and apocalyptic prophecies, misinformation, disinformation, thus posing a threat to human security. In the age of social media networks whereby information spreads very fast, the deluge of information may make it difficult for citizens to separate reliable information from false information. Centralization of information about the pandemic by governments and international bodies and the concomitant over-dependence on ‘expert analysis’ have opened the floodgates for patriotic discourses and appeals for ‘collective action’ mantras which impinge on media independence. In addition, health protocols constrain the media from accessing critical information, thus predisposing journalists to politically correct ‘accredited’ sources while jettisoning unpalatable voices from the news agenda. As the media become more embedded in official narratives, journalism may be reduced to a public relations exercise, resulting in the proverbial echo chamber.

Pandemics predispose the media to overt and covert influence and control, yet the ability to obtain and disseminate information without external interference are two fundamental tenets of media ethics (Hooker, Leask & King, 2012). As COVID 19 has demonstrated, nature of ethical dilemmas confronting the media during global pandemics, relating to both media content and the professional conduct of media practitioners are becoming more complex and have elicited diverse responses using different philosophical lenses in different contexts. As the contours of ethics shift during pandemics, it is necessary to critically reflect on existing ethical norms, issues, practices, challenges and dilemmas confronted by the media during global pandemics.

This proposed edited volume explores ethical issues confronted by the media during global pandemics. The aim is to enhance the media’s capacity to report pandemics and similar emergence situations ethically by drawing lessons from the current and previous pandemics. What ethical challenges have confronted the media during health pandemics? What dilemmas have the media faced? To what extent have these impacted on the media’s role? What philosophical approaches can be used to address these challenges and dilemmas? What lessons can be drawn for reporting future pandemics? How can the media be better equipped to deal with ethical issues during pandemics?

We are looking for innovative original works which critically engage with different aspects of ethical issues in the context of global pandemics using different theoretical and methodological approaches.

Contributions can focus on, but are not limited to the following topics:

• Ethical Issues in the representation of pandemics
• News Sourcing and Ethics
• Fabrications, Falsehoods
• Confidentiality and protection of sources
• Privacy and the Public Interest
• Ethical Dilemmas
• Trauma reporting during pandemics
• Health protocols, government restrictions and journalism ethics
• Language and Reporting Pandemics
• Pandemics, Racism and Hate speech
• Sensationalism and propaganda
• Journalism ethics and “infodemics”
• Conspiracy theories, misinformation and fake news
• Ethnocentrism and Stereotyping
• Patriotic Journalism
• Social Media
• Medical remedies, Advertising
• Ethical philosophies, media and pandemics
• Media law and ethics during pandemics

Articles should not be more than 7000 words, including references

Important Dates

• Deadline for Accepted Abstracts: 30 November 2020
• Deadline for Full Papers: 31 March 2021
• Deadline for Submitting Revised Chapters: 30 May 2021
• Expected Date of Publication: 31 September 2021

Targeted Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Interested contributors are invited to submit a 500-word proposal and a short biography by 30 November 2020, to Tendai Chari, tendai.chari@univen.ac.za and Martin Ndlela, martin.ndlela@inn.no .

Final chapters of approximately 5000-7000 words will be due by 31 March 2021. Please note that all submissions will be peer-reviewed. Abstracts must clearly state the aim and objectives of the study, the theoretical and methodological approaches contemplated in the study.

MedieKultur: Journal of media and communication research

Deadline: November 1, 2020

Over the last couple of decades, the global social, political and economic landscape has been marked by rise and dominance of social media. These transnational owned social media and communication services fundamentally alter both the ways economic value is produced, as well as the fundamental ways that social life is lived. To understand this dual impact we have seen a wealth of theoretical innovation, with platform studies proven to be an immensely powerful instance (Gillespie, 2010; Van Dijck, et al., 2018). In an early work, Van Dijck supplies a key intervention when suggesting that techno-cultural constructs and socioeconomic structures should be integrated in an ecological approach to better capture “the mutual shaping of social media and the culture of connectivity” (Van Dijck, 2013, 26). In other words, intertwining cultural and economic analysis is key for understanding the current moment in which digital platforms, services and devices are of increasing importance to more and more aspects of society and everyday life.

In this analysis however, the question of the body as a somatic reality, a social construct, and a site of experience and contestation, is less clear. It is this intersection that this special issue of MedieKultur takes aim at. We invite submissions that combine analysis of platforms and the body.

