MSc Double Degree in Global Media and Communications (LSE and UCT) – for entry in September 2017

Applications are now open for a new and unique two year programme which enables students to study for one year at LSE in London, the UK’s media capital, and one year at the University of Cape Town (UCT) – the top-ranked university on the African continent with close links to Cape Town’s media and film industry and NGO sector.

The MSc Double Degree in Global Media and Communications (LSE and the University of Cape Town) aims to provide:

• critical exploration of mediation in the global context, examining processes of globalisation in relation to organisation, production, consumption and representation in media and communications;
• the opportunity to study a range of courses, flexibly tailoring the programme to develop specialist interests, culminating in an independent research project on a topic in global media and communications at LSE and a further dissertation or creative media production at UCT;
• preparation for high-level employment in media and communications related professions anywhere in the world;
• the opportunity to carry out an internship in Cape Town.

Students on this degree will be trained to examine the intersection of media and globalisation from an African vantage point. They will gain an understanding of global media and communications in an African context and African media and communications in a global context.

General information about the new programme:
http://www.lse.ac.uk/media@lse/study/mscProgrammes/globalMedia/Home.aspx

Watch video about the programme
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5etxv19nZE&t=17s

Detailed course information about Year One at LSE:
http://www.lse.ac.uk/resources/calendar/programmeRegulations/taughtMasters/collaborativeProgrammes/2017_MScGlobalMediaAndCommunications(withFudanOrUSCorUCT).htm

Detailed course information about Year Two at UCT:
http://www.cfms.uct.ac.za/msc-global-media-courses

How to apply:
http://www.lse.ac.uk/media@lse/study/mscProgrammes/globalMedia/HowToApply.aspx
http://www.lse.ac.uk/study/graduate/enquirer/howToApply/HowToApplyForGraduateStudyVideo.aspx

Entry requirements:
http://www.lse.ac.uk/study/graduate/enquirer/entryRequirements/home.aspx

Financial support for all students:
http://www.lse.ac.uk/intranet/students/moneyMatters/financialSupport/ScholarshipsLSE/MScApp/taughtMScprogrammes.aspx

Financial support for African students:

Two LSE Master’s Awards (LMA’s) are earmarked for African offer holders on the MSc double degree in Global Media and Communications (LSE and UCT). Offer holders should be African residents and preference is given to students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. The awards cover the first year of study at LSE, are means tested and up to the value of full fees and living costs at £1,200 per month. Students interested in the scholarship opportunity are advised to apply by 31 March 2017. If they receive an offer, they must then complete the LSE Graduate Financial Support Application form by 5pm GMT on 26 April 2017:

http://www.lse.ac.uk/intranet/students/moneyMatters/financialSupport/ScholarshipsLSE/MScApp/taughtMScprogrammes.aspx

Other LSE financial support for African students:
http://www.lse.ac.uk/africa/study/scholarships/scholarshipsHome.aspx

Other external financial support for African students (see links to country-based awards in column on the left):
http://www.lse.ac.uk/intranet/students/moneyMatters/financialSupport/ScholarshipsLSE/MScApp/awards/Awards.aspx

For general enquiries about the admissions process, please email: media.msc@lse.ac.uk
For further details about LSE programme content, please contact Dr Wendy Willems, (w.willems@lse.ac.uk)
For further details about UCT programme content, please contact Dr Wallace Chuma (wallace.chuma@uct.ac.za)

Due to interest from many quarters internationally the organisers are extending the deadline for 250 word abstracts to 31st March. Please see below for full details.

Bournemouth University, U.K., June 14th 2017

/Introduction/

It is fifteen years since Tonks (2002) argued that “rhetoric needs to have a more central location in making sense of marketing management” (p. 806). How far has this clarion call been answered? Are we any closer to an understanding of what it might mean to recast marketing theory and practice as a rhetoric? Or are we all still in thrall to the latest logic? To what degree has the ‘rhetorical turn’ in the human sciences had an influence on scholarship and teaching in marketing? We hope to enlist your contribution in starting to answer these and related questions at the 1st International Conference on Marketing (as) Rhetoric, to be held at Bournemouth University, June 14th, 2017 under the auspices of the Promotional Cultures and Communication Centre’s Advertising Research group.

