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[ecrea] CFP -- ICA Preconference on the Digital Divide
Sat Jan 11 02:05:08 GMT 2014
CFP: Digital Divide Research Preconference at ICA 2014/Seattle Conference
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Communication and “The Good Life” Around the World After Two Decades of
the Digital Divide
Partnership for Progress on the Digital Divide (PPDD) Preconference
International Communication Association (ICA) 2014 Conference
Seattle, Washington, USA
Thursday, 22 May 2014
http://www.icahdq.org/conf/2014/aroundtheworldcfp.asp
Call for Participation
This interdisciplinary Preconference, sponsored by Partnership for
Progress on the Digital Divide (PPDD) explores the nexus of the
International Communication Association (ICA) Conference Theme of “The
Good Life” and the issues of digital inclusion/exclusion for those who
do not share the advantages of continuous connectivity. The PPDD
Preconference is co-sponsored by the ICA Communication and Technology
Division, the ICA Communication Law and Policy Division, and the ICA
Mass Communication Division.
2014 marks the 20th anniversary of the recognition of the digital divide
through social scientific research. As the Internet became commonplace
in the 1990s, officials in the Clinton Administration wondered if there
should be concern about equity of access to computers and the
Information Superhighway. As a result, based on the analysis of Census
data about computer/modem ownership and usage collected in 1994, the
newly created National Telecommunications and Information Administration
(NTIA) prepared and released in 1995 the landmark report entitled
"Falling Through the Net: A Survey of the 'Have Nots' in Rural and Urban
America." From there, the discussion of the inequalities of online
access as a new aspect of the larger issues of wealth and poverty began
and the "Digital Divide” became a major focus in countries around the world.
Recent research from scholars in, for example, the U.S., U.K., and
Canada indicates that nearly 20 years later, even in the most highly
developed countries around the world, as much as 20% of the population
does not benefit from even minimal access to the Internet. And, that
lack of consistent, quality access to emergent communication
technologies is antithetical to the nature of a “good life” amidst the
transformative changes enjoyed by members of the wired population; those
who are offline are alienated from the benefits of the “new
opportunities to communicate and interact . . . new experiences,
behaviors, and habits . . . [and the ability to] engage with others or
receive information” suggested by the ICA Conference Theme. Thus, this
Preconference responds to ICA’s call to consider “what a ‘good life’
might look like in a contemporary, digital, and networked society, and
what new challenges we might face in attaining it” to include all
members of society.
In the search for equity in access to “the good life” in the digital
age, scholarly research has played a key role in the public discourse on
the issues of the digital divide as well as in the decision-making by
policymakers and practitioners as they work to craft solutions to this
pressing societal concern. As the digital divide persists past its 20th
anniversary, this Preconference provides an extended, in-depth
opportunity to consider the current state and future possibilities for
research that informs issues related to the digital divide around the
world. Further, the Preconference works to identify new areas of
necessary, productive research focus to foster greater understanding and
enlighten practice and policy going forward so that all global citizens
can create their own “good life” in the digital, networked age.
After a brief welcome and summary introduction to the status of the
digital divide around the world, the Preconference schedule features
three 75-minute breakout time periods with multiple simultaneous
sessions focusing on the status of communication, an inclusive “good
life”, and digital divide research in various regions of the world.
Involving scholars at all stages of their careers as well as
policymakers and practitioners, these sessions will include research
from any discipline and any theoretical and methodological approach that
contributes to exploring the issues surrounding the digital divide. In
addition, there will be a luncheon keynote.
The final session of the Preconference is a highly interactive, lively
brainstorming and collaborative thinking dialogue among all presenters
and other attendees to create partnerships and inspire new ideas for the
third decade of digital divide research. All participants in the
Preconference will have the opportunity to provide in advance position
papers that will be made available prior to the Preconference and
permanently archived via an e-book on the PPDD website.
Please join us to share your insights and expertise.
How to Participate
*** Submit an Abstract to Present Your Work During the Preconference
Deadline: 20 January 2014
Notification of Acceptance: 1 February 2014
Submissions are welcome from scholars at all stages of their careers as
well as from policymakers and practitioners, from any theoretical and
methodological approach, and across multiple disciplines engaged in
research that informs issues related to the digital divide, including,
but not limited to:
- gaps in access and connectivity
- digital inclusion
- digital exclusion
- digital (dis)engagement
- challenges and opportunities
- social and cultural aspects of the divide
- the skills and digital/information literacy needed to interpret,
understand, and navigate information presented online
- the impact of socioeconomic factors on user behavior
- the role of motivation
- differences in patterns of usage
- characteristics and conceptualizations of non-users
- how people use the Internet to create content
- different forms of capital and power relationships
- the impact of new and evolving technologies
- the mobile divide
- the interplay of influence with mobile technologies
- socioeconomic and cultural effects
- community informatics
- social informatics
- international development
- education
- health
- politics and civic engagement
- telecommunication policy
- the application of research to communities, practice, and public and
private sector initiatives
If desired, each author may submit one sole authored work and one or
more co-authored works, but each individual can only make one
presentation at the Preconference so additional submissions would have
to be presented by another member of the co-authorship team.
