[ecrea] CfP RIPE@2016 'Public Service Media In a Networked Society?'

  *RIPE@2016*

*22 - 24 September 2016 in Antwerp and Brussels, Belgium*

*/CALL FOR PAPER PROPOSALS/*

*_Public Service Media In a Networked Society?_*

We are pleased to announce the eighth biennial RIPE conference that will
be hosted by the Department of Communication Studies at the University
of Antwerp (U Antwerpen) in collaboration with the Free University of
Brussels(VUB), and sponsored by Flemish public service broadcaster VRT.

The RIPE@2016 conference theme focuses on characteristics, dynamics and
implications of a networked society for public service media [PSM]. In
recent years, discussions about the changing media ecology and PSM’s
place and role have prioritised the notion of a networked society,
enabled by digitisation and characterised by audience fragmentation and
the interconnectedness of technologies, communities, media practices and
companies. The emerging ecology is highly disruptive to market
structures and modes of communication in the mass media era. The concept
and practices associated with networked communications in a networked
society are celebrated, but merit critical scrutiny.

How real is the ‘networked society’ in established and emerging media
economies? What indications are there that a networked society expands
or lessens PSM’s role? How can PSM strengthen the democratic potential
of networked communications and counter disruptive forces, and be seen
to do that? What are the roles of commercial and non-commercial media
organisations in a networked society, and how do these roles intersect –
or not? Which aspects of legacy public service institutions and
traditions can and should be preserved, and what appears to be no longer
useful. What new roles can and should PSM take on? Why is increased
collaboration with other public institutions and also private companies
necessary for PSM? What indication are there that PSM should and could
become a central hub for public services in media, or another node in
decentralised networks, or a remedy for market failure, or that public
service provision should be left to alternative grassroots initiatives
and distributed forms? What are the main lines of development and
challenge for PSM in regions and countries where various projects and
processes are working to create PSM where it did not exist before –
particularly in the Global South? Does the networked society notion have
a bearing in those cases? Are there models, practices and solutions of
potential importance for PSM in the Global North? How do the two halves
intersect and where are the most significant disconnects with regard to
PSM in the context of networked societies?

Our theme has many dimensions that open PSM discourse to analysis and
critique about relations between traditional and new media,
institutional and non-institutional actors and approaches, forms of
journalism and news provision, characteristics and dynamics of social
networks in connection with PSM, and all of this across a broad range of
stakeholders that include government, NGOs, other public institutions,
commercial media, and most importantly the public as audiences, users,
creators, citizens, activists, consumers, owners, etc. Our theme has
implications for the role of PSM with regard to digital divides around
the world, and expansive as well as critical treatment of publicness as
a concept and in practice. Comparative work is needed to explain both
the specifics of PSM in countries of varying sizes, political traditions
and market structures, and commonalities and their implications.

The following topics will comprise the workgroup structure for this
conference:

*1. PSM’s roles and functions in a networked society*

  * Analyses and critical insight of policy instruments that support the
    networked society concept and its practical development.
  * Insight into how PSM is understood in the networked society context
    (e.g. as a hub, a node, a key institution, irrelevant, and emerging
    models).
  * Discussion of wider changes in societies and media systems with a
    focus on the implications for (divergent) views on the roles and
    functions of PSM.
  * Clarification of PSM’s institutional roles and functions in a
    networked society that merit deeper consideration by policy makers
    and researchers.

  * Trends in regulation, governance and accountability measures that
    are specific to understandings of PSM in a networked society.
  * Assessment and critique of operational strategies to increase
    collaboration between PSM institutions and other actors.
  * Aspects, elements and realities of PSM as a /non-networked/ entity
    or practice

2. *PSM and the public in a networked society*

  * Analyses and insight about dimensions of public involvement with PSM
    in the networked society context (participation, engagement,
    interaction, alternative, collaborator).
  * Insight about modes of address and implied identities (audiences,
    users, citizens, consumers, creators, etc.) with implications for
    developing PSM theory and operational practice.
  * Recommendations for how to build better, stronger, and deeper
    relations between PSM and its publics, as well as limitations and
    threats.
  * Opportunities and limits on PSM efforts to serve diasporic, ethnic
    and immigrant communities (usually minorities) in a networked society.
  * The position of PSM in the media choices of a networked audience
    that uses both linear broadcast and non-linear broadband channels.
  * Critical analysis of methods for defining and measuring PSM
    audiences that address concern about whether new digital metrics
    yield a better understanding of PSM’s role.
  * The role of networks and online communication for ensuring PSM
    accountability.
  * Complications and barriers in cases and aspects where PSM is not
    networked

