ECREA WEEKLY digest ARTICLES

Deadlines:

Expressions of interest/Initial abstracts (max. 300 words) and short biographical note (max. 100 words) are due on: 25 August, 2024.

Submission of full papers: 25 January, 2025

Final versions with the amendments suggested by reviewers are due: 31 April, 2025. 

Scope:

“My men do not fear death, they welcome it and the rewards it brings”

In recent decades, digital games have become an increasingly ubiquitous medium for popular engagement with history. For many players, these digital representations provide a deeper level of engagement with the past than the scientific and scholarly interpretations presented in academic monographs and journal articles.

The above quote is how players of Assassin’s Creed are first introduced to the so-called “leap of faith”, an important gameplay mechanic and navigational element where characters jump from implausible heights, before landing unharmed in carts filled with hay. It has since developed into a signature feature of the franchise, which encourages players to climb culturally and architecturally significant buildings to obtain more information about the surrounding area. Yet many players do not realise that the episode represented in the opening scene of this hugely popular game is adopted almost verbatim from a 13th-century Old French chronicle (Daftary, 1990: 6). Likewise, Assassin’s Creed: Mirage, set in 9th century Baghdad, actively engages with controversial historical subjects such as the ‘Islamic Golden Age’, the Zanj slave rebellion, and the ‘translation movement’ from Greek to Arabic that was patronised by the Abbasid Caliphate.

These and many other tropes in digital games raise questions about how historical imageries and imaginaries are developed for the medium. Inquiries include the extent to which game designers want to recover, select, update, and re-enact multifaceted, contested aspects of the past. Similarly, so-called Serious Games have been traditionally designed for education and training purposes across disciplines, but what are the implications of drawing upon historical leitmotifs within this format? Putting these questions into a broader perspective of the digitisation of culture and knowledge practices, this special issue of Digital Culture & Society addresses how knowledge about the past is crafted and curated in and for digital games.

In addition to developing deliberate visions of the past through narrative design and gameworld imagery, the embedded practical interactive experience provided by gaming has become an important means of making historical material accessible to wider audiences. This possibility, which has evolved over at least the past three decades through numerous genre codes into more multisensory experiences, led contemporary history-themed games to be compared to a form of historical tourism (Schwarz, 2024).

Therefore, while addressing sensitive historical themes, digital games are also expected to serve as new drivers of popular history. Consequently, they incorporate contemporary cultural debates into the historical settings they recreate. This phenomenon is not unique to gaming. Other mass media, from literature to cinema, have grappled with similar issues when representing the past. However, digital games highlight the need to update these discussions, as computer simulation, rule structures, and user-oriented media affordances can offer features to engage players through particular narrative architectures (Jenkins, 2004), procedural rhetoric (Bogost, 2007), and affective experiences (Jagoda & McDonald, 2018). Computer games exhibit similarities but also very significant differences to how other means, including traditional institutional structures and pedagogical platforms, propose engaging with history and heritage (Houghton, 2023). Therefore it is relevant to understand how these differences influence the representation of the past in digital games, especially in games that advert fidelity or realism as hallmarks of their worldbuilding.

As the scope of themes in digital games stretches to the past, gameworld imaginations paint vivid pictures of transcontinental expeditions, previous civilisations, and political or religious conflicts. Yet, while the representation and the immersive experiences based on these motifs raise several important epistemological questions, the concrete social contexts in which these historical images are created have received comparatively little attention. The social studies concerning the practical production of historical games remain only marginally explored (Sotamaa & Švelch, 2021). Observing how the decision-making process in historical games is tailored between developers, narrative designers, and historical advisors, one can better understand the importance placed on historical knowledge within the gaming industry, especially when questions of so-called historical ‘authenticity’ collide with the demands of user-oriented digital media.

Therefore, with this special volume of Digital Culture & Society, we wish to explore the epistemological, political, and practical issues that arise through the intermingling of digital games and history across multiple dimensions. We aim to do so by being open to multiple branches of research, ranging from the representational gameworlds and playful experiences about the past to the paratexts surrounding historical game releases, from the diverse methodological approaches applied to study the intermingling of games and history to the game production aspects that play a decisive role in how such games are shaped.

The special issue is led by a set of questions concerning the practical and conceptual intricacies of developing and presenting games about historical themes to a global audience:

• How are the imageries of in-game historical conflicts or cross-cultural ‘tolerance’ developed?
  
• How does the categorisation of digital games into different genres influence how we analyse historical aspects of this medium?
  
