[Commlist] CFP: 5th International Conference ComSymbol-Mediatization, New Forms of Militancy and Digitalization

Call for Papers

5th International Conference ComSymbol on Mediatization, New Forms of 
Militancy and Digitalization

Full Call available here: 
https://www.iarsic.com/en/appel-a-communications/ 
<https://www.iarsic.com/en/appel-a-communications/>

Conference venue: Paul Valéry University Montpellier 3, Centre 
Universitaire du Guesclin

November 11-12, 2021, Béziers, FRANCE

Important Dates:

5 Mai 2021: Submission of an abstract of approximately 350-400 words, 
including spaces, and five keywords. The abstract could be written in 
French or English. The proposal must include the name and affiliations 
as well as the email address of all authors.

15 Mai 2021: Notification of abstract acceptance via email

30 Juillet 2021: Submission of the full papers (6000-8000 words with 
references)

1^st  September 2021: full paper acceptance

All proposals and questions should be addressed to:

(essachess /at/ gmail.com) <mailto:(comsymbol2014 /at/ gmail.com)>

All proposals will be double blind peer reviewed. Authors of the 
accepted papers will be notified by e-mail. Papers will be published in 
a special issue journal (indexed and impacted) and in conference 
proceedings via an academic publisher.

Call: The 5th edition of the International Conference ComSymbol remains 
associated to the questioning of complex symbolic socio-communicational 
constructions that participate in social, societal, economic, political, 
cultural news by focusing, this time, both on the relations of dominance 
of the logics of the media over the other logics of the society and on 
the transformations of the communicative construction of reality under 
the impact of digitalization concerning the contemporary militant 
movements engaged in the "communicational arms race” (Neveu, 2015)marked 
by the redeployment of collective action on the Internet and the 
presence of pluralistic media systems (mass media, emerging media, 
Internet, Artificial Intelligence-AI, etc.). The current scope of 
meditization is wide. On the one hand, the unprecedented extension of 
the influence of emerging media and AI, involving all societal spheres 
(Hjavard, 2008 ; Gomes, 2016 ; Tudor et Bratosin, 2020 ; Tudor et 
Bratosin, 2021)opens new avenues for raising awareness of new issues and 
overhauling existing frameworks. On the other hand, the increased 
mediatization of our daily life highlights the challenges that this meta 
process, which accompanies other meta processes such as globalization or 
democratization (Krotz, 2009) and increases over time in a non-linear 
and cumulative manner  (Hepp, 2013), poses not only for the militancy 
but also for the subjects that militancy is currently embracing. This 
context of mediatization as a societal condition calls for scientific 
analyzes and debates on the nature and changing contours of the 
militancy and the need for well-calibrated responses in the context of 
digital transformations.

In a brief summary on the militancy, undoubtedly imperfect and 
incomplete, we could distinguish four epistemological constructions (cf. 
Pudal, 2010) :

a) A first construction, which began in 1945, focused on the study of 
the social structure with the militant workers as an empirical field.

b) A second configuration is concerned with the explanation of the 
motivational dimension of activism which was not considered in the 
context of the first phase. It corresponds to the desacralization of 
militancy and targets both the macro and micro levels; the groups 
studied remain the same. French contributions to this second phase are 
in the majority and extend from 1975 to 1995, relying either on 
methodological individualism or on the sociogenetic perspective.

c) Following the weakening of the idea of altruistic and total 
militancy, characteristic of the first two phases, the third 
construction engages an analytical model that focuses on the dynamics of 
political interaction and structures of political opportunities . There 
is interest in "distanced activism". This is how the new unionism and 
alter-globalism become the subject of central study.

d) Finally, the fourth construction deals with “forgotten” militants 
(civic, religious, etc.) and overcomes the opposition between “total 
militant” and “distanced militant”, the thesis of the invariable 
identity of the militant no longer being operational. This is a shift 
from the perspective of individualization to that of individuation. More 
precisely, this fourth phase focuses on the interdependence between 
personal dispositions and institutional changes.

In this context, several variables could be considered as responsible 
for the modification of the nature of militancy with specific tendencies 
and patterns, distinct from the other previous phases, in particular in 
the context of the /deep mediatization/ of our societies, the amplified 
digitalization and the boom in artificial intelligence. Among these 
variables to be questioned, we retain here the wide and intelligent use 
of emerging media and AI by militant groups, the global extent of the 
geographical distribution, ideological convictions and intergroup links, 
the broad support of the public for militancy and to “disruptive” crowds 
via digital technology, the impact of new pathologies of augmented 
communication (trolling, fake news, astroturfing, etc.), the new digital 
synergies between activist networks, the ideological changes which 
distinguish the new activists previous phases, etc.

Thus, several groups of themes and questions are offered for guidance 
based on these variables. Contributions on the themes below are 
expected, the list not being exhaustive. Particular attention will be 
paid to contributions that will focus on the mediatization of Muslim 
civic and religious activist initiatives, given that this edition of the 
ComSymbol Conference is initiated within the framework of the RELMUS 
project - Mediatization of Muslim Civic and Religious Activist 
Initiatives carried by the IARSic-CORHIS UR 7400 and its institutional 
partners, the Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences of the Mohammed V 
University of Rabat and the Brahim Akhiate Foundation for Cultural 
Diversity (FBADC) of Morocco. The expected proposals will aim in 
particular to understand how Islam is configured as a public religion in 
the networks of religious mobilization around values that can no longer 
be contained within the institutional framework of religious pluralism.

*Themes and issues (non-exhaustive list)*

- Collective action, /concertation/ with transnational networks of 
militants and effects of the global contamination: a communicational 
perspective;

- Public and civic religion and religious mobilization networks. 
Mediatization of Muslim civic and religious activist initiatives;

- Mediatization of evangelical civic and religious activist initiatives;

- Digital social media and the rise of new forms of militancy;

- Impact of new pathologies of augmented communication (trolling, fake 
news, astroturfing, etc.) on militant mobilizations;

- Web 4.0 activism and global themes: gender, post-colonialism, 
sectarian and jihadist activism, immigration, LGBTI +, etc. ;

- Religious activism and post-Internet impact;

- Transnational activism: influence of the diaspora on electoral and 
political activity through media convergence;

- Vandalism-activism relationship: media perceptions and representations;

- Conflict and activism;

- Media representations on activism: new rhetoric (s);

Media stories on gender and women activists;

- Violent vs. punishable activism in the media;

- Mediatization of social activism;

- Heritage and cultural activism;

- Activism in the company. Managers and employees militancy: a media 
perspective;

- Ecology and youth activism;

- Activism and creative / cultural industries;

- Activism, diversity and minorities;

- Volunteer activism, etc.

Scientific and Organizing Committees: 
https://www.iarsic.com/en/appel-a-communications/ 
<https://www.iarsic.com/en/appel-a-communications/>


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