[ecrea] CFP: Communication, Capitalism and Social Change, ESA RN18 Mid-Term Conference 2018

Communication, Capitalism and Social Change: Policy, Practice, Praxis
ESA RN18 Mid-Term Conference 2018
University of Zagreb, Croatia
6-8 September 2018
Conference website: http://esarn18zagreb.org

European Sociological Association (ESA) ‐ Research Network 18: Sociology 
of Communications and Media Research in cooperation with the:
Croatian Sociological Association (HSD)
Institute for Development and International Relations (IRMO)
Department of Sociology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences 
(FFZG), University of Zagreb

Invites applications for the:

COMMUNICATION, CAPITALISM AND SOCIAL CHANGE: POLICY, PRACTICE, PRAXIS

ESA RN18 Mid-Term Conference 2018

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Natalie Fenton (Goldsmiths, University of London): Fake Democracy, 
Digital Media: Reinventing our Democratic Futures?

Vincent Mosco (Queen's University, Canada): The Next Internet

CALL FOR PAPERS

Communication is essential to society. There are no social relations 
without communication, and communication is the key for the 
inter-subjective understanding of humans. Communication is embedded 
within relations of production in digital capitalism. It is increasingly 
commodified in digital networks while political radicalism finds new 
support in right-wing populism. Open, democratic communication is much 
needed in times of increasing radicalisation of human existence in 
conservative discourses and confines of consumer logic. Non-regulated 
markets, radical politics and corporate technologies distort the social 
foundations of critical reason, and common-sense. Legacy media, 
automated systems, fake news, market failures, and global monopolies of 
key internet services systematically distort the inter-subjective 
potential of communication. Burning social issues such as rising 
inequality, poverty, migration, and climate change cannot be tackled 
without a common understanding of the main challenges facing humanity. 
While global networks offer the potential for human liberation, we are 
witnessing a familiar pattern in which political and economic elites 
take over the means of communication and common understanding. What is 
to be done remains an open question. Supposedly value-neutral media 
policies often end up proposing administrative adjustments to 
communication systems, cater to the existing structures, and offer only 
minor adaptations of the regulatory framework. The key is to break the 
cycle in which such reforms perpetuate the fundamentally flawed social 
system. Systemic tendencies of global capitalism towards creating 
monopolies, destroying natural resources, increasing inequality, 
spreading racism and xenophobia are well established. Yet moving from 
the accumulated critical knowledge towards an actual social change is no 
easy task. The demand for a better society, and a move from theory to 
action is a thorny political issue. Open, democratic communication is 
the starting point for any meaningful societal change. Such a situation 
makes it increasingly important to revisit the critical ideas of 
democratic rationalization within policy and the philosophy of praxis.

The ESA mid-term conference is particularly interested in, but not 
limited to, the following questions:

Theorizing communication and social change

What theories help us to explain communication and social change? What 
is the role of the philosophy of praxis in establishing a more just and 
equal society? What are the current and ‘forgotten’ theoretical 
approaches that can be of use for us today?

Market failures

Why and how do markets fail to provide positive externalities and public 
goods? Why do commons-based projects become increasingly commodified? 
What is the role of intellectual property rights in digital capitalism?

Policy failures

What kind of policies regarding communication and the media prevail 
today? Why do policies fail to promote the establishment of a more just 
and equal society? What is the future of media policy for bringing 
social change?

Media frames of key social issues

How are social inequality, poverty, migration, climate change and other 
issues framed by the media? How do key actors communicate through the 
media? What are the obstacles and barriers of mediated representations 
for bringing social change?

Ideological discourses

What are the main obstacles for democratic communication? How is 
communication distorted by ideological, conservative and nationalist 
discourses in contemporary society? What is the role of automated 
systems and algorithms?

Digitized workspaces

How is communication turned into labour? What is the role of global 
supply chains for digitized work environments? What are the main 
tensions, contradictions and struggles in digitized work relations?

Alternatives and social movements

Who are the potential actors promoting democratic communication? How is 
social change in general demanded by the current media development and 
how by social movements, NGOs and community media with the use of ICTs? 
What are the main global and local demands for social change?

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION

Abstract submission deadline: 1 April
Notification of selected abstracts: 15 May
Conference date: 6-8 September 2018

Abstracts should be sent to:

Dr Roy Panagiotopoulou (University of Athens, Greece), 
(rpanag /at/ media.uoa.gr), and
Dr Thomas Allmer (University of Stirling, UK), (thomas.allmer /at/ stir.ac.uk)

Abstracts should be sent as an e-mail attachment (250-300 words 
including title, author name(s), email address, and institutional 
affiliations). Please insert the words "ESARN18 submission" in the subject.

CONFERENCE FEES

80 Euros for ESA RN18 members / 100 Euros for non ESA RN18 members 
(conference dinner included)

60 Euros for ESA RN18 members / 80 Euros for non ESA RN18 members 
(without conference dinner)

25 Euros for students (Bachelor and Master) (without conference dinner) 
/ 45 Euros (conference dinner included)

The registration details, including the registration form, will be 
available on the conference website (http://esarn18zagreb.org) in May 2018.

You can become a member of ESA RN18 by joining the ESA and subscribing 
to the network. The network needs material support, so we encourage you 
to join or renew your membership. The network subscription fee is only 
10 Euros: http://www.europeansociology.org/member
Participation support for 4 PhD students and/or independent researchers 
will be available. This will not cover all costs, but part of them 
(accommodation and full conference fee). Preference will be given to 
presentations that suit the overall conference topic.
If you want to apply for participation support, please send an extended 
abstract (300-400 words), biographical information (up to 250 words) and 
indicate this in your abstract submission by adding the sentence "I want 
to apply for participation support for PhD students / independent 
researchers". The notifications about participation support will be sent 
out together with the notifications of acceptance or rejection of 
presentations. Additional information to prove your position as a PhD 
student or independent researcher will be requested.
CONFERENCE VENUE

The conference will be hosted by the Department of Sociology, Faculty of 
Humanities and Social Sciences of the University of Zagreb. The Faculty 
is located at Ivana Lučića 3, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia. The event is 
co-organized by the Croatian Sociological Association (HSD), Institute 
for Development and International Relations (IRMO) and the Department of 
Sociology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of 
Zagreb (FFZG).

The ESA RN18 organising committee is led by:

Dr Roy Panagiotopoulou, Coordinator of ESA RN-18, University of Athens
Dr Romina Surugiu, Coordinator of ESA RN-18, University of Bucharest
Dr Thomas Allmer, Co-coordinator of ESA RN-18, University of Stirling
Dr Marisol Sandoval, Co-coordinator of ESA RN-18, City University of London

The local organising committee includes:

Dr Paško Bilić, Chair of the organisational board, Department for 
Culture and Communication, Institute for Development and International 
Relations
Dr Kruno Kardov, Chair of the Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social 
Sciences and Humanities, University of Zagreb
Dr Jasminka Lažnjak, President, Croatian Sociological Association
Dr Helena Popović, Department of Journalism, Faculty of Political 
Science, University of Zagreb
Dr Jaka Primorac, Department for Culture and Communication, Institute 
for Development and International Relations

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