• In which ways are history-based games serious?
  
• How are game logics and structures used as engagement tools by organisations, companies, and states?
  
• What are the different implications of digital games for the reception of historical knowledge when history is meant to be played as a user-oriented medium?
  
• What are the benefits that can be gained from analysis of paratexts, and which insights can they provide into these processes?
  
• How is the decision-making process tailored between developers, concept designers, and historical advisors?
  
• What are the game studio dynamics that play a role in shaping how historical games are developed?
  
• What interdisciplinary methods can be developed to study the intersection of digital games and historical knowledge?
  

We encourage historians, designers, anthropologists, sociologists, and researchers from other disciplines engaged with history-related topics in digital games to contribute to this special issue.

Journal Sections:

When submitting an abstract, please state to which of the following issue sections you would like to submit your paper:

Field Research and Case Studies (full paper: 6.000 – 8.000 words)

We welcome articles that explore empirical findings on the relationship between games and history. These articles may examine aspects ranging from gameworld representations and game paratexts to the processes involved in game production or reception. These studies might be based on empirical investigations or autoethnographic research.

Conceptual/Theoretical Reflection (full paper: 6.000 – 8.000 words)

conceptual and theoretical dimensions of intertwining historical knowledge with digital games. This may involve examining the challenges posed to the discipline by the format of games, employing comparative media approaches to address the potential and pitfalls of engaging with the past through digital games, or exploring the inherent complexities of dealing with the past through this medium.

Entering the Field (2.000 – 3.000 words; experimental formats welcome)

This experimental section presents initial and ongoing empirical work in historical game studies. The editors have created this section to provide a platform for researchers who would like to initiate a discussion concerning emerging (yet perhaps incomplete) research agendas and plans, as well as methodological approaches to historical game studies. Contributions may also include discussions about the handling of sources or archival work conducted specifically for developing digital games.

Publisher and Open Access: 

DCS is published by transcript. All articles will be published as open access on our website 12 months after the initial publication. Previous issues are available here: http://digicults.org/issues

Edited by: 

Eduardo Luersen (Zukunftskolleg/Department of Literature, Art and Media Studies, University of Konstanz) and James Wilson (Zukunftskolleg/Department of History and Sociology, University of Konstanz)

Please send expressions of interest/initial abstracts and short biographical notes to Eduardo Luersen (eduardo.luersen@uni-konstanz.de) and James Wilson (james.wilson@uni-konstanz.de).

Selected References:

Bogost, Ian (2007) Persuasive Games: The Expressive Power of Videogames. Cambridge: MIT Press.

Daftary, Farhad (1990) The Isma’ilis: Their History and Doctrines. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Houghton, Robert (2023) ‘Awesome, but Impractical? Deeper Engagement with the Middle Ages through Commercial Digital Games’, Open Library of Humanities 9(2).

Jagoda, Patrick and McDonald, Peter (2018) ‘Game Mechanics, Experience Design, and Affective Play’, in Jentery Sayers (ed.) Routledge Companion to Media Studies and the Digital Humanities. New York: Routledge, pp. 174–182.

Jenkins, Henry (2004) ‘Game Design as Narrative Architecture’, in Noah Wardrip-Fruin and Pat Harrington (ed.) First Person: New Media as Story, Performance, and Game. Cambridge: MIT Press, pp. 118–130.

Schwarz, Angela (2024) ‘Discovering the Past as a Virtual Foreign Country: Assassin’s Creed as Historical Tourism’, in Erik Champion and Juan Francisco Hiriart Vera (ed.) Assassin’s Creed in the Classroom: History’s Playground or a Stab in the Dark? Berlin: De Gruyter, pp. 169–187.

Sotamaa, Olli and Švelch, Jan (2021) Game Production Studies. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.

History of Media Studies

History of Media Studies is pleased to announce an open access Special Section on “History of Communication Studies across the Americas,” which features six articles, each of which considers the history of communication studies within and across North and South America. 

History of Media Studies is a peer-reviewed, scholar-run, diamond OA journal dedicated to scholarship on the history of research, education, and reflective knowledge about media and communication.

