ECREA WEEKLY digest ARTICLES

Centre for English Corpus Linguistics (CECL, UCLouvain, Belgium)

The Centre for English Corpus Linguistics (CECL, UCLouvain, Belgium) has an opening for a PhD fellowship for a total period of four years, starting 1 October 2020.

The position is part of a large multidisciplinary project that aims to investigate socio-cognitive conflicts in online educational platforms via the prism of several theoretical frameworks from the humanities and social sciences: “MOOCresearch2.0: A mixed-method and multidisciplinary approach to socio-cognitive conflicts in online educational platforms” (Prof. M. Frenay, Prof. F. Lambotte, Dr. Magali Paquot & Prof. V. Swaen).(Open) online education poses a variety of challenges for higher education, one of which is how to foster social interactions and induce beneficial socio-cognitive conflicts to promote learning in an environment where interactions are primarily written and asynchronous. In educational research, socio-cognitive conflicts are considered essential for progress and learning to take place: they are differences in point of view that are socially experienced and cognitively resolved. As put by Darnon, Buchs, & Butera (2002, p. 140), “confrontation with a partner creates a double imbalance. This imbalance is both social (inter-individual) because it is a discrepancy between two persons, and cognitive (intra-individual) because it makes each individual doubt about his/her own answer. (…) In order to coordinate the different points of view, a cognitive work emerges from this socio-cognitive conflict, reading to a more elaborate level of reasoning” (see https://uclouvain.be/…tml [1] for more info).

Online education is becoming increasingly popular but is mainly offered in English. Research in bilingual education and content and language integrated learning (CLIL) has shown that new disciplinary concepts are not acquired as well in the foreign language as in the first language. This is especially true for concepts that cannot be directly observed or related to what learners already know, and which comprehension largely relies on linguistic mediation (e.g. Babault & Markey, 2001), and for students with lower foreign language proficiency who find it almost impossible to describe disciplinary concepts in English (e.g. Airey, 2009). Studies have also shown that results of evaluative tasks performed in a foreign language are largely dependent on L2 proficiency (Ventura, 2016). If we transpose these findings to online education, and MOOCs more particularly (as they aim to increase access to education, cf. Rohs & Ganz, 2015), it seems particularly important to investigate whether non-native speakers find in discussion forums a place where to check comprehension, ask for clarification, and discuss concepts in social interactions.

The main objective of the PhD project will be to investigate the effect of language status (native speaker vs. learner) and language proficiency on negotiation of meaning and the unfolding of socio-cognitive conflicts in asynchronous forum discussion boards. The following questions will guide the research programme:

• To what extent are non-native speakers present on forum discussions? What role do they take? How does this compare with native speakers’ presence and assumed roles?
• To what extent do non-native speakers negotiate meaning with a view to resolve a misunderstanding due to language problems vs. content-related and cognitive problems?
• To what extent do non-native speakers take part in the richer content-based interactions that can potentially give rise to socio-cognitive conflicts and learning?
• To what extent does language proficiency impact non-native speakers’ online presence, the range of roles they assume, the type of discussions they are involved in, and the types of posts they write?
• To answer the research questions, the candidate will rely primarily on techniques from corpus linguistics and natural language processing.

Job description:

The candidate will work under the supervision of Magali Paquot (CECL, Institute for Language and Communication). The candidate will be affiliated to the Institut Langage et Communication (ILC, UCLouvain) and be a member of the CECL.

The PhD candidate will also be working in a multidisciplinary environment with other researchers from the Social Media Lab (https://www.socialmedialab.be/ [2]), the Interdisciplinary Research Group in Socialisation, Education and Training (GIRSEF,https://uclouvain.be/fr/chercher/girsef [3]), the Louvain Research Institute in Management and Organizations(LOURIM, https://uclouvain.be/…rim [4]) and the Centre for Natural Language Processing (CENTAL, https: //uclouvain.be/…tal [5]).

Activities that the candidate will perform include:

-develop and implement (i) theoretical concepts in line with the focus of the research project and (ii) appropriate methodological procedures for investigating these concepts;

-extract relevant data from MOOC platforms with appropriate computational and NLP techniques (note that the PhD candidate will be expected to help other members of the team with data extraction and structuring)

-conduct analyses of forum posts by L1 and L2 speakers of English;

-interpret the results of the analyses and report on the project in conference presentations and academic publications;

-by the end of the four-year term, submit and defend a PhD dissertation based on the project.

