Call for Papers

The Politics and Policies of Communications:
National, Transnational and Global Perspectives

3rd Annual International Postgraduate Conference
Institute of Communication Studies, University of Leeds, UK
Friday, June 12th 2009, 9:30am – 6pm


Communication politics and policies are dominant forces in shaping living cultures. Rich, vibrant and controversial forms of expression continue to emerge and their influence is increasingly transcending borders. While the appearance and pervasiveness of new communication technologies is greatly accelerating this process, the forging and evolution of cultural discourses also influences the articulation and reorients the expression of communication politics and policies.

Current tendencies within communications politics and policy appear to be driven primarily by western-oriented approaches. Such models are often perceived as being easily transferable to other parts of the world, mainly because of their liberal, inclusive and representative tradition, in contrast to more restrictive political and communication systems elsewhere.

Meanwhile, different sets of actors (governments, media, political parties, civil society organizations, transnational non-state actors, and citizens) seek to formulate and influence communication politics and policy. Although they may have some common objectives, including fostering democratisation, promoting citizenship and reinforcing identities, they also compete to exert influence at different levels of governance.

This 3rd Annual International Postgraduate conference aims to identify and discuss current trends in communications politics and policy and investigate how they influence cultures at national, transnational, regional and global levels. It also aims to analyse how the evolution of cultural discourses and practices influences communications politics and policy.

Our keynote speakers are:
•Prof. Monroe Price, Director of the Center for Global Communication Studies, Annenberg School of Communications (University of Pennsylvania)
•Dr. Karin Wahl-Jorgensen, Reader at the School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies (Cardiff University)
•Dr. Des Freedman, Senior Lecturer in Communications and Cultural Studies (Goldsmiths University of London)

We will also have special thematic art installations, provided by Fine Arts students of the University of Leeds, to be exhibited for the duration of the conference.



Conference themes:

•Political Communication, citizenship and democratization
•Identities, citizenship, and government policies
•Communications and government policies
•Diaspora Communications and Cultures
•Transnational Movements and Communications
•Global Governance and International Institutions
•Political discourse and communications


Submission Format for Abstracts:

Abstracts (250 words) should be submitted by Friday, April 3rd 2009. Please include your contact email, phone number, affiliation of author(s), and a brief biography. Presentations should be 20-25 minutes in length.

Please send all submissions and inquiries to ics-pg-conference@leeds.ac.uk.

Also, to keep up to date with the conference, please visit our website: http://ppc09.wordpress.com

Institute of Communications Studies, Houldsworth Building,
University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT. Tel: +44 (0)113 343 8859