IAMCR 2014: Islam and Media Working Group - CfP - Deadline 10 February

Call for Papers - Islam and Media Working Group (CfP)

Islam and Media Working Group of the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) invites submissions for the IAMCR 2014 conference to be held from July 15-19, 2014 at Hyderabad (India). The deadline for submissions of extended abstracts for papers and panel proposals is midnight GMT on 10 February 2014.

Conference website: http://iamcr2014.org

The conference will be held under the general theme: Region as a Frame: Politics, Presence, Practice. The overall conference theme seeks to explore the dynamics of media systems, communication patterns and organizational relationships within the ‘framing’ of region as a physical and conceptual category.

The breaking down of some of the world’s walls has created an uncertainty about the geographies and substantive nature of the regions they had once defined. Mobility, migration and disembodied interactions by cyberspace further complicate the notion of region as a conceptual and experiential category. New regional hierarchies, such as the economic power of emerging economies (BRICS) are taking shape, serving to decentre traditional loci of power, while different forms of identity politics are creating fissures in the modern nation state. Corporations have acquired the power to dictate politics through their ownership of forms and channels of expression, and this has created a new urgency to re-think old arguments around media control and dispersal in a regional rather than global framework. This conference theme thus lends itself to papers and panels dealing with a wide range of specific sub-themes and topics relevant for the Islam and Media Group. The following are just examples for the issues and big questions to be covered by the invited papers to the group.

• What are the politics that drive media policies, discourse and performance in Arab and Muslim countries?

• Why does democratic transformation of media and political systems in Arab and Muslim countries fail?

• Why media systems (structures, ownership and regulations) in Arab and Muslim countries are still under the state and government control?

• Why private media in Arab and Muslim countries are not independent and not free?

• What are the politics behind the lack of Public Service Media in most Arab and Muslim countries?

• Why media outlets and professionals work against Arab Spring in the Arab region? 

• What type of democracy media professionals in the Arab region especially in Egypt defend when they advocate ending of legitimate and democratic political systems?

• What are the socio-political powers that force media monopoly and violations of freedom of expression in Egypt and other Arab Spring countries?

• What kind of media systems, practices, laws, ethics that Arab and Muslim countries need in order to have democracy and in order to face the interference of SCAF in civil political life?

• How can Arab and Muslim media and political systems adopt the universal principles of media freedom and democracy while preserving their unique cultural and religious identity?

• What politics behind the perpetuation of stereotyping image of Islam, Muslims and Arabs in the majority Western media discourse?  And why such media practices are not in favour of democratic movements in Arab and Muslim countries?

Islam and Media Group invites contributions to enrich the debate on the relationship between media, politics, culture and that help build theory and propose policies and ethical and professionals media practices.

Islam and Media Group welcomes the interdisciplinary scholarly works that relate media systems to political and cultural systems and that utilize multi-methodological approach. Papers that are based only on field surveys or content analysis or that lack critical and analytical thinking may not be accepted. All papers should be based on sound and comprehensive theoretical background.  Historical and comparative works are highly appreciated. 

Abstracts

Abstracts should range between 300 and 500 words in length including the research problem statement, objectives, theoretical framework and methodology. Each proposal must include title, name(s), affiliation, institutional address and email addresses of the author(s). All abstract submissions must be made centrally via the IAMCR Open Conference System (OCS) available for abstract submission at http://iamcr-ocs.org.

It is expected that for the most part, only one (1) abstract will be accepted per person in the research paper proposals in the Islam and Media Working Group program. But the author could also submit a panel proposal. Please note also that the same abstract or another version with minor variations in title or content must not be submitted to other Sections or Working Groups of the Association for consideration.

The deadlines are as follows:

Further information about IAMCR and this conference is available on the respective websites: at

IAMCR Website: www.iamcr.org

Conference website: http://iamcr2014.org/conference-theme/

Islam and Media Working Group

Chair:
Prof. Dr. Basyouni Hamada
basyouni_hamada[at]yahoo.com