Bodies as an situated site of experience has long been of interest to media and communication studies. Especially in works inspired by critical, feminist and queer theory (Sedgwick, 2003; Ahmed, 2004; Sullivan and Murray, 2009), and medical anthropology (Mol, 2002) is the body interrogated for the ways it mediates relations of technology, identity, sociality, and power. Because “the body” as an analytical unit is constructed in many different ways, its analysis also varies. Rather than adhere to one definition, however, we invite submissions that reflect such multiplicity, presenting different perspectives on the platformed body.

We ask that contributions engage with one or more of the following general questions:

* How do bodies emerge in relationship to platforms?

* What is the body’s relationship to platform content, technological infrastructure, and/or its user base?

* How do platform dynamics intersect with race, gender, sexuality, disability, and other categories of body and social distinction?

* What does attention to the body infuse into the theories of platform analysis?

We encourage contributions that explore such topics and questions including but not limited to:

* Health topics: self-monitoring, mediated health communications, counterpublic health, and health monitoring

* Sexuality: hookup apps, porn, media panics, and (de)platformization of sex

* Social media: celebrity, fandom, and influencers

* Fitness

* Food and nutrition

* Geographical Displacement: Platforms of refugee and immigrant life and movement

* Activism and resistance

* Non-human bodies: Robotics and animals

* Death and dying

Please submit an abstract of maximum 500 words (excluding references) by November 1st 2020 on MedieKultur’s website: http://www.tidsskrift.dk/…tur

Authors will be notified of their acceptance by November 6th 2020. The deadline for submission of full papers is March 1st 2021.

MedieKultur does not charge for submission, review or publishing articles, and no payment from the authors will be required.

Articles that are accepted for further process by the editors will go into peer-review in March 2021. We expect to have decisions on manuscripts and potential further revisions by May. The special issue will be published around December 2021.

Editors for this special issue are: Kristian Møller (IT University of Copenhagen): krimo@itu.dk and Maja Nordtug (University of Southern Denmark and Aarhus University): majan@sdu.dk.

Journal of Alternative & Community Media (Journal)

Deadline:

ISSN 26344726 , ONLINE ISSN 22065857

The Journal of Alternative & Community Media (JOACM) publishes research that helps explain the shifting media environment, and the ways in which people use alternative forms of media and communication. Issues of concern to the journal include the nature and distribution of media power; access to and participation in media; media practices of communities and social movements; and the possibilities of emerging technologies and new media.

Volumes 1–4 of JOACM are available Open Access

https://www.intellectbooks.com/…pdf

 This Special Issue of Journal of Alternative & Community Media is inspired by papers from the OURMedia gathering in Brussels, 2019; and the planned (but cancelled) post-conference to the ICA 2020, to submit papers on the theme, ‘Community and Activist Media: Resistance and Resurgence’.

Planned publication is September 2021. We call for academic papers alongside contributions from alternative media practitioners who will contribute to a Special Section, ‘Essays from the Frontline’.

From the resurgence of white supremacy and authoritarian rule to rapidly changing technologies and the rise of social media; and from the precarious state of journalism to state crackdowns on dissent and the ‘free press’, community and activist media face multiple ‘disruptions’ and challenges. While the twenty-first-century media environment offers increasing opportunities for ‘voice’, the challenges for community and activist media are practical, political and fundamental. At the same time that this is occurring in community and activist media, scholars in this field are often working at the intersection of research and activism, a theme explored in the 2019 OURMedia gathering.

This Special Issue will bring together engaged scholars to explore the challenges and opportunities for community and activist media at a time of unprecedented pressures – considering new resurgences and enhanced opportunities for resistance. Additionally, paper proposals at the intersection of research and activism are most welcome; and by extension, papers that draw connections between scholarly activism (scholactivism) and media activism, emanating from a key theme of the OURMedia conference, are also sought.

Key questions to be explored include:

• What is the role of activist and community media in contemporary social justice struggles – including anti-racist work in the context of resurgent racisms and intersectional work in the context of anti-feminist backlash? What are the possibilities for resistance and transformation?
• How can we best analyse and respond to white supremacist and far-right media? How do community and alternative media enable voices that are marginalized or excluded from the ‘mainstream’ to be heard – what can we learn (or not ) from their practices?
• What is the role and value of established ‘community’ media when social media platforms enable a proliferation of voice?
• What have we learned from the legacy of platforms such as Indymedia, and how can this inform our structures, agendas and goals for the future?
• How does one integrate activism and scholarship? What are the tensions between the ‘scientific’ needs of research and commitments to social change and social justice?
• What is the state of news and current affairs – including news journalisms and issues-based talks programming – at a time of both technological and professional ‘disruption’?

