[Air-L] CfP - 9th Annual conference on comparative media studies (CMSTW'2021), April 20-21, 2021

[Svetlana S. Bodrunova]

----Apologies for potential cross-posting----


Dear colleagues,

sorry for this short notice - please see below the call for papers for 
the 9th CMSTW'2021 which may be of interest to some of you.

CALL FOR PAPERS

Time: April 20–21, 2021
Place: St. Petersburg, Russia – VIRTUAL
Working language: English

Theme for 2021:
Communication Architectures

Recently, scholars have proclaimed the rise of the platform society 
(Van Dijck, Poell, & De Waal, 2018). In it, affordances decide what 
message the medium is; algorithmic intermediaries, commercial 
corporations, and influencer bloggers compete in bypassing news 
agencies; and platforms impeach politicians. A myriad ways of 
simultaneous communication, both individual- and mass-oriented, 
creates extreme connectivity which may lead to extreme power – and may 
not lead to meaningful conclusions.

Yet, despite this seeming communication singularity where everything 
happens in parallel, a range of works emphasize the return of 
structure into communication – or even a new era of hierarchization. 
Structurally, what are we facing? Is there horizontal co-existence of 
communication platforms, a multi-level complex of arenas, or a brave 
new world of (re-)emergent hierarchies?

However, proliferation of platforms, whether horizontal or 
hierarchical, is only the surface of transformation. We need to 
re-assess not only the elemental complexity of the communication 
world. It is the fundamental formulas of communication acts, the 
metaphor of communication flow, the fabric of micro- and 
macro-deliberation that demand rethinking. And, crucial as never 
before, the person-level, societal, and global roles of communication 
architectures – and architects – need to be tied together when 
envisioned in academe and policing.

CMSTW’2021 is dedicated to assessing communication architectures on 
all levels in comparative perspective – from message itself to global 
information infrastructure, as well as to linking structural and 
platform features of media and public spheres to policing, knowledge 
of social inequalities, and theory of human communication. The four 
traditional tracks of the conference will re-conceptualize the 
‘platform society’ (Theory), question the pluses and highlight the 
minuses of ‘architectured’ communication (Political & Social), put 
journalism and media into comparative platform perspective (Media 
Industry & Journalism), and develop approaches to detection of 
communicative structures (Methods).

CONFERENCE TRACKS

THEORY
Chair: Silvio Waisbord, George Washington University, USA

POLITICAL AND SOCIAL
Chairs: Svetlana Bodrunova, St.Petersburg State University, Russia
Anna Litvinenko, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany

MEDIA INDUSTRY AND JOURNALISM
Chair: Katrin Voltmer, University of Leeds (Emeritus), UK

METHODS
Chair: Olessia Koltsova, National Research University – Higher School 
of Economics, Russia

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Noshir Contractor, Northwestern University, the USA
Jane S. & William J. White Professor of Behavioral Sciences, Director 
of the Science of Networks in Communities (SONIC) Research Group at 
Northwestern University; ICA President-Elect-Select for 2021–2022.

Barbie Zelizer, Annenberg School for Communication, University of 
Pennsylvania, the USA
Raymond Williams Professor of Communication, Associate Dean for 
Research, and Director, Center for Media at Risk, at the University of 
Pennsylvania; ICA President (2009–2010).

Two more keynote speakers TBC
Invited panelists and discussants to be announced before February 15, 
2021

ABOUT THE CONFERENCE

Since 2013, CMSTW has been gathering experts in a wide range of topics 
within comparative media research. Our keynotes have been Larry 
Grross, Silvio Waisbord, Zizi Papacharissi, Jean Burgess, Paolo 
Mancini, Katrin Voltmer, Nico Carpentier, Mark Deuze, and many other 
notable scholars. In 2021, the conference will include a plenary 
podium discussion, keynote speeches, panels, round tables, book 
presentations, and a range of workshops (subject to submissions).

Due to the restrictions on flights and social gatherings caused by the 
COVID-19 pandemic, the conference has moved to virtual space; 
CMSTW’2020 was also virtual and had great success, with over 300 
speakers and listeners from 20 countries. To substitute our usual 
cultural program, virtual tours and get-together events will be 
organized.

FORMS OF PARTICIPATION

Individual submissions

Full papers: 9 to 15 pages, anonymized
Short papers: 5 to 8 pages, anonymized
Abstracts: up to 300 words, anonymized

Group submissions

Panel submissions: a 300-word panel rationale plus 3 to 5 abstracts of 
max 150 words, free form (pdf), anonymized. Full and short papers may 
be submitted as parts of the panels; however, panels may also be 
accepted without full paper submission.
Workshops: a 2-to-4-page workshop rationale, de-anonymized

All submissions must be uploaded via the conference EasyChair account 
(will be available starting from February 1, 2021; please see the 
address on the conference website cmstw2021.org).

VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENT OF THE CONFERENCE

CMSTW’2021 will be organized via Microsoft Teams and Zoom; leisure 
events may take place at other platforms.

PUBLISHING OPPORTUNITIES AND AWARDS

- 'Digital Journalism' (Scopus Q1) publishing opportunity;
- Special issue at 'Future Internet' (MDPI, Scopus Q2), with 15% 
discount;
- Friedrich Ebert Stiftung Prize for the best paper in the 
social&political track;
- Katrin Voltmer’s prize for the best PhD student paper.

DEADLINES AND OTHER DATES

March 1, 2021 – main submission deadline (subject to slight extension 
on request)
March 15-18, 2021 – notifications of acceptance
March 20, 2021 – early-bird registration deadline
April 1, 2021 – regular registration deadline
June 1, 2021 – camera-ready papers deadline
  
PARTICIPATION FEES

Due to COVID-19 and the virtual state of the conference, the fees have 
been significantly reduced:

Presenter: early-bird – 20 euro, regular – 25 euro
PhD/Master student: 10 euro
Group submission: early-bird – 70 euro, regular – 80 euro

CONTACTS

Conference address: cmstw2021.org (active from January 27, 2021)
Conference email for CMSTW'2020 and CMSTW'2021: cmstw2020 at spbu.ru

See you (virtually) in St.Petersburg!


--
Svetlana S. Bodrunova, Prof., D.Polit.Sci.
Head, Center for International Media Research
School of Journalism and Mass Communications,
St.Petersburg State University

+7 921 933 02 14
s.bodrunova at spbu.ru, spasibo-tebe at yandex.ru