Special Issue Contents:

“The History of Communication Studies across the Americas: An Introduction,” by David W. Park, Jefferson Pooley, Peter Simonson, and Esperanza Herrero

“Coloniality and Resistance: The Revolutionary Moment in Communication Study in the Anglophone Caribbean,” by Nova Gordon-Bell

“Elizabeth Fox: Intellectual Biography and History of a Field of Study,” by Yamila Heram and Santiago Gándara

“Borderline Cases: Crossing Borders in Canadian Communication Studies, 1960s-1980s,” by Michael Darroch

“Notes for Historicizing the Disintegrated Internationalization of Communication Studies in Latin America,” by Raúl Fuentes-Navarro

“‘Western Communication’: Eurocentrism and Modernity: Marks of the Predominant Theories in the Field,” by Erick R. Torrico Villanueva

“Media, Intellectual, and Cultural Imperialism Today,” by Afonso Albuquerque

History of Media Studies is published by mediastudies.press, a non-profit, scholar-led OA publisher. The journal is affiliated with (1) the Working Group on the History of Media Studies and (2) the History of Media Studies Newsletter, which contains updates on the journal, among other relevant news.

Questions? Contact us at hms@mediastudies.press.

Department of Communication, Faculty of Humanities, University of Copenhagen (UCPH)

Applications are invited for a PhD scholarship in digital media and communication research at the Department of Communication, University of Copenhagen. The successful candidate will be employed at the Faculty of Humanities and enrolled in the PhD School at the Faculty of Humanities.

The scholarship is for 3 years starting 1 January 2025, or as soon as possible thereafter.

Introduction

The successful applicant will become part of the project entitled, GREENWATCH – Green Surveillance: Imagining a Sustainable Internet of Things, funded through a European Research Council Advanced Grant, 2025-2029. The project examines the potentials and challenges of employing the Internet of Things (IoT) as a communication system monitoring the effects of human activities of Earth’s ecosystems, which further entails surveillance of human individuals and social institutions. The position represents a unique opportunity to participate in interdisciplinary and culturally comparative work covering China, Europe, and the United States, and to contribute to theory development on a strategic issue with global ramifications.

The successful applicant will undertake quantitative content analyses and qualitative discourse studies of advertising campaigns and other strategic communication by IoT companies in China, Europe, and the United States, and will contribute to collaborative and comparative analyses of political and commercial imaginaries of IoT as part of the green transition.

The PhD program is a study program training PhD students, at an international level, to undertake research, development, and teaching assignments. These qualifications open a window of opportunity to a variety of careers within the private and public sectors. The program includes the production of a PhD thesis, active participation in local and global research networks, PhD courses, teaching, and other forms of knowledge dissemination. The standard duration of the PhD program is three years of full-time studies, which equals 180 ECTS credits.

Qualification requirements

Applicants must hold a two-year master’s degree (120 ECTS) or equivalent and must, as a minimum, have submitted a master’s thesis for which they have received pre-approval at the time of application.

The qualifications of applicants with a non-Danish master’s degree will be assessed to determine whether they correspond to those of a Danish master’s degree. For further information, please refer to the website of the Danish Ministry of Education and Research: General assessments for specific countries — English (ufm.dk)

Applicants must have specific theoretical and methodological competences in digital media and communication research. Other things being equal, applicants with previous experience in combining quantitative and qualitative studies of media and communication will be preferred.

Applicants must be fluent in written and spoken academic English. In addition, applicants must be fluent in written and spoken Mandarin. If deemed necessary, the Department may request that applicants document their English and Mandarin proficiency.

For further information about the guidelines for PhD studies at UCPH, please refer to: PhD Programs - Guide to studies and admission – University of Copenhagen (ku.dk)

For further information about the structure of the PhD programme, please refer to: https://phd.humanities.ku.dk

Applicants are also invited to familiarize themselves with ongoing research at the Faculty of Humanities: Research – University of Copenhagen (ku.dk)

Equal Opportunity Workplace

The University of Copenhagen wishes to reflect the diversity of society, and welcomes applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of their personal backgrounds. For more information on the diverse workplace environment at the University and the University’s participation in the HRS4R programme, please see: HR Excellence in Research – University of Copenhagen (ku.dk)

Application

To be awarded a PhD scholarship the applicant must enroll as a PhD student at the Faculty of Humanities, cf. the rules of the Danish Ministerial order No 1039 of 27 August 2013.  

How to apply

Applications must be submitted online. Click on the “Apply now” icon at the bottom of this advertisement to apply. The application must be written in English, and must include the following enclosures in PDF or Word format:

• Project abstract (please fill in the “Project abstract” box in the application form. Maximum of 1,200 characters).
  
• Cover letter detailing your motivation and background for applying for this specific PhD scholarship.
  