Requirements and profile:

- Master degree in (Applied) Linguistics, with a master thesis on a topic relevant to the project;

- excellent record of BA and MA level study;

- excellent command of English;

- good command of French is an asset but not required;

- excellent and demonstrated analytic skills;

- knowledge of corpus-linguistic techniques is a requirement;

- knowledge of statistics and statistical software is an asset;

- programming skills in Perl or Python are also an asset (if no expertise in programming, the candidate should be willing to learn Python during the first year);

- excellent and demonstrated self-management skills, ability and willingness to work in a team;

- willingness to live in Belgium and to travel abroad (to attend international academic conferences, etc).

Terms of employment:

- the contract will initially be for one year, three times renewable, with a total of four years;

- the candidate receives a doctoral fellowship grant (starting at approx. EUR 1982 netper month) and full medical insurance;

- the position requires residence in Belgium, preferably in or near Louvain-la-Neuve;

- applicants from outside the EU are responsible for obtaining the necessary visa or permits, with the assistance of UCLouvain staff department.

Application Deadline: 31 July 2020

Please include with your application:

- a cover letter in English, in which you specify why you are interested in this position and how you meet the job requirements outlined above;

- a curriculum vitae in English;

- a concise academic statement in French or English, in which you outline your expectations about and plans for graduate study and career goals;

- a copy of BA and MA diplomas and degrees;

- a copy of your master thesis and academic publications (if applicable);

- the names and full contact details of two academic referees.

Shortlisted candidates will be invited for an interview (in situ or via video conferencing) in the second half of August 2020. Applications (as an email attachment) and inquiries should be addressed to:

Dr. Magali

Paquot

Centre for English Corpus Linguistics

Université Catholique de Louvain

Edited collection

The Centre for Intercultural Studies is pulling together an Edited Collection called Intercultural Studies for Business: Concepts and Dialogues across Shifting Spaces and we would like to invite you to consider submitting one or more chapters.

This edited volume explores how the promotion, marketing and branding of culture led to the development of economic strategies, e.g. through creative industries and cultural tourism. Our challenge resides precisely on how culture-based initiatives can be used to boost the creation of business opportunities and enhance added value to the economy. This book explores and contextualizes intercultural western and non-western theories, paradigms, and practices, in order to sustain independent, ecological and critical methodologies for business. By articulating principles, theories, structures, performances and aesthetics, across different cultures and communication channels, the networks of cultural codes and practices emerge and are critically observed, blurring conceptual frontiers and challenging conventional criteria of cultural and business legitimation.

A Chapter should normally be no longer than 6000 words, and should be original and previously unpublished. If the work has already been published (as a journal article, or in conference proceedings, for example), the Publisher will require evidence that permission to be re-published has been granted.

To see the Call on the Publisher’s website, please click here, where you can download and complete a submission form.

Looking forward to reading your chapters.

December 12 - 19, 2020

Online

Deadline: September 30, 2020

Punk Scholars Network Annual Conference

A virtual, online, global conference spanning eight days is being brought together by the Punk Scholars Network – be a part of it.

Punk is a truly global phenomenon that manifests in myriad ways in different scenes, political regimes, cultural contexts and individual experiences. Punk is many things to many people and seldom remains static over a lifetime. Increased globalisation, changes in connectivity and technology, and shifts in both capitalism and populism have impacted punk for better and worse. International and intranational punk scenes and connections are growing and finding commonality and conflict through music, education, mutual aid, performance, political activism and human behaviours. The global Coronavirus pandemic has laid bare the differences people face accessing resources and how governments respond. How have, and how will, various local punk scenes respond to this crisis, and what does their response tell us about punk as a global phenomenon?

