[Commlist] Call for Papers for a Special Issue of The International Journal of Press/Politics: “VisualPolitics”

Call for Papers for a Special Issue of The International Journal of 
Press/Politics: “Visual Politics”

Guest editors: Erik Bucy ((erik.bucy /at/ ttu.edu)), Texas Tech University
Jungseock Joo ((jjoo /at/ comm.ucla.edu)), University of California at Los Angeles

Manuscript submission deadline: 15 December 2019

Images are both ubiquitous and consequential in contemporary politics. 
The rise of images in politics parallels the rise of images in society 
as icons of socio-political messaging, vessels of persuasive intent, and 
efficient carriers of social information for citizens of increasingly 
harried societies. From television coverage of campaigns and elections 
to visual memes and images of leaders circulated on social media, visual 
portrayals shape perceptions of the political world. When used 
strategically, visual portrayals hold the capacity to frame issues, 
candidates, and causes in a particular light and affect the acceptance 
or rejection of social policies. As representations of public opinion 
and leadership, political images influence issue understanding and 
motivate citizens to action.

Political visuals are potent in part because they do not require 
conventional literacy to apprehend and operate at both an individual and 
cultural level. From an information processing perspective, political 
images are highly efficient carriers of social and symbolic information 
that is quickly assessed, rapidly judged, and readily remembered. In 
news coverage, candidate portrayals and event depictions may crystallize 
sentiment among the viewing public and alternately inspire increased 
involvement or disenchantment with politics. Culturally, images can act 
as icons of social solidarity or political isolation, serving to 
mainstream or marginalize individuals, groups, and causes. The polysemic 
quality of images opens them to diverse interpretation, depending on the 
viewer’s orientation.

As forms of information, political images are not only open to 
interpretation but are also susceptible to digital manipulation. Image 
shading, facial blending, digital editing, and other alterations of 
political materials can have persuasive effects on audiences, raising 
troubling ethical concerns. More recently, the mass spread of 
“deepfakes”, i.e., manipulated video recordings, threatens to undermine 
the authenticity of recorded candidate communication and further confuse 
unsuspecting viewers, already buffeted by fabricated visual memes and 
text-based disinformation campaigns.

These and related considerations make the systematic study of political 
visuals and their effects necessary and urgent. Despite renewed interest 
in visual analysis within political communication, images remain an 
understudied feature of the contemporary political media landscape. This 
special issue of The International Journal of Press/Politics therefore 
invites original research conducted in any methodological tradition that 
fits the theme of “Visual Politics.” In this special issue, we hope to 
highlight new possibilities for theory development, methodological 
innovation, and cross-national approaches to advance the study of visual 
political communication.

RESEARCH TOPICS

Possible topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

    The influence of political images in digital campaigns, including 
comparisons between online messaging, social media strategies, and more 
traditional forms of political advertising
    The role of visual messaging in disinformation efforts, whether 
used to confuse, incite resentment, or demotivate potential voter or 
citizen involvement
    Computational analysis of large-scale visual datasets to detect 
patterns of coverage or behavior not evident in smaller, hand-coded projects
    Integrated or comparative analysis of multimodal cues in political 
messages and their synergistic or differential impacts on viewer perceptions
    Visual analysis of protest and collection action, including visual 
framing of activism or demonstrations as well as visual memes circulated 
on social media
    Cross-national comparisons of visual news framing of politics or 
protest and its reception by audiences
    Viewer reception of newer visual technologies such as 360-degree 
video cameras to depict campaign events, demonstrations, marches, or 
other collective actions
    Visual depictions of populist and fringe political actors, 
including signature gestures and nonverbal displays, expressive range, 
or performative repertoires
    Effects of nonverbal aggression, norm violations, and other 
transgressive candidate behavior on viewers of political programming
    Visual measures of negative advertising, incivility, “in your 
face”-style of candidate interaction, or other normatively fraught 
political communication styles
    Visual analysis of hate speech and white nationalism, including 
identifiable signs and symbols as identified by the Anti-Defamation 
League and other watchdogs
    The role of viewer orientations (e.g., ideology, partisanship, 
political interest, age cohort, moral outlook, geographical 
situatedness, issue attitudes) in shaping political image 
interpretations and message efficacy
    The role of visual content in explaining patterns of news sharing 
on social media
    The use of visuals in emerging genres of political campaign 
communication, whether mini-documentaries, mash-up advertising, 
candidate-generated videos, or political selfies.

SUBMISSION INFORMATION

Manuscript submissions for this special issue are due on 15 December 2019.
Please submit your work through our online submission portal and ensure 
that the first line of the cover letter states: “Manuscript to be 
considered for the special issue on Visual Politics”. Manuscripts should 
follow the IJPP submission guidelines. Submissions will be subject to a 
double-blind peer review process and must not have been published, 
accepted for publication, or under consideration for publication elsewhere.

Authors interested in submitting their work are encouraged to contact 
the guest editors, Erik Bucy ((erik.bucy /at/ ttu.edu)) and Jungseock Joo 
((jjoo /at/ comm.ucla.edu)) with questions.

EXPECTED TIMELINE

    Paper submissions: 15 December 2019
    First decision: 15 February 2020
    Paper revisions: 15 April 2020
    Final decision: 15 May 2020
    Online publication: July 2020
    Print publication: October 2020

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