• Project description (description of content analyses and discourse studies of advertising campaigns and other strategic communication by IoT companies, with reference to the outline of the GREENWATCH project, available from its PI, Professor Klaus Bruhn Jensen, email: kbj@hum.ku.dk.
  
• CV   
  
• Diploma and transcripts of records (bachelor and master’s degree)   
  
• Other information for consideration, e.g., list of publications, documentation of language proficiency, etc.
  

Please note that it is only possible to upload one document per attachment category. If more than one document must be uploaded in the same category, please scan and collect these in one file.

The recruitment process

The following criteria are applied when assessing PhD applications:

• Research qualifications as reflected in the project description and CV 
  
• Qualifications in digital media and communication research. 
  
• Performance (grades obtained) in graduate and post-graduate studies. 
  

After the deadline for applications, the Head of Department considers advice from an appointment aommittee and selects applicants for assessment. All applicants will be notified whether they have been shortlisted. Next, the Head of Department sets up an expert assessment committee to assess the shortlisted applications. The selected applicants will be informed who is serving on the committee. Applicants will be offered the opportunity to comment on the committee’s assessment of their application before the appointment is announced.

Terms of employment

PhD students are paid a salary in accordance with the agreement between the Ministry of Finance and The Danish Confederation of Professional Associations on Academics in the State. Depending on seniority, the monthly salary starts at approximately 32,900 DKK/roughly 4,400 EUR (April 2024-level) plus 17.1% pension. The PhD student has a work obligation of up to 840 hours over the 3-year period without additional pay. The work obligation can include, for instance, teaching and research dissemination. 

International applicant?

The University of Copenhagen offers a variety of services for international scholars and accompanying families, including support before and during your relocation, and career counselling to expat partners. Please find more information about these services as well as information on entering and working in Denmark here: For international researchers at the University of Copenhagen – University of Copenhagen (ku.dk)

Contact information

Further information about this position, including an outline of the GREENWATCH project, can be obtained from its PI, Professor Klaus Bruhn Jensen, email: kbj@hum.ku.dk

For further information about the structure and rules of the PhD programme, please email the PhD Administration at Søndre and City Campuses, email: phd@hrsc.ku.dk.

Information about the recruitment process is available from HR South and City Campuses, email: hrsc@hrsc.ku.dk. Please refer to case number: 211-1872/24-2H #1.

The deadline for applications is 15 September 2024 at 23:59 CEST (Central European summer time).

Any applications or additional material submitted after the deadline will not be considered.

Link to application system: https://employment.ku.dk/phd/?show=162206

Comunicazioni Sociali: Journal of Media, Performing Arts and Cultural Studies on immersive media (Special Issue)

Deadline: September 2, 2024

Edited by Piermarco Aroldi, Barbara Scifo, and Francesca Pasquali 

https://comunicazionisociali.vitaepensiero.it/news-call-for-papers-frameless-experiences-for-a-multidisciplinary-approach-to-immersive-media-6528.html  

The development of perceptual and narrative environments enabled by immersive digital technologies – such as videomapping and extended realities (virtual, augmented and mixed) associated with increasingly high-performance artificial intelligence systems – has long been the basis for new media experiences in various fields: from entertainment (cinema, video games, theme parks, live events, etc.) to education and training; from cultural and scientific dissemination (documentaries, exhibitions, etc.) to experimentation in the visual and performing arts.

These environments go beyond and transfigure the traditional 'framed' vision of classical art works and media screens, moving towards a synesthetic, participatory and total user experience, characterised by immediacy and presence: real environments that can be explored by users, according to the different degrees of interactivity envisaged, which can both enable the user to "immerse" himself in another world (although in a continuum with the perceptual dimensions of physical reality) and allow the digital contents to "emerge" within the physical space, integrating it with new meanings and new narratives.

In the public debate, however, the diffusion of such technologies is often associated with both forms of 'hype' and 'moral panic', both animated by technocentric perspectives. Instead, there is a need to offer solid knowledge and reflection around the concept and experience of immersivity, reconstructing the roots and the cultural, social and economic paradigms that are driving the development of these new media and environments, in order to also fully grasp their potential for communication and other applications or, conversely, their limitations.

This reflection can be promoted starting from the adoption of a multidisciplinary and systemic approach, able to put into historical perspective the recent technological development of the digital media immersivity paradigm. The aim is to trace the cultural, anthropological, narrative, artistic and media origins of the 'total' experience based on the interaction and physical, multi-sensorial and emotional involvement of the spectator, as well as the commercial and industrial drives.

