International Journal of Digital Television
Edited by Petros Iosifidis, Issue 8.3
The Public Sphere and the Social Media (Autumn 2017)
Guest edited by Duygu Karatas (University of
Westminster) and Mark Wheeler (London Metropolitan University)
Deadline for Proposals: 15 December 2016
Notification of Accepted Proposals: 1 February 2017
Deadline for Full Papers: 15 May 2017
Deadline for Full Papers: 15 May 2017
Social media is said to radically change the way in which
public communication takes place: information diffuses faster and can reach a
large number of people, but what makes the process so novel is that online
networks have the ability to empower people to affect a potentially true form
of popular sovereignty. This special edition will focus on the broad area of
virtual democratic behaviour with reference to the social media acting as a
public sphere to facilitate new forms of political participation, electoral
practices and social movements. Therefore, it will critically interrogate the
contemporary relevance of social networks as a set of economic, cultural and
political enterprises. It is the aim of this edition to consider whether the
social media can construct a public sphere(s) in which a variety of political
and socio-cultural demands can be met. This edition follows on from a day-long
conference in June 2016 entitled ‘Social media, politics and democracy ‘ (http://www.city.ac.uk/events/2016/june/social-media,-politics-and-democracy)
which was organized to launch Petros Iosifidis and Mark Wheeler’s recent
book 'Public spheres and mediated social networks in the western context
and beyond' (Palgrave, 2016).
Possible topics include, but are not limited to:
- Democratic/post-democratic behaviour and the social media
- The Public Sphere and on-line activism
- Social movements and social networks
- Digital diplomacy, soft power and international relations
- Traditional political activity and social media campaigns
- The policy context for on-line outreach
- The regulatory framework at the national and supranational level for information technologies
- The political economy of the communications revolution
- The globalization of information and knowledge
- The Global South and the social media
The International Journal of Digital Television explores
the transition to digital TV and the social and cultural questions surrounding
the future of television beyond switchover. It brings together and shares the
work of academics, policymakers and practitioners. Content ranges from critical
work on technological, industry and regulatory convergence to wider
socio-cultural and political questions including audience behaviour, plurality
of channels and programming choice, and television and new media’s influence.
Please send an abstract of up to 300 words by 15
December 2016 to:
Mark Wheeler: m.wheeler@londonmet.ac.uk and
Duygu Karatas: D.Karatas@westminster.ac.uk
Invited authors will be notified by 1 February 2017 and
full articles of 5,000-7,000 words will be due on 15 May 2017. All
submissions will be subjected to double-blind peer review. Following
refereeing, final versions of articles will be due on 30 June 2017.
More information about the Journal and Notes for
Contributors: http://www.intellectbooks.co.uk/journals/view-Journal,id=175
