[ecrea] ICTs, New Media and Social Change in Africa, London, 15 June 2012

CALL

FOR PAPERS

ICTs, New Media and Social Change in Africa

Conference
organised by the
Africa
Media Centre
Communication
and Media Research Institute (CAMRI),

Date: 15 June 2012
Venue: University of Westminster, 309 Regent Street,
London, W1B 2UW

In Africa, as in many societies, new
technologies increasingly play a prominent role in the production and exchange
of information.  In spite of their limited penetration on the continent,
new information technologies are beginning to have a noticeable effect on
politics, activism, culture, entertainment and many other facets of public and
private life. There is frequent usage of the Internet and of mobile devices,
the rise of influential blogs and news sites, evidence of social media that are
more than tools for self-presentation together with the overreliance of major
newspapers, radio and television on websites for a broader and more diverse
reach in ways that suggest a paradigm shift and the alteration of social values
in communication practices today. Evolving media policies, attitudes and use
patterns in Africa and the Global South remarkably indicate that the benefits
of ICTs and New Media are not confined to the Global North alone.

Key questions, however, relate to how new
forms of communication technologies have advanced or subverted social
change in Africa. The purpose of this one-day conference is to bring
together African scholars from diverse disciplines to collectively explore the
thematic issue of the transforming role of ICTs and new media.  We are
concerned to bring to the fore sub-themes of changing production environments,
shifts in funding mechanisms, the role of audiences/users, regulation debates
and the ICTs’ potential for human development. Wikileaks have, for
example, shown how African governments have struggled to maintain transparency
and uphold their citizens’ right to information.

The Arab Spring and other manifestations of
tension and struggle among governments, citizens and terrorists, call for
debates on social transformation in the context of new media and ICTs.  To
address these and similar issues relating to the theorisation of the
role and influence of new media technologies in Africa, we invite scholars to
submit panel proposals and/ or abstracts in the following and related areas:


·         Theoretical and Conceptual
Issues on New Media and Social Change
·         Citizen
empowerment, Diasporas and new media
·         Social
media for Social Change in Africa
·         Mediating
history in a digital era
·         Human development and
new ICTs
·         New
media tools in politics, persuasion and electioneering
·         ICTs
and Anti-Corruption Campaigns in Africa
·         Health
Communication, ICTs and New Media in Africa
·         Old
Media and New Media in Africa
·         Regulation
of ICTs and new Media in Africa
·         Resistance,
Activism and New Media Cultures in Africa
·         New
Media Practices and Organisations in Africa
·         Journalism
and Media Education in the Digital Age
·         From
Audiences to Consumer-Producers
·         Mobile
Phone Revolutions in Africa


DEADLINE
FOR ABSTRACTS

The conference organizers welcome
abstracts that feature high quality conceptual papers, as well as qualitative
and quantitative empirical research papers. Abstracts from individuals
including graduate students are welcome

The new deadline for abstracts is Wednesday
2 May 2012. Successful applicants will be notified by Monday 7 May 2012.
Abstracts should be 300 words long. They must include the presenter's name,
affiliation, email and postal address, together with the title of the paper.
Please send abstracts to Helen Cohen (atjournalism /at/ westminster.ac.uk)



PROGRAMME
AND REGISTRATION

This one day conference will take
place on Friday 15 June 2012. The fee for registration (which applies to all participants,
including presenters) will be £95 with a concessionary rate of £45 for
students, to cover all conference documentation, refreshments and
administration costs. Registration will open at the end of April 2012

----------------
ECREA-Mailing list
----------------
This mailing list is a free service from ECREA.
---
To unsubscribe, please visit http://www.ecrea.eu/mailinglist
---
ECREA - European Communication Research and Education Association
Postal address:
ECREA
Université Libre de Bruxelles
c/o Dept. of Information and Communication Sciences
CP123, avenue F.D. Roosevelt 50, b-1050 Bruxelles, Belgium
Email: (info /at/ ecrea.eu)
URL: http://www.ecrea.eu
----------------