3. *PSM and partnership in a networked society*

  * Critical examination of vested interests in various social
    formations that support or resist the networked society.
  * Clarification of winners and losers in the development of networked
    societies, with particular emphasis on implications for PSM.
  * Clarification of the multiplicity of stakeholders, significant
    contradictions, important aspects where they agree, and what this
    means for relationship ‘management’ in PSM today:
      o Commercial media
      o Cultural organisations
      o Other public institutions
      o Organisations representing minorities, movements and communities
      o International actors in varied sectors (lobbies, NGO’s,
        associations, etc.)
      o Grassroots movements and activists
      o Policy makers
  * Stakeholder management practices, problems and development in
    relation to higher requirements for PSM accountability and renewed
    legitimacy.
  * Research on co-creative audiences / users in PSM today that yields
    fresh insights about what is being done, how well, with what
    results, and where significant barriers remain.
  * Scholarship on collaboration, partnership and value chain networks
    for PSM.

4. *PSM and journalism in a networked society*

  * Examination of the character, dynamics and conditions for
    professional journalism in the networked society, and the
    implications for PSM.
  * Opportunities and problems in collaborative news and citizen 
journalism.
  * Clarification of diverse options for PSM’s role in news provision –
    as producer, distributor, gatekeeper, facilitator, convener,
    platform, moderator, etc.
  * Links between legacy media and social media in PSM news operations
    today.
  * Trends, concerns and benefits in the pursuit of cost-cutting
    measures that include outsourcing, downsizing and freelancing in
    journalistic employment.
  * Pros and cons of entrepreneurial journalism in the context of PSM.
  * Changes in PSM news production keyed to user-generated content and
    audience feedback.
  * Analyses and critique of how PSM is affected by the ‘media economic
    crisis’ and what that means for journalism and quality content.

5. *PSM in small versus large (networked) societies*

  * Significant challenges and comparative dynamics in doing public
    service media in societies of various sizes, especially smaller
    societies, and in both institutional and non-institutional forms.
  * What small and large mean and imply in the context of the networked
    society.
  * Comparative findings about of assets and liabilities for small and
    large societies.
  * Vulnerabilities and opportunities for small (networked) societies
    beyond Europe and at different levels of service provision.

6. *Implications of power in networked societies for PSM*

  * Gatekeeping processes in networked societies and the affects on PSM,
    especially regarding inclusion and exclusion.
  * Changing structures and dynamics in holding and wielding power, with
    implications for PSM.
  * The exercise of power related to developmental challenges for PSM in
    the Global South, especially.
  * Opportunities and limitations for PSM development as a consequence
    of empowerment.
  * Old and new pressures on PSM’s institutional autonomy and editorial
    independence in the networked society context.
  * Issues and constituencies for PSM accountability in the networked
    society.

_SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS_

Paper proposals will be peer reviewed and must adhere these format
specifications:

üPaper’s working title, excluding the author(s)’ identification

üExtended abstract (max 750 words) explaining the paper topic and how it
contributes to conference theme

üIndicate which two topical areas, specified as 1 to 6 above, the paper
would best fit

Please submit your proposal as a PDF file at www.ripeat2016.org
<http://www.ripeat2016.org> (Note: this is NOT the general RIPE website,
but a dedicated website for the 2016 conference). Please follow the
EasyChair instructions and complete all the identification and other
fields online.

**

All submissions will be peer-reviewed (double-blind) by a scientific
committee. The evaluation criteria are:

   1. Relevance to the conference theme and fit with one or more topical
areas

   2. Conceptual and analytic quality (beyond a descriptive treatment)

   3. Relevance to PSM management and practice

   4. Comparative research is highly desired

   5. Clarification of methodology if the paper will report on empirical
research

   6. Generalisability of insights and findings

Empirical research is highly valued, but we also welcome insightful
philosophical, critical and theory-driven papers.

RIPE conferences focus on substance, dialogue and results. We therefore
limit acceptance to about 60 papers. Each paper is assigned to a
workgroup. At best we assign 9-12 papers per group so every paper has
sufficient time for presentation and, importantly, discussion.

*Submissions are due 15 February 2016.*

**

*Decisions on acceptance will be announced on 28 March 2016. *

**

*Completed papers must be submitted on 1 August 2016 via
www.ripeat2016.org <http://www.ripeat2016.org>*

The conference happens over 2.5 days with a welcoming reception the
night before the first day. The conference language is English.

Conference fees will be announced at a later date. A discount for PhD
students is planned. Registration fees cover costs for conference meals,
events and materials but do not include accommodation or travel. A
non-obligatory social programme might be planned for the day after the
conference. If so, it would be an additional cost. The RIPE conference
does not supplement personal travel costs.

The RIPE initiative publishes a selection of the best papers in a
peer-reviewed book handled by NORDICOM publishers.



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