The current Punk Scholars Network series Global Punk has attempted to capture the spread and variance of punk across the world (Bestley, Dines, Gordon & Guerra 2019, 2020; Bestley, Dines, Gordon, Grimes & Guerra 2021). Gabriel Kuhn’s (2019) work on Straight Edge punk experiences has been based upon interviews with straight edge punks around the world, exploring different aspects of their experiences, attitudes, and activism. The journal Punk & Post-Punk regularly features contributions from punk scholars in a variety of geographical locations and settings. With these efforts, and others, serving as a base we are seeking to hold an entirely virtual conference that explores, examines and critically engages with punk scholars around the globe. Each PSN region will be responsible for one day over an eight day period and will include some academic papers or panels responding to this call for papers.

Taking global punk seriously as a theme means considering the variety of experiences within local, national and international punk communities. This conference takes place against the backdrop of increased political authoritarianism and a noticeable rise in racial and religious intolerance across the world more generally, and under the guise of responses to the global pandemic more specifically. We must consider what impact these issues have – good and bad – on punk scenes and individuals. To do this together, we are asking to what extent is punk a helpful means or a hindrance in considering identity and ‘being’ within wider social problems, dynamics, and understandings?

In line with the broad view being taken on the theme of global punk and in keeping with the PSN’s wide ranging academic reach, we are seeking contributions from a range of interdisciplinary areas, including, but not limited to: cultural studies, musicology, ethnography, art and design, humanities, performing arts, and the social sciences. Papers and panels could cover the following themes, (list is by no means exhaustive):

• Globalisation of new media, communications, social networking, internet
• Ethnographic considerations of scene/space and borders
• Political appropriation: re-definitions of ‘anarchism’, ‘ecology’ and anti-authoritarianism
• What role does exogenous and endogenous appropriation have in punk politics, resistance and allegiance around the world?
• In what ways does gender, ethnicity, race, sexuality, disability, class, religious beliefs, and cultural norms shape punk around the world?
• Notion of local/national/international ‘scene’, tribes, counterculture/subculture
• Importation and exportation of punk as a commodity, statement, academic discourse
• Music and the performer: creativity, authorship, identity, problems with definition, crossing musical boundaries.
• Reception: DIY culture, activism.
• Lifestyle: crustpunk, squatter, vegetarianism, animal rights, straight edge etc within different cultural contexts.
• The art of punk: record covers and associated graphic styles.

Punk Scholars Network events and conferences usually mix the conventionally “scholarly” with the more informal or “organic” intellectualism which punks often display. We therefore invite proposals of a non-standard type, including films, performances, Q and As with punks or punk performers and other creative mediums. In other words, you are welcomed and wanted to be a part of this global conference so please don’t worry if you’ve never set foot in a university.

It is intended that this will be an online conference spanning eight days, from December 12th until December 19th 2020 inclusive. Each region with a PSN affiliate is responsible for programming one day. The planned schedule is as follows:

• Saturday 12th December: PSN France
• Sunday 13th December: PSN UK and rest of EU
• Monday 14th December: PSN Australia/Aotearoa (NZ)
• Tuesday 15th December: PSN Indonesia
• Wednesday 16th December: PSN USA
• Thursday 17th December: PSN Iberia
• Friday 18th December: PSN EU and UK
• Saturday 19th December: PSN Colombia

The affiliates will put together a mixed programme for their day based on a mixture of submissions and connections with local punk scenes. If you wish to take part, please submit your proposal to the relevant affiliate, if there is not one in your immediate geographical region then please submit it to the affiliate that aligns with your time zone for ease of inclusion. Proposals should be 350 words maximum (or equivalent, 3 minutes if a video clip for example) and do not have to be in English, please feel that you can use the language of your region if you wish. Proposals should be submitted to the following affiliated branches of the Punk Scholars Network:

• Australia and Aotearoa (NZ), proposals to samantha.bennett@anu.edu.au
• Colombia, proposals to punkscholarsnetworkcolombia@gmail.com
• UK and the rest of Europe, proposals to psnconference2020@gmail.com (we can support proposals/presentations in French or German and will try to support other languages if we can)
• Iberia, proposals to punkscholarsnetworkiberia@gmail.com
• Indonesia, proposals to psnindonesia15@gmail.com
• USA and Canada, proposals to punkscholarsusa@gmail.com

by 30th September 2020 for consideration.

Successful submissions will be notified by 15th October 2020, all submissions will be responded to by 28th October 2020.

