[Air-l] call for papers

[david silver]

Folks,

here's the latest version of an interesting call for papers.  sorry if
this has already been sent to the list.  david

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CALL FOR PAPERS

The Information Society (TIS) special issue on

SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF PUBLIC POLICY IN THE INFORMATION AGE

Edited by Milton Mueller (Syracuse University) and Becky Lentz (Ford
Foundation)

If the 1990s was the decade of market liberalization in media and
telecommunication industries worldwide, how will the next decade be
defined? What and who will set the agenda for communication and information
policy?

Current policy discourse is focused on relatively narrow regulatory or
legal issues, such as broadband regulation, the proper scope of
intellectual property rights, interconnection and competition in
telecommunications, and media concentration. While recognizing the
importance of issue-specific policy research, this special issue would
attempt to shift some attention to the underlying social and political
determinants of public policy. The objective is to encourage the
development of revised conceptions of the public interest appropriate to a
transformed economic and political environment. Papers that bring together
insights from multiple areas, such as political science, sociology,
economics, critical geography, information studies, urban studies, policy
studies, communications and cultural studies, are especially welcome.
Ideally, papers would shed light on current developments and place them in
perspective that has relevance for future public policy directions.

As more specific examples of the type of papers/research we seek:

* Analyses of long-term change in media and telecommunications institutions
that draw upon any relevant literature of institutional change (e.g., the
New Institutional Economics, the Old Institutional Economics, social
movement theory, sociological theories of organizational repertoires and
innovation).

* Papers exploring changes in the way citizens, consumers, business groups
or other constituencies are organizing to influence communication and
information policy, including new analyses of how so-called global civil
society or transnational advocacy networks are involved in communication
and information issues;

* Papers that assess the impact of globalization on communication and
information policies, and explore the relationship between national
policies, constituencies, and institutions on the one hand and
international organizations and constituencies on the other.

* How conceptions of the public interest in communication and information
policy have changed in response to new technologies, new industry
conditions and political and social developments. Are new theories of the
public interest in communications and information policy being formed? How
are normative principles responding to the changing landscape?

* Explorations of the role of ideas and scholarly research in shaping,
fomenting or resisting changes in policy.

Manuscripts prepared according to the TIS guidelines should be submitted by
October 1, 2003.

Please send the manuscripts to: Milton Mueller <mueller at syr.edu>. Authors
are encouraged to discuss their ideas with the guest editors.

http://www.slis.indiana.edu/TIS/contributors/authors.html