For this reason, this call for papers for a special issue of Comunicazioni Sociali: Journal of Media, Performing Arts and Cultural Studies is looking for contributions (capable of reading the complexity of the issues posed by the new immersive digital media on the level of cultural imaginaries, aesthetic and narrative forms, fruition and marketing. Thus, it is possible to reflect on the multiple implications (aesthetic, performative, perceptual, cognitive, social, communicative, and formative) of their diffusion.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

- The cultural, media and economic archaeologies and genealogies of immersivity

- The fictional narratives and social imaginaries around immersive technologies

- The theoretical conceptualisations of the notion of immersivity and immersive media

- The creative potential of immersive technologies in artistic, industrial and cultural production

- The multisensoriality of immersive environments and experience

- The forms of immersive storytelling

- The status of the audience of immersive experiences

- The transformations and implications of using immersive environments for learning and training, for care and therapeutic practices and for others field of application

We welcome contributions from different disciplinary perspectives, including media semiotics, science and technology studies, aesthetic philosophy, digital media, studies on the history and languages of theatre and live performance, as well as game and sound studies, etc.).

Please send your abstract and a short biographical note by September 2nd, 2024, filling the following form: 

https://www.vpjournals.it/index.php/comunicazionisociali/about/submissions

Abstracts should be from 300 to 400 words of length (in English). All submissions should include: 5 keywords, name of author(s), institutional affiliation, contact details and a short bio for each author.

Authors will be notified of proposal acceptance by September 16, 2024.

If the proposal is accepted, the author(s) will be asked to submit the full article, in English, by November 17, 2024.

Submission of a paper will be taken to imply that it is unpublished and is not being considered for publication elsewhere.

The articles must not exceed 5,000/6,000-words in English (including references).

For editorial guidelines, please refer to the section “Guide for the authors” on the Comunicazioni sociali website: http://comunicazionisociali.vitaepensiero.com

Contributions will be submitted to a double blind peer review process.

The issue number 1/2025 of “Comunicazioni Sociali” will be published in April/May 2025. It will be available in open access on the journal website.

“Comunicazioni Sociali” is an OPEN ACCESS journal, indexed in Scopus, and it is an A-class rated journal by ANVUR in Cinema, photography, and television (L-ART/06), Performing arts (L-ART/05), and Sociology of culture and communication (SPS/08).

CICANT, Lusófona University, Portugal (deadline 3 september 2024)

Job Position: Ph.D. Research Assistant

Job/Fellowship Reference: CEEC-COFAC/CICANT/AUX- 1/2024

Main research field: Communication Sciences, Educational Sciences and Media and Technology

About the recruitment process

COFAC, Cooperativa de Formação e Animação Cultural crl/ Universidade Lusófona, hereby opens a call to recruit a Ph.D. researcher, corresponding to position 195 of the Research Career Statute, under the terms of the applicable legislation, with an Open Ended Employment Contract, within the scope of contract program between Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, I.P.(FCT), and the above-mentioned Cooperative, supported by national funds inscribed in the budget of the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) – and carried out at CICANT - Centre for Research in Applied Communication, Culture, and New Technologies. The contract to be made is scheduled to begin on November, 1st, 2024, and finish, predictably, on October, 31st 2030.

Eligibility and Applications

1. Position to be filled and terms of open call:

a) The call aims to hire a Ph.D. researcher, with an open ended employment contract;

b) National, foreign or stateless Ph.D. researchers may apply to the position.

2. Cumulatively, the candidate should have the following academic profile:

a) Adequate background in Communication Sciences and, secondly, in Education Sciences and in media and technology

b) Ph.D. degree for over 5 years and track in Digital Citizenship and Digital Rights.

c) Experience in the field of Active and Innovative Methodologies and Children and Youth will be especially valued.

d) Leadership capacity with evidence of scientific and financial management of funded projects;

e) Evidence of good work capacity in interdisciplinary environments, organization, and work capabilities;

f) Up to five publications in leading international peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scientific journals and/or in leading international peer-reviewed journals, peer-reviewed proceedings and/or monographs;

g) Experience in participating in national and international scientific networks;

h) Experience in coordinating national and international research projects, using competitive funding;

i) Invitations to national and international conferences and/or international universities;

j) Experience in community dissemination activities (scientific and non-scientific), through participation in national and international scientific events, organization of scientific events and support for the dissemination of the project and its results;

k) Experience in supervising doctoral and post-doctoral students;

l) Be fluent in portuguese, written and spoken;

m) Be fluent in English. Proficiency in other non-portuguese languages will be valued.

