The Media Education Research (MER) Section of the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) invites the submission of proposals for papers and panels for IAMCR 2024, which will be held in Christchurch, New Zealand, from 30 June to 4 July 2024.
The deadline for submission is 7 February 2024, at 23h59 UTC.
See the CfPs of all sections and working groups
Theme
IAMCR conferences address many diverse topics defined by our 33 thematic sections and working groups. We also propose a single central theme to be explored throughout the conference with the aim of generating and exploring multiple perspectives. This is accomplished through plenary and special sessions, as well as in some of the sessions of the sections and working groups.
The central theme for 2024 focuses on "Whiria te tāngata / Weaving people together: Communicative projects of decolonising, engaging, and listening" - which draws upon a Maori proverb about the strength that comes through common purpose.
Consult a detailed description of the main theme
Educational spaces, whether formal (schools, universities, etc.) and non-formal (libraries, NGOs, community projects, DIY initiatives, journalism, and media productions), are intended as sites of empowerment that potentially address burning issues of the day, but also provide practical means to groups and individuals to make change in their daily lives. Working in the seams of educational, cultural, and social spaces, educators, librarians, community activists, media makers, journalists, and communications researchers are positioned in a unique manner to address central, challenging global issues of the day, while also toiling alongside individuals and groups to help develop and nurture media competencies, conceptual frames, and ethical comportments.
The Media Education Research Section is calling for papers related to the conference's main themes from the perspective of ongoing empirical research or theoretical developments.
The abstracts can follow a range of directions such as:
- How should media education address new cultural, political, technological, and ethical challenges?
- Is media education helping to weave people together in a time of chaos and fragmentation? Does it adequately respond to mis- or dis-information and hate speech?
- How are neo-colonial and global South challenges and approaches contributing to media education? Can we decolonize media education?
- How does media education contribute to democracy and social movements?
- Does children’s and youth media have a place and role in media education?
- Can a focus on media production make a difference in the lives of youth and their communities?
- What critical media education research is needed today, locally and/or globally?
- How are algorithms, datafication, platforming and/or artificial intelligence taken up in media education research?
- What research are you working on and how does it fit into the conference themes?
Guidelines for abstracts
Abstracts are requested for papers to be presented in person at the conference in Christchurch. Abstracts submitted to the Media Education Research Section should have between 300 and 500 words and must be submitted online here. Abstracts submitted by email will not be accepted.
The deadline to submit abstracts is 7 February 2024, at 23.59 UTC.
Typically, authors will submit only one (1) abstract to the conference as a whole. Under no circumstances should there be more than two (2) abstracts bearing the name of the same author, either individually or as part of a group of authors. Please note also that the same abstract or another version with minor variations in title or content must not be submitted to more than one section or working group. Any such submissions will be deemed to be in breach of the conference guidelines and will be rejected.
Proposals are accepted for both single papers and for panels with several papers (in which you propose multiple papers that address a single theme). Please note that there are special procedures for submitting panel proposals. We expect a minimum of four and a maximum of six papers on each panel. We recommend you include a common term or acronym in the title of all panel papers. For example, if your panel theme revolves around social media and education, perhaps ALL use an acronym such as SME (Social Media Education) in the title of your individual paper submission. Hence, individual titles could be “SME: My paper’s title” and another on the same panel could be “SME: Your papers title.”
See important dates and deadlines to keep in mind
Languages
The Media Education Research Section accepts abstracts only in English. Full conference papers can be submitted in English or Spanish.
See resources for IAMCR conference preparation and participation
Any other questions, including submission procedures for the Media Education Research Section, can be directed to the heads of the section:
Michael Hoechsmann mhoechsm@lakeheadu.ca (English/Spanish)
Rayén Condeza Dall'Orso rcondeza@uc.cl (Spanish/French)