• What does ‘community’ or ‘alternative’ media mean in the current digital media environment, which features a proliferation of non-mainstream voices?

The Special Issue welcomes participation from researchers and practitioners across community and activist media very broadly defined – including alternative media in all its guises, community media interventions, alternative journalism initiatives, citizens media, media activism and more. No APCs are charged. Media activists and other practitioners who wish to contribute should contact Susan Forde directly (s.forde@griffith.edu.au) to discuss an alternative ‘Essays from the Frontline’ format to complement the suite of academic papers to be published in this Special Issue.

Abstracts should be submitted by 1 October 2020

Full articles are due 10 December 2020

Reviews will be sent to authors by 15 February 2021

Revised manuscripts are due 30 April 2021

Article acceptances notified 30 June 2021

Publication September 2021

Please send your abstracts to the guest editors.

Guest Editors: 

Tanja Dreher, University of New South Wales, Australia, t.dreher@unsw.edu.au

Pieter Maeseele University of Antwerp, Belgium pieter.maeseele@uantwerpen.be

Susan Forde Griffith University, Australia, s.forde@griffith.edu.au

April 22-23, 2021, 2020

Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) or online platform

Deadline: 30 November 2020 (abstract submission)

Convenors and Prospective Editors: Anissa Maâ (Université libre de Bruxelles), Julia Van Dessel (Université libre de Bruxelles), Amandine Van Neste-Gottignies (Université libre de Bruxelles)

Scientific Committee: Pierluigi Musarò (University of Bologna), Antoine Pécoud (Université Sorbonne Paris Nord), Anne-Line Rodriguez (Queen Mary University of London), Melissa Wall (California State University - Northridge)

Venue: 22-23 April 2021, 

Objectives:

Throughout their changing routes and precarious stays, migrants are increasingly targeted by information campaigns, everyday communication strategies, and less formal practices of advice and orientation. Led by governmental actors and diverse migration intermediaries, these communication practices intend - in a context of migration control - to act upon migrant's knowledge and perceptions, and ultimately to frame their agency and itineraries. Nevertheless, the efficiency of these communication strategies is not given, as migrants can oppose exogenous discourses and define their own informational practices. Accordingly, this workshop has two main objectives. On the one hand, it aims to explore the various discourses and communication strategies directed towards migrants and/or asylum seekers in countries of origin, transit and destination. On the other hand, it aims to highlight the endogenous informational practices defined by migrants throughout their journey.

Argument:

Since the 1990s, Western governments and international organisations have been supporting the implementation of so-called “information” or “awareness-raising” campaigns in migrants’ countries of origin and transit. Despite the questionable  impact of such campaigns on migrants’ behavior (Bishop, 2020; Brekke and Thorbjørnsrud, 2018; Browne, 2015; Schans and Optekamp, 2016; Oeppen, 2016), their development has peaked in the last decade – notably at the instigation of the International Organization for Migrations (IOM). In the literature, deterrence campaigns have been interpreted as policy instruments of border externalisation, aiming “to inscribe in potential migrants’ subjectivities the borders the EU [European Union] fails to control on the ground” (Heller, 2014). By highlighting the risks of the journey and/or the opportunities available “at home”, these campaigns promote a “culture of immobility” (Pécoud, 2010) within departure regions or encourage migrants to return from destination or transit countries (Van Neste-Gottignies, 2018). Doing so, they contribute to the “moralization” of migration by establishing the nation-state system as the ultimate reference to assess the legitimacy of cross-border mobilities (Watkins, 2020).

Nevertheless, the implementation of these deterrence campaigns remains largely disputed on the ground. Pro-migrant groups, non-governmental organisations and charity actors sometimes support the diffusion of alternative narratives which can “counter, contradict or even parody those coming from conservative tiers of the state” (Wall, 2019). In the meantime, international humanitarian actors led by compassionate feelings can engage in the dissemination of depreciatory representations of migration and the promotion of anti-migratory measures (Musarò, 2019; Maâ, 2020; Van Dessel & Pécoud, 2020). Moreover, local figures looking for symbolic and material resources - including artists, religious authorities and the youth - can appropriate and subvert such initiatives (Rodriguez 2017). Besides, migrants themselves and so-called “community-based” agents can be co-opted by governmental and international actors in order to reach the target audience more efficiently. Yet, while these actors share social capital with migrants, their intermediation can simultaneously lead to the transformation of the message they are meant to spread (Maâ, 2020).

