[Air-L] CfP Conference: "Utopias and dystopias of the digital society"

[Christian Strippel]

Dear colleagues,

In September 16–18, 2026, the Weizenbaum Institute in Berlin hosts the conference "Utopias and dystopias of the digital society: 30 years of research on computer-mediated communication,“ organized in cooperation with the Institute for Media and Communication Studies at Freie Universität Berlin.

The focus of the conference is the exploration of imagined, anticipated, or even feared futures, both past and present, within our research fields. Submissions for the conference theme can therefore address the following topics:

The history of digital technologies and their scientific research (international and national);
Past and present projections of the future—utopias and dystopias—in relation to the connection between digital technologies and societies, their conditions of emergence, ideological foundations, and social negotiations;
The role of visions of the future and imaginaries in shaping concepts and theoretical frameworks within the field of digital communication;
Theories and methods for conceptualizing and researching digital futures.

Please find the Call for Papers attached to this email. Submissions are possible via ConfTool <https://www.conftool.net/digikomm2026>. Submission deadline is March 30, 2026.

We are looking forward to your submissions! If you have any questions, please let us know.

Best greetings,
Christian Strippel



--
Weizenbaum Institute, Berlin (Germany)
Group Lead "Weizenbaum Panel" and "MethodsLab"
https://www.weizenbaum-institut.de/en/portrait/p/christian-strippel/
https://panel.weizenbaum-institut.de/en/
https://methodslab.weizenbaum-institut.de/


Recent Publications:

– Ethics of Data Work: Principles for Academic Data Work Requesters <https://www.weizenbaum-institut.de/media/Publikationen/Weizenbaum_Discussion_Paper/Weizenbaum_Discussion_Paper_48.pdf>
– Weizenbaum Report 2025: Political Participation in Germany <https://doi.org/10.34669/wi.wr/6.1>
– Data, archives, and tools: Introducing new publication formats on infrastructures and resources <https://doi.org/10.1007/s11616-023-00806-7>
– “The Boundaries are Blurry…”: How Comment Moderators in Germany See and Respond to Hate Comments <https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1461670X.2021.2017793>
– From Insult to Hate Speech: Mapping Offensive Language in German User Comments on Immigration <https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/3399>