Deadline

The call is open from the 27 of june and 5 pm (Lisbon time) of the 3rd September 2024.

How to apply

Applicants to this call will address their application by email, in a PDF format, to the following email address : cicant@ulusofona.pt with the subject: CEEC-COFAC/CICANT/AUX-1/2024, along with the following documents:

a) Cover letter mentioning the motivations which justified the application, written in English;

b) Curriculum vitae referring the professional experience, accompanied by a list of the scientific publications;

c) Ph.D. certificate;

d) Personal data and contact information with their respective email addresses – of at least two leading academics who can attest the curriculum submitted;

e) Other documents considered relevant by the applicant and which, from the candidate ́s perspective, are pertinent to attest and assess the scientific and professional history.

Dissemination of results

The list of admitted and rejected applicants, as well as their respective final scores, will be displayed in the facilities of Universidade Lusófona do Porto, na Rua de Augusto Rosa, 34, in Porto and, moreover, they will be posted on the websites https://cicant.ulusofona.pt/ and https://www.ulp.pt/; the applicants will be notified by email.

Futher information

Further information about the position and recruitment process is available for consultation at https://cicant.ulusofona.pt/careers/1295-recrutamento-emprego-cientifico-ceec-institucional-fct-recruitment-scientific-employment-fct-institutional-ceec-2

Contact information

For queries about this job post, please reach out at cicant[at]ulusofona[dot]pt

February 10 – 11, 2025

Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic 

Deadline: September 30, 2024

The advancement of technology has significantly transformed the dynamics of media’s democratic functions and reshaped the relationship between news organizations and their audiences. It raised issues about the impacts of an increasing abundance of information, such as audience fragmentation, heightened polarization, partisan exposure, etc. Understanding these changes and their implications for democracy is crucial in navigating the intricacies of the contemporary information era influenced by the rapid arrival of generative AI. 

Social media is one of the key distribution platforms, and this fact is changing the entire media landscape. The significant role of social media has implications for media pluralism, democracy and regulation. It is essential to strengthen the legislative framework for social media to be able to manage the content they distribute. This conference aims to explore the complexities of regulating these platforms and analyze the challenges and opportunities, focusing on algorithmization, legislation and legislature, and the preservation of democratic principles in the digital environment. 

This conference, organized by the Faculty of Social Sciences of Charles University in Prague on February 10 and 11, 2025, invites submissions that contribute to the expansion of current research from different perspectives to include topics from various disciplines such as media studies and communication, journalism studies, political science, law and legislation, sociology, computer science and technology, strategic communication, social media and audience studies. Even though the main focus is European, we welcome broader perspective, particularly from the global south. The conference will include three online panels that will allow the participation of selected scholars who cannot attend in person. 

About the broad topic of the conference, here are other themes, including but not limited to:

• The role of technology in transforming the media markets and the impact of the changing media’s democratic functions in the hybrid media system
  
• The changes in the media market shares and market sizes of old and new media brands in the European context
  
• The evolution of the main types of the applied business model in media, in particular, news organizations, to compensate for the losses in subscriptions and advertising and ensure the necessary capital to preserve the quality of the journalism
  
• The effect of the broader diversity of news products and how it has impacted the interest of the citizens in public issues
  
• The issue of how professional journalists, alternative media content producers, and media managers balance the required commercial and financial aims with goals of journalistic freedom and media freedom in a democratic society
  
• The risks of a dominant position of social media platforms and search engines in the advertising sector
  
• The analysis of legal frameworks for media pluralism, including a comprehensive examination of regulations on media ownership, content dissemination and access to information
  
• Proposals for fact-checking in the fight against disinformation, including the use of technology
  
• Regulating social media as crucial platforms for media production and consumption
  
• Use of generative AI in journalism and media business
  

This list is not exclusive, and we call for papers which, in a broad sense, deal with the political economy of traditional media and alternative media, including both theoretical and analytical perspectives on the challenges, perceptions, risks, impacts, opportunities and regulatory framework involved, concentrating on the advanced technology, communication creators, alternative media content creators, itself or its audiences. 

The conference is financed by the ReMeD project HORIZON-CL2-2022-DEMOCRACY-01-06; therefore, no conference fee will be charged). For this conference, ReMeD thematically collaborates with another Horizon Europe project MeDeMAP.

