Communication, Social Justice and Democracy
Call for Proposals
The Communication, Social Justice and Democracy (CJD) Working Group invites the submission of proposals for papers and panels for IAMCR 2027, which will be held in São Paulo, Brazil, from 18 to 22 July 2027, hosted by the School of Communications and Arts at the University of São Paulo (ECA/USP) in partnership with the Associação de Apoio à Arte e Comunicação (ARCO).
The deadline for submission is 12 February 2027 at 23:59 UTC.
Download this call for papers as a PDF file
Central theme
The 2027 central theme, Multilateralism, Democracy, Diversity: Communication for a More Just World, is a globally resonant and critically urgent call to action. It centers communication as the pivotal force in navigating three interconnected crises defining our contemporary moment: 1) the fraying of global governance, 2) the erosion of democratic institutions, and 3) the deepening of social fragmentation. By uniting these concepts, the theme invites a comprehensive, interdisciplinary inquiry into how media and technology either perpetuate global injustice or serve as instruments for building equitable systems.
Consult a detailed description of the main theme
CJD WG focus and themes
The Communication, Social Justice and Democracy working group invites proposals within the thematic perspective of the 2027 central theme Multilateralism, Democracy, Diversity: Communication for a More Just World, addressing issues relating to Communication, Social Justice and Democracy, and their intersections.
Within this broad thematic framework, we invite proposals for papers and panels that address the working group’s areas of interest by critically examining the role of spaces, practices and technologies of communication, through the exploration of themes centred on, but not limited to:
- How contestations of democracy and the rising appeal of far-right movements and authoritarian regimes seem to be increasingly entangled with the failure to address social justice claims and structural inequalities.
- How state-corporate capture, surveillance, disinformation and propaganda undermine democracy, social justice and accountability.
- How digital communication and AI are used to mediate, facilitate or destabilise democracy, enabling or constraining the articulation and pursuit of social justice claims.
- How communication and knowledge practices inform constructions of citizenship, denizenship, privilege and exclusion, amid the erosion of justice value systems and of democratic institutions.
- How territorial, epistemic and communicative borders and boundaries produce exclusions or create possibilities for democratic and inclusive spaces and practices of communication and knowledge production.
- How communicative practices and spaces enable the articulation of justice claims, amplify marginalised voices and support citizens’ struggles against oppression and authoritarianism.
- How visions, discourses and practices of hope for justice, peace and democracy are communicated and performed in public discourse, political struggles, everyday encounters, media, activism, art and education.
Joint ESR-CJD session
This year, CJD will host a joint session with the Environment, Science & Risk Communication Section (ESR).
This joint session will provide an opportunity for enhanced intellectual exchange across research fields, fostering interdisciplinary dialogue around shared areas of interest between CJD and ESR.
If you would like your proposed paper to be included in this joint session, please submit your abstract to ESR and select the topic ESR/CJD joint session on the submission platform. Please also indicate this in the “Comments to the Chairs” section of your submission.
Guidelines for abstracts
Abstracts for papers to be presented in person at one of the Communication, Social Justice and Democracy (CJD) working group’s conference sessions should be between 800 and 1000 words. They must be submitted exclusively through IAMCR's submission system from 9 December 2026 through 12 February 2027 at 23:59 UTC. Abstracts submitted by email will not be considered.
Submissions to CJD do not have to address this year’s central theme, but they are expected to be thematically relevant to the WG’s areas of scholarly interest.
It is expected that each person will submit only one abstract. However, no author’s name should appear on more than two abstracts, either individually or as part of any group of authors, and authors should not submit more than one abstract to any single section or working group. The same abstract, or a version with minor variations in title or content, must not be submitted to more than one Section or Working Group. Such submissions will be deemed to be in breach of the conference guidelines and will be rejected. Authors submitting the same work to multiple Sections or Working Groups may be removed entirely from the conference programme.
CJD does not accept submissions with BA students as first authors or presenting authors. However, BA students may be listed as non-presenting authors or co-authors (second, third or subsequent).
Evaluation criteria
Submitted abstracts will generally be evaluated on the basis of:
- Technical merit
- Readability
- Originality and/or significance
- Use of or contribution to theory
- Depth of knowledge of the research, theory and/or literature related to the proposed topic as evidenced in the submission
- Relevance to the working group and current trends or controversies in its field
Acceptance of proposals may also be conditioned by programme diversity and balance criteria.
Languages
The Communication, Social Justice and Democracy working group accepts abstracts in English, French or Spanish. Presentations are also welcome in any of the three languages, but we recommend researchers to prepare presentation aids (e.g. PowerPoint), in English to facilitate comprehension and discussion.
Statement on use of AI tools
IAMCR does not encourage or condone the use of generative AI tools to prepare abstracts submitted for consideration for our conferences. IAMCR values originality, integrity, and transparency in academic work, and believes that human-authored contributions best support rigorous and innovative scholarship in media and communication research. Should an author choose to use a generative AI tool in the preparation of an abstract, we require that they include a clear statement within their submission disclosing the tool's use. This statement must specify: (1) the name of any AI tool used; (2) how the tool was used in preparing the abstract, and; (3) the reason for using the tool. Failure to disclose the use of generative AI in accordance with these guidelines may impact the evaluation and acceptance of the submission.
Intention to attend
Each abstract submitted to IAMCR represents a real cost to the Association and contributes to the workload of volunteer reviewers and organisers. As the number of submissions each year far exceeds the available presentation slots, we ask authors to submit only if they genuinely intend to attend and present their work at the conference if accepted.
Accepted papers must be presented in person by the authors designated as PRESENTING authors in the submission platform. For co-authored papers, at least one of the authors must attend and present the paper. Only authors or co-authors of an accepted paper are permitted to present it. If none of the authors is able to attend and present, the paper will be removed from the conference programme.
Deadlines and key dates
The deadline to submit proposals is 12 February 2027, at 23:59 UTC.
Other other key dates to keep in mind. Dates are subject to change.
About the Communication, Social Justice and Democracy Working Group
Learn more about the work and scope of the Communication, Social Justice and Democracy Working Group
Contact the Working Group
Co-chair: Vaia Doudaki, vaia.doudaki@fsv.cuni.cz
Co-chair: Fernando Oliveira Paulino, fopaulino@gmail.com
Vice-chair: Tania Cantrell Rosas-Moreno, tcrosasmoreno@loyola.edu
