[Air-L] ICA panel -- looking for additional contributors

[Jan Fernback]

Hi all,

We are organizing a panel for the Communication Law & Policy Division of
ICA, and seek additional contributions. If your work fits into the panel
theme (abstract below) we’d love to hear from you as soon as possible--the
deadline to submit a panel proposal is November 1. Email Gwen Shaffer
gwen.shaffer(at)csulb.edu <gwen.shaffer at csulb.edu> or Jan Fernback
fernback(at)temple.edu <fernback at temple.edu>.



Marginalized Communities and Technology Policy: Transcending Policy
Boundaries with Qualitative Research

This panel seeks to address the conference theme by exploring the ways in
which *current* *technology policy research crosses multiple
boundaries. *Communication
scholars tend to take a quantitative approach to analyzing technology
policy—from measuring competition in the broadband market, to calculating
the cost of digital privacy regulations and relying on survey tools for
enumerating trends. Technology policy scholars may perceive quantitative
approaches as necessary in order to “speak the language” of industry
stakeholders or for findings to resonate with policymakers (Napoli and
Friedland, 2016). This panel encompasses qualitative research that crosses
methodological boundaries. The papers demonstrate the value of qualitative
approaches—theoretical, ethnographic, interdisciplinary and applied—in
addressing the unique issues involved in studying marginalized
communities. These projects also transcend boundaries by focusing attention
on marginalized communities that are adversely impacted by existing
technology policies—rather than focusing on the innovators and platforms
frequently at the center of telecommunications policy studies. As the
following abstracts detail, these projects tackle the myriad ways in which
technology policies inadvertently compound social, political and economic
inequalities in society.


Jan Fernback, PhD
Associate Professor and Co-Chair
Dept of Media Studies & Production
Klein College of Media and Communication
Temple University
2020 N. 13th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19122