We invite abstracts between 300-500 words (excluding references) submitted in English by 30 September 2024 via email to Dr. Suchibrata Roy, PhD (remed.conference@fsv.cuni.cz). The submission must be anonymized as follows.

The abstracts for both individual papers and panel proposals can be submitted. Each abstract must be attached as an anonymized file to the email (all authors' names and affiliations will be in the email's body). Each panel proposal must include an abstract of the cover topic and the titles of 5 involved papers (names and affiliations of the proposed panel chair and all the authors of the involved papers will be in the email's body). A maximum of 3 papers from the same institution in one panel is allowed (and each paper in a panel has to be presented by a different presenter). Please indicate clearly whether the abstract is for an individual paper or a panel proposal and if it is for an onsite or online presentation.

Abstracts will go through a double-blind peer review process, and the authors will be notified about acceptance by 31 October 2024. 

Edited by: Manuel Puppis, Robin Mansell & Hilde Van den Bulck

This state-of-the-art Handbook provides unique insights into the governance practices and institutions shaping digitalized public spheres. Focusing on the power relations involved, it presents diverse approaches to key debates in media and communication governance, showcasing groundbreaking advances in the field.

https://www.elgaronline.com/edcollbook/book/9781800887206/9781800887206.xml

USI Università della Svizzera italiana, Institute of Media and Journalism

Deadline: 10 August 2024

The Institute invites applications for an overall 60% per annum pro rata research and teaching PostDoc position available for one year, starting on the 1st of September, 2024 until 31st of August, 2025.

The PostDoc Position

The successful candidate will be offered the possibility to work in a dynamic research team and in a multidisciplinary and international scientific environment.

The PostDoc candidate will assist in the development of the Institute’s research agenda.

The job description encompasses both research and teaching responsibilities. The successful candidate will have shared responsibilities in the design and implementation of research projects in the fields of media and journalism studies. The Institute plans to submit research projects to funding institutions in one or more of the following areas: media history, digital journalism, digital cultures, and climate change communications. Therefore, expertise in one or more of these fields is important as well as qualitative and/or quantitative methods experience. 

The successful candidate will prepare and teach courses at both the Bachelor and Master level, including supervising dissertation students. Specifically, the candidate will teach a Bachelor-level course of 6 ECTS (56 hours of lectures) in the field of Sociology of Communications (in Italian) from Spring 2025. 

The successful PostDoc candidate is expected to present papers at scientific conferences and produce publications in high-impact journals.

Candidates’ profile

Ideal candidates should satisfy the following requirements:

•             A PhD in media or communication studies, or related disciplines.

•             High personal interest in collaborative work in both teaching and research.

•             Expertise in the field of media and journalism studies. The Institute particularly welcomes candidates in one or more of the following areas: media history, digital journalism, digital cultures and climate change communications.

•             Skills in qualitative and/or quantitative methods are desirable.

•             Excellent command of English and Italian, both written and spoken.

•             A strong desire for research and publishing at high-level conferences.

•             Ability to work independently and to plan and direct one’s own work.

•             Ability to work in a team and autonomy in scheduling research steps. Interest for teaching and tutoring students and availability to collaborate with colleagues (engage in scientific dialogue, listen and think critically) are required

General terms

Workplace is USI Università della Svizzera italiana, located in Lugano, Switzerland. Availability to travel to other parts of Switzerland and abroad (for purposes of collaboration and research) is required.

The starting date for this position is 1st of September 2024. The position will be kept open until a suitable candidate has been found.

The Application

Applications should contain: (1) a cover letter in which the applicants describe their research interests and reason to apply, (2) a complete CV, (3) copies of relevant diplomas, certificates as well as the full transcript of records, (4) a complete list of publications with details on the candidate’s contributions, (5) the candidate’s three strongest publications, (6) a short description of no more than 300 words for a course entitled “Sociology of Communication” to be taught in Italian from Spring 2025. 

Applications received before 10th of August 2024, will be given priority. However, applications will be received until the position is filled.

Requests for further information to Gabriele Balbi (gabriele.balbi@usi.ch).

The application should be done following the link and criteria explained at this link: https://content.usi.ch/sites/default/files/storage/attachments/imeg/imeg-postdoc-2024.pdf

February 5-7, 2025

CERN, Switzerland

Deadline: July 31, 2024

The 2025 ECREA Communication History Workshop will be hosted by CERN (Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire / European Council for Nuclear Research), where the World Wide Web took its first steps between the end of the 1980s and the early 1990s. 

