[ecrea] Media Policy and Regulation: Activating Voices, Illuminating Silences

*Conference 'Media Policy and Regulation: Activating Voices, 
Illuminating Silences'*

*Date*: 18-19 July, 2013

*Venue*: University of Minho, Braga, Portugal

*Deadline for abstracts*: 1 March, 2013

*Organization*: Communication and Society Research Centre, University of 
Minho, Braga, Portugal

In the midst of expectations and skepticism, media regulators are 
booming around the world. So-called independent regulators or statutory 
regulatory bodies have thrived with liberalization and privatization in 
the late 1980s and 1990s. Ever since, their configuration has been 
profoundly transformed as technical convergence deepens and more actors 
expect to play an active role in the overall media regulatory construct. 
At sub-national, national and transnational levels, the complexification 
of media self and co-regulatory mechanisms is also notorious. Indeed, 
the diversity and distinctiveness of media regulators (and related 
agencies) is such that empirical reality is permanently challenging the 
achievements of the scientific field. Aiming to address in depth media 
regulators in different geographical contexts, the Communication and 
Society Research Centre (CSRC) invites you to submit papers on any of 
the following topics:

- conceptual dilemmas on media regulation, media regulators, media 
policy, media governance, statutory media regulation, deregulation, etc;

- convergent or sectorial media regulators (legal frameworks, functions, 
legitimizing/underlying values, performance, enforcement 
mechanisms/accountability, institutional organization/composition and 
funding);

- links between sub-national/regional, national and transnational media 
regulators;

- articulations between media regulation, co-regulation and self-regulation;

- the independence of 'independent' media regulators;

- social movements and citizens' dynamics to set up and/or to abolish 
media regulators;

- cross-country comparative analysis of media regulators;

- internet/new media regulation.

This conference on media policy and regulation is the closing event of 
the project 'Media Regulation in Portugal: The ERC's Case' financed by 
the National Science Foundation (PTDC/CCI-COM/104634/2008). For three 
years, the project researchers have scrutinized the legacy of the 
Portuguese media regulator, its conceptual model and daily performance. 
With the support of the project's external consultants and members of 
the EuroMedia Research Group, a cross-country comparative analysis of 
media regulators was also possible. The main results of the project will 
be made available during this conference.

The abstract should be submitted by 1 March to Helena Sousa 
((mediareg /at/ ics.uminho.pt) <mailto:(mediareg /at/ ics.uminho.pt)>) with the 
following information: a) author(s); b) affiliation; c) email address; 
d) 300 words abstract.

More info: http://www.lasics.uminho.pt/mediareg/

Members of the Organization Committee: Helena Sousa, Manuel Pinto, 
Joaquim Fidalgo, Ana Melo, Elsa Costa e Silva, Luís António Santos, 
Sérgio Denicoli, Mariana Lameiras, Marta Eusébio Barbosa, Raphael 
Marinho, Chalini Barros