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CFP FOR SPECIAL ISSUE ON
16, 2(August-September 2010)
http://www.internationalcommunicationsjournal.com/
Special Issue Editors: Naren Chitty & Vibeke Sorensen
The selected title has a point of view: The net is not working as well as it should. We have a collective responsibility to improve the way it works. The net is a highly contested space in which both the legacy of colonialism continues to grow and adapt, and important alternatives to it are developed. It can be a space for imagining and realising more responsible and democratic alternatives to the otherwise historically deterministic processes associated with its creation and development.
Certainly, the idea that one culture can dominate another, using technology and from a remote (unseen) location, is one definition of imperialism. It is the very fractured and fragmenting nature of digital media that provides the means for new ideas to enter into the global dialogue. Opportunities emerge from ruptures, or discontinuities within and across "imperfections" in systems of domination. Such "imperfections" are inherent in digital media. They are associated with serious problems such as lack of accountability and objectivity in reporting of events and news, social isolation, and addictive behaviour, etc. But they also provide important opportunities for social inclusion and diversity of points of view, necessary for inter and intra cultural communication, especially important on the global stage, for improvements to international communication, with increased plurality of representation as well as critical response.
There are socio-economic and political factors affecting access to and use of the technology, and the net. By looking at where networks exist, and how they have developed, it is possible to see the extent to which these forces (of colonialism and anti-colonialism) are playing out. The speed with which ideas are presented and contested is also an accelerating force.
That the net is important for people in otherwise remote areas (for crucial information affecting their livelihoods, health, and subsistence) is a fact. But has the architecture of the net been shaped far too much for benefit of the privileged as an elite conception of an idealized world, where 'perfection' is meant to be exclusive, the "real world" disrespected and destruction rationalized, because the real is not considered palatable?
We invite reflection on the bridging of the real and virtual worlds, nature and technology, human beings/culture and the ecosystem through alternative approaches to networks, and critiques/discussion of ways in which they are or are not in harmony, bringing issues of cultural diversity and bio-diversity to bear on the network. How do we enhance the process of change, of having those who have been dominated by technology, surveilled, observed and controlled, present their own points of view in respectful dialog about it? We need creative solutions on a global level, and there are already many being developed around the world.
The above discussion is provided as a trigger for the generation of ideas. It has no exclusionary intent. If a scholar is working on an area related to the critical examination of real-virtual network relations that would be of interest to the multidisciplinary field of International Communication, s/he is welcome to send an abstract to: Professor Chitty <naren.chitty@mq.edu.au> or Professor Vibeke Sorensen VSORENSEN@ntu.edu.sg
Abstracts should be double-spaced and no longer than 500 words. They will be received between now and January 30, 2010. Completed manuscripts are due on May 30, 2010.
MS-word manuscripts must be submitted directly to Professor Naren Chitty at the email address identified herein. Articles that are submitted for review should follow the APA style guide and must be double-spaced and between 5000 and 7500 words. See <http://www.internationalcommunicationsjournal.com/submission.asp> for style and submission guide.
Professor Naren Chitty
Editor-in-Chief, The Journal of International Communication
Foundation Chair in International Communication
MMCS -Faculty of Arts
Macquarie University
North Ryde, NSW 2109, AUSTRALIA
naren.chitty@mq.edu.au
Professor Vibeke Sorensen
Chair, School of Art, Design & Media
Nanyang Technological University
81 Nanyang Drive, Level 3, Room 14,
Singapore 637458
VSORENSEN@ntu.edu.sg