Please include the following information in your submission:
- Title of presentation
- Name(s), affiliation(s), and email address(es) of author(s)
- On co-authored submissions, the name, affiliation, and email address
of the author who will be presenting the work at the Preconference
- A 1 page (250 words excluding notes and references) abstract in 12 pt.
Times New Roman in Word doc/docx format
- For each author, a 100-word-maximum description of the author’s
area(s) of research interest related to the digital divide in 12 pt.
Times New Roman in a separate Word doc/docx format file
Please email your submission to the appropriate Sessions Organizer below
based on where your research was conducted:
Eastern and Western Europe
Sessions Organizer: Ellen Helsper, London School of Economics and
Political Science
e.j.helsper (at) lse (dot) ac (dot) uk
Asia, Oceania, the Middle East, and Africa
Sessions Organizer: Gerard Goggin, University of Sydney
gerard.goggin (at) Sydney (dot) edu (dot) au
Canada
Sessions Organizer: Catherine Middleton, Ryerson University
catherine.middleton (at) Ryerson (dot) ca
United States
Sessions Organizer: Susan B. Kretchmer, Johns Hopkins University and
Partnership for Progress on the Digital Divide
susankretchmer (at) yahoo (dot) com
Central and South America
Sessions Organizer: Laura Robinson, Santa Clara University
laura (at) laurarobinson (dot) org
*** If Not Submitting Work for Presentation, Chair a Session During the
Preconference
Deadline: 20 January 2014
Notification of Acceptance: 1 February 2014
If you are not submitting your work for presentation but would like to
Chair a session, please email your request to the Sessions Organizer for
the region of major interest to you from the list above. Please include
your name, affiliation, and email address as well as a 100-word-maximum
description of your area(s) of research interest related to the digital
divide in 12 pt. Times New Roman in a Word doc/docx format file.
*** Submit a Position Paper for Inclusion in the Preconference E-Book
Deadline: 15 March 2014
Presenters, session Chairs, and all others who will be attending the
Preconference are invited to submit to (ebook /at/ ppdd.org) a 3-5 page
(750-1250 words excluding notes and references) position paper, in 12
pt. Times New Roman in Word doc/docx format, discussing:
- Your vision for the future of digital divide research;
- Your thoughts on what questions need to be asked and what research
methods and critical perspectives should be used to answer them; and
- How that research can impact policymaking, practice, and the
attainment of a “good life” going forward in your unique region of the
world as well as globally.
If you will not be presenting your work or Chairing a session but will
be attending the Preconference and submitting a position paper by the
March 15 deadline, please email the Preconference Organizer, Susan
Kretchmer (susankretchmer (at) yahoo (dot) com), by 20 January to
indicate your intention so that we can anticipate your position paper
and include you in all emailings of Preconference announcements. In
that email, please include your name, affiliation, and email address as
well as a 100-word-maximum description of your area(s) of research
interest related to the digital divide in 12 pt. Times New Roman in a
Word doc/docx format file.
*** Join in the Dialogue at the Preconference Without Presenting,
Chairing, or Submitting a Position Paper
If you would like to just attend the Preconference to join in the
dialogue without any other involvement, please email the Preconference
Organizer, Susan Kretchmer (susankretchmer (at) yahoo (dot) com), to
indicate your intention so that we can include you in all emailings of
Preconference announcements.
Please contact Susan (susankretchmer (at) yahoo (dot) com) for any other
questions or further information.
About Partnership for Progress on the Digital Divide (PPDD) --
Continuing the work and collaborations that began under the auspices of
the National Communication Association Task Force on the Digital Divide,
and with former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce Larry Irving as
Honorary Director, PPDD is a not-for-profit organization that engages a
broad diversity of individuals and organizations to spearhead a
multi-associational, multi-disciplinary partnership between scholars,
practitioners, and policymakers to make significant contributions in
closing the digital divide and addressing the many other challenges and
opportunities presented by the digital age. PPDD reaches out beyond the
communication discipline and academia to various other disciplines and
groups in the U.S. and abroad who share interests, methods, and goals
and want to work with PPDD to build on that common ground to find
solutions to these pressing societal concerns. For example, PPDD has
been actively involved with government, policymakers, and practitioners
across a broad range, including submitting a “friend-of-the-court” brief
to the U.S. Supreme Court to counsel on a recent case of major import
for Americans’ access to the Internet in public libraries and advising
the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as it developed and now
implements the National Broadband Plan mandated by Congress.
About the International Communication Association (ICA) --
ICA is an academic association for scholars interested in the study,
teaching, and application of all aspects of human and mediated
communication and is a truly international association with more than
4,800 members in 77 countries. Since 2003, ICA has been officially
associated with the United Nations as a non-governmental association (NGO).
Further information about ICA is available at http://www.icahdq.org/ and
complete details about ICA's 64th Annual Conference in Seattle, 22-26
May 2014, are available at http://www.icahdq.org/conf/index.asp.
The ICA Communication and Technology Division
(http://cat.icahdq.org/ohana/website/index.cfm?p=8354660), the ICA
Communication Law and Policy Division
(http://clap.icahdq.org/ohana/website/index.cfm?p=72631611), and the ICA
Mass Communication Division
(http://mass.icahdq.org/ohana/website/index.cfm?p=89243202) have joined
with PPDD to be co-sponsors of the Preconference.
Rod Carveth
Morgan State
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