Finally, migrants and asylum seekers are far from being mere recipients of exogenous discourses. While some of them can experience a form of “information precarity” exposing them to further violence throughout their journey (Wall et al., 2015), they generally show their ability to create and select alternative channels of information. They do so through the mobilisation of social and family networks and the use of new communication technologies, especially when they harbour a certain suspicion towards information provided by official authorities (Gillespie et al., 2018). Accordingly, the capacity of migrants and asylum seekers to translate institutional discourses and to define endogenous informational practices must be considered seriously. Therefore, it appears crucial to investigate to what extent communication strategies and informational practices give rise to highly contested processes, where heterogeneous actors, discourses, and interests, can combine and sometimes oppose.

In this perspective, the workshop and journal special issue will be structured around three analytical and complementary axes:

1. Who says what to migrants?

Discourses and/or counter narratives designed by actors invested in the migration field, including representations and moral economies conveyed by these discourses.

2. How is it disseminated on the field?

Communication strategies implemented to reach and convince the target audience - including the material and human channels used on the ground - and their interaction and transformation in specific local contexts.

3. How is it perceived by migrants?

Informational practices defined by migrants and asylum seekers, and their perception and reappropriation of information-disseminating initiatives.

Contributions:

Given the interdisciplinary nature of the issues raised, the organisers wish to expand discussions beyond communication studies, and will especially welcome contributions rooted in political science, sociology, anthropology, history, social psychology and more broadly social sciences. Submissions based on qualitative research method and fieldwork are particularly encouraged, and so are contributions by junior researchers (advanced PhD students, postdocs). Case studies concerning all geographic areas are welcomed.

Abstracts (up to 300 words) mentioning academic affiliations should be sent to the following address: whatdowesaytomigrants@gmail.com. Abstracts will be selected by the organisers based on four main criteria:

1. Relevance to the topic and axes of the conference

2. Use of and contribution to theory

3. Quality of research methodology

4. Originality and/or thought-provoking nature of the contribution

Draft versions of full papers will be read and commented by an appointed member of the scientific committee.

Timeline:

• 30 November 2020: deadline abstract submission
• 15 January 2021: notification of acceptance
• 8 March 2021: full draft papers submission
• 22-23 April 2021: seminar (format depending upon the sanitary context)

Bibliography:

Bishop, 2020, An International Analysis of Governmental Media Campaigns

to Deter Asylum Seekers, in International Journal of Communication, 14(2020). URL: file:///C:/Users/ThinkPad/Downloads/Bishop_campaigns_to_deter_migrants.pdf

Brekke and Thorbjørnsrud, 2018, Communicating borders - Governments deterring asylum seekers through social media campaigns, in Migration Studies, 8(1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/migration/mny027

Browne, 2015, Impact of communication campaigns to deter irregular migration, GSDRC. URL: https://gsdrc.org/publications/impact-of-communication-campaigns-to-deter-irregularmigration/

Heller, 2014, Perception management – Deterring potential migrants through information campaigns, in Global Media and communication, 10(3). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1742766514552355

Gillespie et al., 2018, Syrian refugees and the digital passage to Europe: Smartphone infrastructures and affordance, in Social Media + Society, 4(1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305118764440

Maâ, 2020, Manufacturing collaboration in the deportation field: intermediation and the institutionalisation of the International Organisation for Migration’s ‘voluntary return’ programmes in Morocco, in Journal of North African Studies. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13629387.2020.1800210

Musarò, 2019, Aware Migrants: The role of information campaigns in the management of migration, in European Journal of Communication, 34(6), DOI: 10.1177/0267323119886164

Oeppen, 2016, ‘Leaving Afghanistan! Are you sure?’ European efforts to deter potential migrants through information campaigns, in Human Geography, 9(14). URL: http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/id/eprint/61744/1/Oeppen%202016%20Info%20campaigns%20paper%20pre-proofs.pdf

Pécoud, 2010, Informing Migrants to Manage Migration? An Analysis of IOM’s Information Campaigns, in Geiger, M., Pécoud, A. (Eds.), The Politics of International Migration Management, Palgrave Macmillan UK, London, pp. 184–201.

Rodriguez, 2017, European attempts to govern African youths by raising awareness of the risks of migration: ethnography of an encounter, in Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 45(5). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2017.1415136

Schans and Optekamp, 2016, Raising awareness, changing behavior? Combating Irregular Migration through Information Campaigns, Nederland Ministerie van Veiligheid en Justitie (Netherlands Ministry of Justice and Security), 39p.

