[Commlist] CFP OMGC "Academic Publishing in Media and Communication Studies in the Digital Age: Overcoming Structural Barriers to Integrate Global South Scholarship"

*Call for Papers – **Special Issue*____

*Online Media and Global Communication*

**____

*Academic Publishing in Media and Communication Studies in the Digital 
Age:*____

*Overcoming Structural Barriers to Integrate Global South Scholarship*____

**____

*Submission Deadline: 01 August 2024*____

*Anticipated Publication:  Spring 2025*____

**____

*Guest Editors of the special issue:*____

Thaiane Oliveira – Federal Fluminense University, Brazil – 
(thaianeoliveira /at/ id.uff.br) <mailto:(thaianeoliveira /at/ id.uff.br)>____

Francisco Paulo Jamil Marques – Federal University of Paraná, Brazil – 
(marquesjamil /at/ gmail.com) <mailto:(marquesjamil /at/ gmail.com)>____

Manuel Goyanes – Carlos III University, Spain – (manuel.goyanes /at/ uc3m.es) 
<mailto:(manuel.goyanes /at/ uc3m.es)>____

Mohan Dutta – Massey University, New Zealand – (M.J.Dutta /at/ massey.ac.nz) 
<mailto:(M.J.Dutta /at/ massey.ac.nz)>____

____

____

The internationalization of research in the Media and Communication 
field holds immense potential, yet also faces numerous challenges when 
it comes to including scholars from the Global South. Against this 
background, emerging technologies and practices - such as digital media, 
online publishing, and non-profit open-access initiatives - are powerful 
tools for democratizing scholarly dissemination. Accordingly, such 
technologies offer the opportunity to overcome geographical barriers and 
connect with audiences worldwide, enabling scholars from peripheral and 
semi-peripheral countries to share their findings globally without being 
hindered by traditional gatekeepers that may favor Western-centric 
perspectives. Additionally, non-profit open access and open science 
initiatives promise to offer unrestricted access to research findings, 
breaking free from financial constraints that disproportionately affect 
scholars from resource-constrained regions.____

However, despite successful non-commercial publishing models and the 
development of scholarship dissemination technologies, Global South 
researchers continue to face significant challenges in elevating their 
scholarship. Ideologically biased academic standards and procedures 
often disadvantage academics from regions beyond the United States and 
Western Europe, perpetuating a problematic hierarchy that sides with 
Northern perspectives. Moreover, most top-ranked journals marginalize 
non-English speaking scholars, limiting their visibility and impact in 
international settings. Furthermore, there is a concern about the 
potential exploitation of these initiatives by large technological and 
publishing oligopolies for commercial interests, creating new market 
niches and reinforcing researchers' dependence on these new 
technologies. Although these initiatives are innovative and, in some 
cases, successful, academic policies in countries of the Global South 
often tend to favor only publication circuits dominated by central 
countries or overlook global modes of knowledge circulation, sponsoring 
strictly domestic publication modes. While the field of Communication 
continues to expand and evolve, asymmetries, inequalities, and obstacles 
to the circulation of knowledge persist as significant challenges.____

Innovative solutions are needed to address these challenges and foster 
diversity in research paradigms, as multilingual technologies and new 
publishing models, such as community-owned journals and collaborative 
platforms, offer alternative pathways for disseminating research outside 
the confines of traditional and commercial publishing frameworks. 
Despite institutional initiatives such as mentorship programs, funding 
opportunities, and more diversity in terms of membership and leadership 
structures in academic associations, many voices and perspectives from 
countries in the Global South remain underrepresented, resulting in an 
often-distorted view of the global reality of Communication. This gap 
jeopardizes our understanding of the complexities of Communication in 
non-mainstream environments and restricts the potential for making 
significant collaborations and reaching global solutions. These 
challenges raise pressing questions about how to overcome economic, 
bureaucratic, and cultural barriers that limit the circulation of talent 
and knowledge.____

In this context, it is critical not only to examine the asymmetries in 
knowledge production in Communication regarding research funding, 
infrastructure, and access to academic resources but also to discuss how 
to foster diversity of new research paradigms among Global South 
scholars while maintaining high academic rigor and integrity.____

This special issue aims to expand our understanding of such phenomena 
and bring together contributions - especially cross-national comparison 
empirical studies - to discuss the challenges and opportunities for the 
internationalization of academic production and collaboration among 
countries in the South with or without partners from the Global North. 
We welcome manuscript submissions related (but not limited) to the 
following topics.____

____

1. Disparities in knowledge production and research dissemination among 
countries of the Global South and the Global North when it comes to 
Communication and Media studies.____

2. Inequities in access to academic resources, such as research funding, 
infrastructure, updated facilities, and technological resources, 
exploring their respective impact on research from the Global South.____

3. Structural barriers to the global circulation of knowledge, namely 
challenges to the international dissemination of findings by 
researchers, students, and academic publications in Communication.____

4. Challenges encountered by students and researchers from the Global 
South in pursuing academic mobility and establishing international 
collaboration opportunities.____

5. Obstacles and opportunities in Communication Studies for fostering a 
more equitable and inclusive educational environment that recognizes 
diverse perspectives worldwide.____

6. The roles of digital media/online publishing and non-profit open 
access in leveling the playing field of scholarship publishing for 
scholars from the Global South.____

7. Case studies highlighting successful dissemination of Global South 
scholarship, as well as difficulties faced by non-Global North 
publication outlets and academic associations.____

8. Critique of ideologically biased academic standards and procedures 
that disadvantage the Global South, unrelated to academic rigor and 
research integrity.____

9. Discrepancies in publishing opportunities and impacts among English 
and non-English speaking countries.____

10. Evaluation of policies and strategies aimed at reducing disparities 
in the internationalization of communication studies.____

11. Investigation of the role of international academic networks and 
collaboration in promoting equitable internationalization and knowledge 
exchange in communication studies.____

12. Exploration of intersectionality and power dynamics in 
internationalization efforts, influencing the participation and 
recognition of scholars from underrepresented backgrounds.____

13. Innovative solutions to level the playing field for scholars in the 
Global South and non-English speaking countries.____

14. Future directions of internationalization in communication studies, 
including potential shifts in paradigms, practices, and policies.____

____

Full paper submissions are to be in English and no longer than 25 pages 
of text. ____

OMGC does not charge any fees for submitting or processing articles. 
Additionally, publication in the journal is also completely free of charge

____

For paper format, please refer to the OMGC citation style with 
structured abstract at 
https://www.degruyter.com/journal/key/omgc/html?lang=en#submit 
<https://www.degruyter.com/journal/key/omgc/html?lang=en#submit>____

Submit manuscript to: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/omgc 
<https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/omgc>____

Special issue: Academic Publishing in Media and Communication Studies in 
the Digital Age____

Inquiries: (OMGC /at/ shisu.edu.cn) <mailto:(OMGC /at/ shisu.edu.cn)>


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