This special location inspired us to choose the theme of communication networks from long-term and historical perspectives as the key topic of the workshop. “Network” is one of digital literacy’s most symbolic and obsessively repeated keywords and metaphors. However, communication networks are not exclusively digital. From telegraphy to telephony and wireless communication in the 19th century, from radio and TV networks in the 20th, the concept of network has been used even before the Internet and, specifically, the Web. Communication networks seem to transform the sense of speed, space, and place, creating new connections and erasing others. Networks enable the exchange of communication or limit it; new networks are launched, and old ones are abandoned or have to be maintained.

Interrogating communication and networks from a diachronic perspective can be approached from numerous angles: networked communication and its infrastructures, communication through networks, and within networks, networks of communication, and communication on networks, to name but a few. This inquiry should encompass discourses, imaginaries, modalities, infrastructures, governance, and many other dimensions. Three main historical perspectives on communication networks are suggested:

1. Communication and networks before the digital age:

    Potential topics for exploration include, but are not limited to letters, press, telegraph and telephone networks, radio, and TV networks, but also other forms of communication networks, through for example learned societies or rumor. The legacy of these models, their physical or symbolic persistence, their stakeholders, and their structure are topics of interest as well as issues of regulation and governance.

2. Imaginaries, representations, and narratives related to networks:

    This may include cultural imaginaries and narratives surrounding networks in a long-term perspective, their representations in media, the controversies that may have arisen through time, utopia, and mythologies related to networks and networked societies. A reflection on the word per se, its emergence and eventual disappearance, and its metaphorical history is also welcomed.

3. Digital communication networks: from socio-technical origins to platformization:

    Genesis and evolution of digital networks, communication dynamics and changes through digital networks, online communities and their modalities of communication, and past discourses and approaches surrounding the development of networked communication are only a few topics that may be diachronically addressed. The history of social network sites, even the disappeared ones or the failed European attempt to create alternatives to US platforms, can be considered. The digital dimension of networks should always be considered from a historical perspective, in line with the focus of the section. 

Other transversal topics such as the role of networks in shaping communication and community, their impact on societies, or network analysis for studying the history of communication may be proposed. The study of networks in communication and media studies is also welcome: media studies, for example, have often advanced theories about small or large networks, their social role, the power of media in creating or breaking social networks, the strong or weak ties created by networks, etc.

We invite scholars from various disciplines to freely submit abstracts for papers addressing these themes. Submissions should be in English and have a clear historical approach. Abstracts of 300 words should be submitted no later than 31 July 2024. Proposals for full panels (comprising 3 or 4 papers) are also welcome: these should include a 300-word abstract for each individual presentation and a 150-word rationale for the panel. Send abstracts to: comnet@usi.ch. Authors will be informed regarding acceptance/rejection for the conference no later than 13 September 2024. Early career scholars and graduate students are highly encouraged to submit their work (please indicate if the research submitted is part of your thesis or dissertation project).

Fees and accommodation: The conference registration fee is 150 Swiss francs/about 150 euros (100 Swiss francs/about 100 euros for Ph.D. and M.A. students), and participants are asked to cover their travel expenses. This fee includes apero at the get-together, coffee breaks, and two lunches. A special rate has been arranged for lodging near CERN: a single room with a private bathroom for 58.00 Swiss francs. Further information will be sent to all the accepted presenters.

Local organizers: James Gillies and Jens Vigen (CERN, Geneva), Deborah Barcella, Martin Fomasi, and Gabriele Balbi (USI Università della Svizzera italiana, Lugano).

For the section management team: Christian Schwarzenegger (University of Bremen), Valérie Schafer (C2DH, University of Luxembourg), Marie Cronqvist (Linköping University).

October 9-12, 2024

Timișoara (Romania)

Deadline: August 25, 2024

The annual conference of the University Network of the European Capitals of Culture (UNeECC) in organized between October 9-12, 2024, in Timișoara (Romania) in a "face-to-face" format, by UNeECC jointly with the Alliance of Timisoara Universities (ATU), with the support of the Timisoara Project Center. The conference discusses the "Impact and legacy of the European Capital of Culture program", proposing plenary sessions, thematic sections, a workshop for PhD students and a rich cultural program. Thematic sections are dedicated to discussing culture and participation, the link between art and technology, the development of sustainable practices, increasing organizational capacity, etc. Registration is open until August 25, 2024. The description of the sections, the registration form and further information can be found on the conference page, https://uneecc2024.org/.