[ecrea] CfP: Policies of cultural diversity in Europe. Special Issue of Global Media and Communication

Call for papers

Special issue of "Global Media and Communication", December 2014

Policies of cultural diversity in Europe: Manoeuvring between 
integration and security?

Edited by Leen d’Haenens (KU Leuven) and Tristan Mattelart (Paris 8)

National governments in Europe have, from an early stage, mobilized 
audiovisual media in an effort to deal with growing cultural 
pluralization resulting from increasing immigration flows. Within this 
framework, European public broadcasters implemented, as early as the 
1960s and 1970s, a policy of special programs aimed at ‘immigrants’, 
pursuing the objectives of both promoting their insertion into host 
societies and establishing a link to their cultures of origin. Later on, 
taking into account the necessity of addressing not only the media needs 
of the first generation immigrants, but also those of their children 
born in the host countries, public — and some private — broadcasters 
have sought to improve the representation of ethnic minorities in their 
generalist programs.

Similarly, from the end of the 1970s on, some European institutions — 
for example, the Council of Europe — began to promote the need to 
improve the media representations of the ‘migrant worker’ or, more 
generally, ethnic minorities in the different countries of the continent.

Present policies of ‘cultural diversity’ in Europe should be seen in 
this continuity. The latter appear to grapple with a paradox: they aim 
at enhancing ethnic minorities’ representations either on or behind the 
screens, in newsrooms or management positions, but they are implemented 
in an era — that of post 9/11 — when these minorities, and more 
particularly those of Muslim faith, are viewed as representing a growing 
danger for national social cohesion.

This paradox may be only apparent, however. Indeed, in many ways, 
policies of cultural diversity may be considered as being invested with 
political as well as security objectives. They can be viewed as part of 
an overall strategy that seeks both at improving ethnic minorities’ 
‘integration’, and through this, at increasing Europe’s security by 
decreasing the importance of perceived threats.

The purpose of this special issue of "Global Media and Communication" is 
to offer a critical perspective on these policies of cultural diversity 
in Europe. Indeed, these are often praised, or taken as given, but 
rarely questioned. Yet, beyond the rhetoric of diversity, the objectives 
of these policies need to be scrutinized.

First, these policies have to be put into historical perspective. Our 
goal is to understand how public agencies in Europe — be they 
international or national — have historically taken into account the 
media needs of ethnic minorities, from the 1960s onwards. How these 
policies of media representation have been put into action, how they may 
have shifted over time? To what extent, the policies of ‘cultural 
diversity’ represent a rupture in these policies of media representation?

The nature of these policies needs also to be addressed. Do they aim — 
as the notion of ‘diversity’ seems to imply — at enhancing the right to 
cultural difference? Or do they strive, on the contrary, for further 
‘integration’ of ethnic minorities? And, if so, what kind of integration 
is expected?

Analyzing the aims and the scope of these policies requires, in 
addition, to map the different institutions involved — at a national or 
continental scale — in their production, and to map the possible 
contradictions existing between their agendas.

At last, these policies need to be placed in the overall context of 
European policies aiming at regulating immigration. To what extent are 
these policies of media inclusion components of a general policy that 
aims both at integrating (including through mainstream media) ‘legal’ 
immigrants and at a better control of the borders (including through 
ICTs) against ‘illegal’ migrants? In other words, to what extent are 
these diversity policies related to the management of border control 
operated by European Union Agency Frontex?

Expressions of interest should be submitted to both guest editors, Leen 
d’Haenens ((leen.dhaenens /at/ soc.kuleuven.be) 
<mailto:(leen.dhaenens /at/ soc.kuleuven.be)>) and Tristan Mattelart 
((tristan.mattelart /at/ univ-paris8.fr) 
<mailto:(tristan.mattelart /at/ univ-paris8.fr)>), as an e-mail attachment by 
no later than April 30, 2013. Please include a 500-word abstract, full 
contact information, and a biographical note (up to 75 words) on the 
author(s). Authors of accepted abstracts will be notified by May 31, 
2013 and will then be invited to submit a full paper to the guest 
editors. Manuscripts should be between 6,000 to 7,000 words, including 
notes and references, follow "Global Media and Communication" style 
guidelines, and be submitted by November 15, 2013. All papers will be 
subject to anonymous peer review following submission.