The IAMCR Diasporas and the Media Working Group invites submissions of abstracts for papers and panel proposals for the IAMCR 2012 conference to be held from July 15-19, 2012 at the Howard College Campus of the University of KwaZulu Natal (UKZN) in Durban, South Africa. The deadline for submissions is February 14, 2012.
The conference will be held under the general theme, South-North Conversations.
We will consider proposals on any issue within the broader Working Group research areas, but will prioritize proposals relating to the Conference theme South-North Conversations addressing questions such as ‘what is the role of Diasporic Media and communications networks in facilitating South-North conversations?’ or ‘What are the power dynamics and information imbalances within such processes?’
More broadly, as the relationship between diasporas and globalization is enhanced and intensified as a result of the transnationalization of the media, processes of reconfiguration of place, space and culture are set in motion which affect everyday life for diasporic communities, as electronic media, old and new, increasingly link producers and audiences across national boundaries, thus fostering the deterritorialization/ reterritorialization of diasporic identities, and challenging and transforming established notions of the nation-state; of tradition, heritage and citizenship; and of modes of belonging; the Working Group aims to bring together interested researchers to discuss these processes and their broader implications, and to present empirical and theoretical work at the 2012 Conference around the following general themes:
- the interplay of the transnational & the local in diasporic communications - papers that explore the role of cities as transnational hubs of communication and culture are particularly welcome given the overall conference theme;
- diasporic communications & the making of diasporic identities;
- transnational diasporic communication strategies and practices;
- diasporic audiences & cultural politics;
- diasporic cultural production & consumption;
- integration, cultural separatism & hybridity;
- immigration and the media;
- diasporic media and their place in the community media landscape
Submissions
Format: All proposals must include title, author/coordinator name(s), institutional affiliation(s) and full contact information (mailing address, email address, and telephone number).
- For individual or co-authored papers applicants must submit a 300-500 word abstract.
- For panel proposals, the panel coordinator must submit a well-defined statement of purpose (150-300 words), a complete list of panel participants, and full abstracts (as above) for each presentation in one document.
For all applicants: Please indicate if you would be willing to chair a session.
Mode of submission: Online at http://iamcr-ocs.org
Please note: Submitting the same or very similar abstract to more than one section or working group risks being removed from the conference program. Across all conference sections, there can be a maximum of three abstracts bearing the name of the same applicant either individually or as part of any group of authors.