[Air-L] CfP: PRism special issue - Online social networks, communication practice, and public relations

[Erika Pearson]

Call for Papers: Online social networks, communication practice, and  
public relations

The social networking emerging online is now seen as one of the  
defining characteristics of Web 2.0 and beyond.  From virtual worlds  
to microblogging, individuals and groups are forming diverse and  
sometimes apparently novel ways of building and maintaining social  
bonds.  These mediated exchanges between individuals and groups who  
may never physically meet challenge our current understandings of  
friendship, communication, and belonging.

For communication and public relations scholars and practitioners,  
such interactions pose a number of significant questions. How do  
researchers explore the nebulous social connections people forge in  
online spaces?  How do we re-evaluate what it means to be an  
individual and part of a group in this context? Do these new channels  
of communication change the way we present ourselves and our ideas?

This special 2010 edition of PRism online public relations and  
communication journal (http://praxis.massey.ac.nz/prism_on-line_journ.html 
) seeks papers which discuss and explore ways in which to approach,  
study, and account for the diversity of online social experience,  
particularly in regard to communication practice and issues of public  
relations. Possible topics include:

     * methodological frameworks for studying online social behaviours
     * theory building (normative or critical) regarding the social  
web as part of communications or public relations practice
     * ways of conceptualizing the online self and society, such as;  
performance, identity, network theory, and their implications for  
organisational communication and public relations
     * issues and ethics in online data collection on social  
networking sites
     * case studies exploring the impact of multimodal (online/ 
offline) social ties in research
     * opinion pieces on using social networks in public relations
     * critically informed speculation on the future of communication  
practice in social media (beyond ‘Web3’)
     * multimedia submissions on a related topic

Papers are welcome from all disciplinary areas.  Full papers will be  
due by Friday 5th of February, 2009 and will be peer reviewed.   
Academic papers should be 5,000 words and practitioner papers between  
2,500-3,000 words maximum. Style should follow house guidelines:http://praxis.massey.ac.nz/fileadmin/Praxis/Files/Journal_Files/Prism_House_Style.pdf 
   See also the PRism submission guidelines at:http://praxis.massey.ac.nz/sub_guide.html

Enquiries are welcome and should be directed to Erika Pearson (erika.pearson at otago.ac.nz 
).

Erika Pearson
Department of Media, Film and Communication
University of Otago
PO Box 56
Dunedin 9054
New Zealand
Ph: 64 3 479 8680
Fax: 64 3 479 3932


PS  In celebration of this upcoming special issue on social media,  
PRism is now on Twitter... see http://twitter.com/prism_journal   You  
can sign up there for RSS feed so that whenever we load an article or  
review to the journal you’ll get a brief (140-character) message  
explaining what’s new.