[Commlist] Call for Papers - Digital Journalism: Covering AI Amid the Hype: How Journalists Are Navigating the Buzz of Technological Innovations

Call for Papers - Digital Journalism

*Covering AI Amid the Hype: How Journalists Are Navigating the Buzz of 
Technological Innovations
*

The recent developments in generative artificial intelligence (AI) to 
produce new content (e.g., ChatGPT and Dall-E) are quickly landing on 
the front pages of most major newspapers and media outlets. Temptingly, 
the world of AI emerging technologies offers journalists a plethora of 
topics and buzzwords—from machine learning and neural networks to 
algorithms—to enhance their headlines and capture and hold the attention 
of their audiences.

But as the hype produced by AI has gripped journalists and audiences 
alike, causing media workers to struggle with grasping the meaning of 
these concepts, the technical details of the latest software, and the 
potential societal effects, the overuse of the "AI" buzzword is 
hindering a clear comprehension of the underlying ideas and consequences 
of implementing some of these technologies in society (O’Neil, 2016).

We refer to this phenomenon as media hype, a term frequently referenced 
in both popular culture and academic discourse (Borgman, 2007) that 
nevertheless lacks a concrete, universally accepted academic definition. 
Vasterman (2005), for example, argues that media hype should not refer 
to a gap in the news coverage between what technology promises to do and 
what it can do. Instead, Vasterman argues, hype simply describes the 
stimulation, amplification, and magnification of an issue by a 
self-reinforcing media-generated news wave.

On the contrary, a new wave of literature, such as Cave and Dihal 
(2019), argues that it is imperative to study the gap between AI’s 
possibilities and realities because the “perceptions of AI’s 
possibilities, which may be quite detached from the reality of the 
technology, can influence how it is developed, deployed and regulated” 
(p. 74). The phenomenon of media hype, when enveloping AI discussions, 
transcends simple technological hyperbole. As underscored by Vinsel and 
Funk (2022), this type of narrative often gives rise to a scenario that 
deviates from facts, creating concerns about its potential to obscure 
critical underlying societal concerns.

Understanding how to define, measure, and navigate media hype in 
relation to AI is particularly important today because, from autonomous 
vehicles and robotaxis to chatbots and metaverses, how these emerging 
technologies are portrayed in the media —but also created and shaped by 
news organisations— can influence people’s attitudes and significantly 
influence policy decision-making worldwide (Brennen et al., 2020). In 
this context, we seek to understand how hypes are born, what reporting 
responsibly on hypes really means, how media intersects with other 
actors (such as big tech, policymakers, and influencers), and the 
effects and consequences of hype reporting for civil society.

This special issue of Digital Journalism aims to understand the 
intersection of media hype with how news organisations cover innovations 
in artificial intelligence. With growing scholarly attention to the 
phenomenon, it is essential to understand how journalists are reporting 
on fundamental technological advances, identifying the benefits that 
come from many of these new technologies, but at the same time avoiding 
the temptations to focus on the latest gadgets, apps, and trends rather 
than the broader AI’s societal implication. Indeed, this issue invites 
proposals describing how journalists and news organisations respond to 
AI hype in myriad strategic ways, such as through investigation and 
critical treatment of AI innovation and capability or of the companies 
pushing hyped claims. This issue also explores how journalists and 
newsrooms may fail to be critical of these issues. It also offers the 
opportunity for the development and extension of theory regarding the 
meaning-making functions of journalism, within the newsroom and with 
audiences, as well as the examination of the power dynamics at play 
regarding technology, media, and society.

We encourage submissions from diverse disciplines and contexts. We 
invite contributions of theoretical, methodological, and empirical 
manuscripts, including different philosophical and theoretical 
approaches and empirical methods (i.e., content analysis, interviewing, 
critical and cultural analysis, and critique) that want to move the 
field forward. Possible topics may include (but are not limited to):

  * The media coverage of emerging technological innovation in AI,
    including its intersections with related areas of robotics,
    immersive technologies, and others.
  * Conceptual interventions and clarifications regarding the media
    industry’s AI coverage, hype in media innovation, and hi-tech news.
  * Examination of professional practices and norms in relation to media
    coverage of AI and AI- related technology.
  * Audience perspectives on media coverage of AI and AI-related
    technologies.
  * Historical and cultural analysis of media hype surrounding AI and
    related technologies in contrast and comparison to previous
    technological innovation.
  * Methodological and contextual challenges (skills and expertise) for
    critical tech news and algorithmic accountability reporting,
    including issues of transparency and accountability in the tech
    industry.
  * The mechanisms, economics, actors and ecosystems of hype, including
    connections to the role of social media platforms, algorithms, and
    other actors in contributing to media hype.
  * New role performances for the coverage of AI and how “hype”
    interacts with other factors, such as costs and time savings, and/or
    more normative principles, such as investigative/critical journalism.
  * The borderline between hypes and myths and the ethical questions
    about to what extent journalists have a role in debunking and
    critically scrutinising hypes.
  * Methodological approaches to the study of media hype and innovations
    in artificial intelligence, including content analysis, interview
    studies, survey research, discourse analysis, and comparative
    analysis across different media platforms and countries.
  * The dynamics and effects of hypes on public debates, policy process,
    and technology regulation.

The special issue is open for regular submissions; decisions about 
inclusion will be quality-based and reliant on thorough peer-review.

*Information about submission *
*
*
Please submit an abstract of approximately 500 to 750 words (not 
including references) in either an MS Word or PDF file format to 
*(t.dodds.rojas /at/ hum.leidenuniv.nl)* by *January 10, 2024*. Authors of 
accepted abstracts are expected to develop and submit their original 
article for the journal’s full peer-review process by the stated 
deadline. Articles should be between 7,000 and 9,000 words in 
length, following the journal’s style guidelines. *No payment from the 
authors will be required.*
*
*
*Timeline *
*
*
Abstract submission deadline: January 10, 2024
Notification on submitted abstracts: February 16, 2024
Article submission deadline: June 15, 2024


---------------
The COMMLIST
---------------
This mailing list is a free service offered by Nico Carpentier. Please use it responsibly and wisely.
--
To subscribe or unsubscribe, please visit http://commlist.org/
--
Before sending a posting request, please always read the guidelines at http://commlist.org/
--
To contact the mailing list manager:
Email: (nico.carpentier /at/ commlist.org)
URL: http://nicocarpentier.net
---------------