Van Dessel & Pécoud, 2020, A NGO’s dilemma: rescuing migrants at sea or keeping them in their place? [Online]. URL: https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/research-subject-groups/centre-criminology/centreborder-cr iminologies/blog/2020/04/ngos-dilemma

Van Neste-Gottignies, 2018, Que dit-on aux migrants ? La communication dans les centres d’accueil en Belgique, in Hermès, La Revue, 82(3). URL: https://www.cairn-int.info/revue-hermes-la-revue-2018-3-page-41.htm

Wall, 2019, Inducing Information Precarity: State Messaging and Refugees, [Unpublished].

Wall et al., 2015. Syrian refugees and information precarity, in New Media & Society, 19(2). DOI: 10.1177/1461444815591967

Watkins, 2020, Irregular migration, borders, and the moral geographies of migration management, in Environment and Planning C: Politics and Space, 38(6). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/2399654420915607

University of Sheffield

There are two ring-fenced PhD studentships for Black British students available via the White Rose Doctoral Training Partnership (https://wrdtp.ac.uk/ ) for 2020/21. 

We welcome applications for these studentships in the Department of Sociological Studies at the University of Sheffield, especially to study with members of our Digital Media and Society team, who have expertise across a range of methodologies and research areas. In particular, our fantastic colleague Dr Ros Williams (https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/…ams) welcomes expressions of interest or applications in the areas of race, mixed-ness, health and digital and social media.

If you know of anybody who might be interested in this opportunity, please encourage them to get in touch with Ros at r.g.williams@sheffield.ac.uk to discuss possible research ideas.

Deadline for studentship applications is the end of January 2021. This is a two-stage process, with acceptance onto our departmental PhD programme required before studentship applications can be submitted, so please encourage potential students to get in touch as soon as possible.

Further details on the scheme can be found here: https://wrdtp.ac.uk/…ds/

University of Zurich,  Department of Communication and Media Research (IKMZ)

The doctoral position is based in the division "International and Comparative Communication Research" headed by Professor Frank Esser. This division is part of the Department of Communication and Media Research at the University of Zurich (IKMZ). The department offers an outstanding research and teaching environment, a wide range of work areas and an inspiring intellectual climate.

Your responsibilities

Completion of a dissertation in three to four years

Collaborating in existing projects and developing new projects with members of the team "International and Comparative Communication Research"

Research and teaching in innovative areas of political communication, digital journalism, news audience research and neighboring areas

Teaching in German at BA level

Your profile

Excellent Master's degree in Communication Studies

Strong interest in international comparative communication research

Experience with quantitative methods and data analysis (e.g. content analysis, surveys, experiments); interest in computational methods

Fluent in English and German

What we offer

An outstanding research and teaching Environment

A wide range of work areas and an inspiring intellectual climate

A culture of cooperation and mutual support

Excellent opportunities for national and international networking

Place of work

Andreasstrasse 15, 8050 Zurich

Start of employment

Start of employment is November 1, 2020 or later

Please send us the following documents through the button below:

A letter of motivation addressing the match between your profile and the position

• Curriculum Vitae
• 1-2 page outline of potential dissertation idea that could fit the division's profile
• Copies of transcripts, degrees, relevant certificates
• A full text example of a representative academic work (e.g. MA thesis)

Deadline: October 23, 2020

Further information

Prof. Dr. Frank Esser

Apply here: https://jobs.uzh.ch/offene-stellen/research-and-teaching-assistant/a3eba080-3914-44ac-ab1f-cd7f0734d403?fbclid=IwAR0ytv3owRePejTCTD80PfuDKFeGsxMECNWeC0lzrUFBWX7Z5d9OLRXNPOQ

December 4, 2020

University of applied sciences Kufstein Tyrol (Kufstein, Austria)

Deadline: October 10, 2020

Online academic conference “Trends in Business Communication 2020” (TIBCOM), December 4th, 2020.

Launched in 2013, our academic conference “Trends in Business Communication” (TIBCOM) has developed over the years into a benchmark in the scientific marketing and communication scene in Austria. Every year, scientific issues and case studies in the field of communication and marketing are being dealt with at the conference.

This year for the first time we are organising an online only conference with the focus on scientific research in the fields of Marketing and Communication. A peer review process ensures the quality of the submitted contributions. All accepted full papers will be published in a conference proceedings at the prestigious publisher Springer Gabler.

Please refer to the detailed Call for Papers and your options for participating in the Download Center at the bottom of this page (https://www.fhkufstein.ac.at/eng/Events/TIBCOM-2020).

We are looking forward to welcoming you in Kufstein!