MeCCSA Postgraduate Network, Networking Knowledge

Deadline: September 1, 2020

The official publication of the MeCCSA Postgraduate Network, Networking Knowledge, invites abstracts for an upcoming Special Issue on Climate, Creatures and COVID-19: Environment and Animals in 21st Century Media Discourse. This is a fully indexed, open-access peer-reviewed journal, featuring content from postgraduate and early career researchers. The deadline for abstracts is 1st September 2020.

Please see full details of the call below. These can also be found at the following link https://www.ojs.meccsa.org.uk/index.php/netknow/announcement/view/48

We hope to feature original contributions from across disciplines and from as diverse a scholarship as possible, and would be very grateful if you could share this call widely.

Any questions or queries should be directed to rebecca.jones@strath.ac.uk

Special Issue of Sociology of Health and Illness journal and edited monograph

Deadline: August 21, 2020

The annual Sociology of Health and Illness journal monograph is this year focused on 'methodological complicity'. We are interested in scholarly reflections from beyond sociology, and would welcome contributions from media and communications scholars exploring health related issues. Global inequalities, colonial legacies, and the innumerable power imbalances striating the social world have never been more pertinent to social studies of health and illness. It is thus vital to interrogate how exactly we research these issues, as well as the ethics and politics of knowledge production relating to them. We ask, what problematic and productive complicities might we as researchers engage in as we endeavour to produce this knowledge? We understand ‘complicity’ as a broad, explorative term for thinking through the methodological politics of contemporary sociological research into health and illness.

READ MORE: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/pb-assets/SHI%20CfP%20July%202020-1594196597780.pdf

The University of Sydney

The University of Sydney is seeking to appoint two senior academic leaders at the level of Professor/Associate Professor in Media an Communications (1 x Journalism and 1 x Digital Cultures Specialisation). The advertisements are live on the University of Sydney website for these roles (see links below). The closing date for applications is Sunday 2 August 2020.

Professor or Associate Professor in Media and Communications (Digital Cultures Specialisation)

Professor or Associate Professor in Media and Communications (Journalism Specialisation)

A candidate information brochure is available via download from these pages. Please consider applying to join us in the Department of Media and Communications. We are a great collegial team of researchers and teachers and our department is going through a period of expansion. We have a particular focus on digital media and digital cultures scholarship.

https://www.sydney.edu.au/…tml

Special Issue of the Journal of Digital Media & Policy 

Deadline: November 20, 2020

ISSN 2516-3523 | Online ISSN 2516-3531

3 issues per volume | First published in 2010

Guest Editors

• Preeti Raghunath - Symbiosis International University (SIU), India, preetimalaraghunath@gmail.com
• Susan Koshy - Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, sude37@gmail.com

Deadlines

• Abstracts of 400 words to be received by 20 November 2020.
• Full manuscripts of 6–8,000 words, including references, by 30 June 2021.
• Final papers to be sent to the publisher by 1 December 2021.

Call for papers

The diverse and rapidly expanding media systems of the South Asian region accentuate its vast cultural diversity and various stages of democracy. The interaction between these structures presents interesting examples of how they impact the corresponding national media policies.

It becomes pertinent to understand how these policies are influenced by the hyper-nationalistic and protectionist rhetoric currently sweeping different parts of the world, further exacerbated by the ongoing pandemic. At the same time, the rapidly growing presence and consequent influence of global digital media networks further confound this relationship, as they are greatly interested in the expansion of media infrastructure in the region to tap into the potential of new markets. Additionally, the changing geopolitics of the region with an increasing presence of the Chinese state and private investments in all sector  including digital media, present a new stakeholder in the media policie  of the region.

We identify South Asia not just as a geographic region, but one with cultural and socio-economic continuities. Thus, we also focus on the pressures and pulls of the countries on each other. While initiatives like the People’s South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) are useful in delineating the region as a separate block, various issues have repeatedly highlighted the limits of these strategic regional markers. This was witnessed in the Rohingya refugee crisis of Myanmar, which is officially not a part of SAARC, but one that inevitably involves both India and Bangladesh. The Indian media’s hyper-nationalist response to this crisis reflected the heightening protectionist rhetoric that has become commonplace, while also seeing an increasing amount of foreign investments flowing into its media sectors.

