[ecrea] CFP Bridging Gaps: Where is the Persona in Celebrity and Journalism?

*Call for Papers*

**

**

*Bridging Gaps:*

*/Where is the Persona in Celebrity and Journalism/?
**
*

* The Terrace Club
** 25 W. 51st St. (Off Fifth Ave.) New York, NY*
* September 2-3, 2015 **
*

In tabloid journalism and in social media, gossip, rumors and scandals
about celebrities develop intimacy among fans. Such gossip and rumour
mongering serves a purpose in society: to build a common moral ground on
the backs of celebrity lives. However what about the celebrities
themselves whose emotional lives are consumed by us? The production,
circulation and reception of these celebrities then negate the
democratic role of journalism in providing value-free information and
undermine artistic talent and
activism for which many celebrities became famous. Corporate interests
of governments and businesses have dominated the field of journalism and
the new industry, in
particular.

A combination of media productions such as interviews, portraits, diary
entries, life-writing, and unedited footage can facilitate a relation
between celebrities as subjects of journalistic enquiry and modes of
their representation. The biographical and autobiographical elements in
these productions can express nuances and subtleties of creative drives
that construct public personas. Scholars can also act as journalists and
interview celebrities, adding research as informed opinions. As
celebrity studies scholar Olivier Driessens suggests, there are
innovative ways in which researchers can surpass cultural
intermediaries, such as managers, who control the celebrity’s agenda,
and fill methodological gaps in media studies and practices.

We need to build academic, media and community partnerships to implement
creative strategies and informed opinions in content production. What
creative strategies do you implement to position your modes of inquiry
in celebrity culture? How can journalists benefit from researchers in
developing stories? Should academics become cultural critics to build an
engaged audience? Show new and powerful ways of storytelling that
journalists and researchers should consider in examining authentic
personas in fame.

The Centre for Media and Celebrity Studies (CMCS), in association with
sponsors WaterHill Publishing and Centre for Ecological, Social, and
Informatics Cognitive Research (ESI.CORE), invites academics,
journalists, publicists, social innovators and guests to attend, speak
and collaborate at the international conference /Bridging Gaps – Where
is the Persona in Celebrity and Journalism/? Join us in NYC where the
conference will uniquely combine vibrant roundtable and workshop panels
in a collaborative network! We invite original cross-disciplinary
proposals for the conference. Extended version of selected best papers
will be published in an edited book by WaterHill Publishing. Working
papers and media productions will be considered.

*Submission guidelines:*

  * 250-word abstract or workshop / roundtable proposal
  * Include a title, your name, e-mail address, and affiliation if
    applicable
  * Submit to conference Chairs Dr Jackie Raphael and Dr Samita Nandy at
    email address: *(celeb.studies /at/ gmail.com)
    <mailto:(celeb.studies /at/ gmail.com)>*
  * Deadline for submission: *June 1, 2015*
  * Notification of acceptance: *June 8, 2015*
  * Deadline for conference paper submission: *August 24, 2015*
  * Publication of edited book: *February 29, 2016*

The format of the conference aims at being open and inclusive through
roundtable and workshop panels with substantial discussion and
networking sessions. We welcome speculative ideas, exploratory
practices, position papers, manifestos, performances as well as
traditional academic papers from affiliated and independent researchers,
journalists, social innovators and related media professionals.

/Topics include but are not limited to:/

  * Persona
  * Celebrity
  * Scandals
  * Infamy
  * Biography
  * Genre
  * Journalism
  * News
  * Social Media
  * Publicity
  * Policies
  * Interviews
  * Audiences
  * Fandom
  * Fiction
  * Literature
  * Film
  * Video
  * Television
  * Fashion
  * Photography
  * Selfies
  * Portraiture
  * Art History
  * Performance
  * Life Writings
  * Diaspora
  * Theory and Methods
  * Research Agenda
  * Business Models
  * Ethics and Morality
  * Cognition and Memory
  * Media Literacy
  * Social Innovation
  * Education and Advocacy
  * Community Building
  * Business and Community Partnerships

Enjoy your stay and meetings at Club Quarters during the conference. We
invite applicants to visit www.clubquarters.com
<http://cmc-centre.com/conferences-2015/nycsept15/www.clubquarters.com> to
view the hotel. Discounted rates will be available for accepted
delegates after June 8, 2015.

_*Conference URL*_: http://cmc-centre.com/conferences-2015/nycsept15/.
<http://cmc-centre.com/conferences-2015/nycsept15/>

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