Meanwhile, the influence of Indian broadcast media in Nepalese media markets seek to problematize its conceptions of sovereignty (Raghunath, 2020). Bangladesh’s politicocommercial nexus has brought to the fore the practice of informal networks (Rahman, 2020). Sri Lanka has been a pioneer in communitybased broadcasting and internet-based community experiments, even as neoliberal policies and the end of the civil war have transformed the media landscape. Pakistan’s trysts with military rule and now, a civilian government has shaped the media in the country. Afghanistan’s war has meant that international media development agencies have been involved in media training and development in the country.

Myanmar’s tryst with authoritarian majoritarianism and Bhutan’s monarchy have their own influences on the media landscape in the countries. What are the effects of these ongoing political and economic shifts on media policy in South Asia? Will these changes reflect differently on the media content and infrastructure markets? Given that the nature of relationships between South Asian countries have been rapidly changing due to the influence of China, how does this reflect on the media policies? In this special issue, we seek to explore empirical and theoretical aspects of media policies in South Asia. We seek to engage with works that analyze media policies in the region, or contribute to pedagogy pertaining to the study of media policy with a focus on South Asia. The scholarship on media policy in South Asia currently draws primarily on ideas and methodologies from the Global North, especially in terms of regulatory systems. We especially look forward to decolonial approaches and theoretical perspectives to the study of media policies in the region. We welcome submissions that go beyond the study of India as synonymous with the idea of South Asia, for adequate regional rumination.

Therefore, contributors are invited to address issues such as

• socio-economic and cultural aspects of broadcasting in the region;
• platform and gig economies in the region;
• digital media economy in South Asia;
• datafication of South Asia;
• community-centric broadcasting in the region;
• telecommunication policies and foreign direct investment;
• international engagement and cooperation in multilateral forums;
• urbanism and smart cities as practices of media policies;
• public interest and normative ideals;
• decolonial approaches to the study of media policies in South Asia.

To download the full Call for Papers, click here: https://www.intellectbooks.com/…pdf

November 11-13, 2020

Valencia (Spain)

Deadline: July 25, 2020

CFP Mediaflows Conference

In order to present a paper, 250-word proposals should be sent through the specific section form to which it is addressed until July 25, 2020.

http://mediaflows.es/…rs/

The conference accepts papers in Spanish and English.

Considering the health circumstances facing Covid-19, the conference will have a semi-virtual character.

SECTIONS

The conference includes six sections, whose specific cfp can be accessed on the website http://mediaflows.es/…rs/

1. Institutional crisis, democratic representation and media coverage.

2. Media consumption, and audiences in hybrid media systems.

3. Democratic values in times of populism and emotion: communication and leadership.

4. Strategy and democratic game: Surveys, pacts and political majority.

5. Research on hate discourse and disinformation.

6. Nuts and bolts of the power: Reality and fiction.

PUBLISHING

A selection of the accepted proposals will be published in a special edition of the Dígitos journal (www.revistadigitos.es), whose deadline for submission ends on December 15, 2020. Other publishing options will be shortly announced on the conference website.

DEADLINES

• July 25, 2020: the deadline for sending abstract proposals is closed.
• July 31, 2020: communication of accepted papers.
• September 15: Registration and fees payment opening.
• November 1: deadline for sending complete proposals.
• November 11, 12 and 13, 2020: Conference celebration.

Queen’s University Belfast

Ref: 20/108274

Arts, English and Languages

The school of Arts, English and Languages seeks to appoint a Lecturer (Education) to teach at undergraduate level covering modules in the Subject Area of Film Studies and Production. The successful candidate will deliver all material on core module Introduction to Film Studies (level 1), and optional modules British Cinema (level 2) and British Film (level 3). It is anticipated that the appointee will cover a first year introductory module and offer subject level expertise for the higher level modules. On appointment, you will design and deliver teaching and assessment activities for three modules within Film Studies including lectures, setting/marking coursework, practice workshops, and fieldwork to undergraduates and postgraduates and will contribute to Area and School administration/outreach activity.

This post is available for a period of six months.

For full job details and criteria please see the Candidate Information link on our website: https://hrwebapp.qub.ac.uk/tlive_webrecruitment/wrd/run/ETREC107GF.open?VACANCY_ID=691522DUSP&WVID=6273090Lgx&LANG=USA____

Fixed term contract posts are available for the stated period in the

first instance but, in particular circumstances, may be renewed or made permanent, subject to availability of funding. 

The University is committed to equality of opportunity and to selection on merit. We welcome applications from all sections of society and particularly from people with a disability. 

ECREA´S 8th European Communication Conference

September 6-9, 2021

University of Minho

We would like to inform you that in consultation with the Local Organising Committee, the ECREA Executive Board has approved new dates for the 8th European Communication Conference: 6-9 September 2021.

The conference was scheduled for 2-5 October 2020 but we had to make the uneasy decision to postpone. The different timelines and strategies of gradual withdrawal of pandemic prevention measures adopted by individual European countries have made it impossible to organise the event according to our standards of academic quality and hospitality.

Planning of the postponed event will protect all the work already done in the creation of the conference's scientific programme. The review process has been concluded and the acceptance of papers and panels remains in place for the postponed conference. Over the next months, the organization department will contact all authors to confirm the approved status of previous submissions. The conference calendar will be revised and new important dates will be announced on the conference website.

We are working to prepare a safe and rewarding conference for all participants. Conferences should be exceptional moments for greater integration into our rich and diverse field for scholars of all ages, groups and research interests.

We are looking forward to seeing you in Braga from the 6th to the 9th of September 2021.

ECREA and the Communication and Society Research Centre of University of Minho are delighted to host the 8th European Communication Conference (ECC). The Conference has chosen the key theme ‘Communication and trust: building safe, sustainable and promising futures. Organisers call for proposals addressing (but not limited to) the main conference theme and relating to ECREA Sections, Networks or Temporary Working Groups.

Conference theme

What futures are we building up? What is the role of media and communication in these processes? Considering the pace of technological change and the way it is reshaping economy and culture, what type of adaptations and commitments are being asked of citizens and to what extent are institutions and policy makers engaged in achieving solutions that are both progressive and sustainable? What type of social, political and cultural futures are media and communication inducing and modelling? What relations exist between them and what are their main normative cornerstones? These are questions of critical interest for the 2020 ECREA conference. Scholars are invited to question the relevance of communication studies in face of societal challenges today and for generations to come.

Acceleration, speed and technological development are present in all dimensions of life, everywhere and at every level. Global forms of culture and global market dynamics are intensely shaping the nature of citizens’ lives and altering the way they think and relate to institutions. Trust is being eroded; some of its building blocks, such as communication for freedom, empowerment, development, and democratization are being reconfigured and gaining multiple and often contradictory meanings. Thereby, creating new inequalities and vulnerabilities in Europe and around the world whilst institutions seem weaker, more ineffective or late in their reactions.

There is a general academic perception that citizens everywhere are now inhabiting spaces of higher suspicion, uncertainty and privacy invasion at different levels of their life, which make them easy prey for different types of power brokers. Many relevant questions in communication studies can be addressed regarding ways in which fear, uncertainty, and social isolation affect citizens according to structuring variables such as race, ethnicity, gender or age.

If citizens are experiencing this general state of ontological insecurity, politicians and institutions appear to hesitate in the face of emergent problems requiring systemic, determined and eventually global scale well-sought answers. Climate change and environment urgencies are obviously requiring new insights from the media and communication field with particular attention to medium and long-term effects of human actions. The proactive actions of citizens and social movements also deserve particular attention.

Scholars are defied to address emerging responsibilities of the media and communication field vis-à-vis new social and environmental asymmetries. The quality of public information is obviously key to this debate. What role should the media play deconstruing technological determinisms and finding paths to increase trust, confidence and safety? How to manage the relationships between the local and the global so that internet giants’ activities do not govern the common symbolic environment? How to improve transparency and the defence of the public interest, and what type of public interest is still possible to identify? By proposing the theme ‘Communication and trust: building safe, sustainable and promising futures’, the conference should provide an opportunity to diagnose, discuss and rethink the role and responsibilities of academics and professionals in the reading of present circumstances and in the anticipation of future challenges.

Please consult our guidelines for submission here: http://www.ecrea2020braga.eu/2019/10/09/http-www-ecrea2020braga-eu-call-for-papers/