While rhetorical approaches have become part of the standard toolbox in management studies (Bonet & Saquet, 2010; Hartelius & Browning, 2008) and have made a notable impact in economic scholarship (McCloskey, 1983, 1985) their adoption in marketing has been comparatively slow. A small but dedicated group of advertising scholars have perhaps had the most visible success in applying rhetorical criticism to a marketing topic area (McQuarrie & Mick, 1992, 1996, 2003; Phillips & McQuarrie, 2002, 2004; Scott, 1994; Stern, 1998, 1990). At the same time, there has been some investigation of the substantial part that rhetorical strategies play in the success of our most valued marketing scholars and marketing concepts (Brown, 2004, 2005; Hackley, 2003; Miles, 2010, 2013, 2015; O’Reilly, 2000) as well as efforts to situate aspects of marketing practice within a rhetorical frame (Marsh, 2013; Nilsson, 2015; O’Shaughnessy & O’Shaughnessy, 2004; Palmer et al, 2014; Persuit, 2013; Press & Arnould, 2014).

Given the historically central place that strategies of persuasion and control have at the heart of marketing thought it is remarkable that rhetoric remains such a rare framework for marketing thinking and scholarship. Has academic marketing’s (unrequited) love for the trappings of ‘science’ made rhetoric an unworthy research partner? Is there something at the root of rhetoric that makes marketers uncomfortable? Why are some young marketing scholars happy to adopt discourse analysis but remain wary of the far more developed traditions of rhetorical criticism? The International Conference on Marketing (as) Rhetoric hopes to deals with these challenging questions. Additionally, we are keen to encourage engagements with rhetorical themes across all aspects of marketing theory and practice. Below is an indicative (but not exclusive) list of possible research areas for papers:

*Rhetoric and the ‘attention economy” (Lanham, 2007)
* Rhetorical strategies as marketing strategies
* Advertising/PR and rhetoric
* Rhetoric and social media marketing
* The rhetoric of marketing relationships
* The rhetoric of marketing pedagogy
* Rhetoric as a unifying theory for marketing
* Propaganda, political marketing, and rhetoric
* Sales and rhetoric
* Critical marketing / postmodern marketing and rhetorical theory and criticism
* Explications of particular rhetorical figures and schools and their relevance for marketing
* Contemporary rhetorical criticism and marketing theory
* Kairos and marketing techniques
* Logos/ethos/pathos as marketing frames
* Copia and marketing pedagogy
* Sophism and modern marketing

We particularly welcome contributions that examine the legacy of Sophism as it relates to the marketing function and to the overall understanding of marketing. Given that Laufer and Paredeise’s (1990) dictum that “marketing is the bureaucratic form of Sophism” was so clearly an inspiration for Tonks’ (2002) own stance and that the reappraisal of Sophism continues to go from strength to strength (Poulakos, 1983; Lanham 1993, 2007; Cassin, 2000; Corey, 2015; Tindale, 2010), we would encourage scholars to continue this line of investigation and submit abstracts which examine the relationships between Sophism and all aspects of marketing.

We also invite contributions from scholars with an interest in marketing and rhetoric but residing in fields other than marketing, including organization studies, human resource, management, leadership, etc., as well as scholars from other disciplines, including rhetoric, sociology, philosophy, linguistics, cultural studies, etc.

/Practical information/

Conference Date: 14 June 2017

Keynote Speakers:
* Dr. Nicholas O’Shaughnessy (Visiting Professor in the Department of War Studies King’s College London, Centre for Strategic Communications; Professor of Communications, Queen Mary University of London)
* Dr. Chris Hackley (Professor of Marketing, Royal Holloway University of London)

Conference Location: Bournemouth University, Talbot Campus, Dorset, United Kingdom.
Conference registration: £50
Conference website/registration page: https://marketingasrhetoric.eventbrite.co.uk/
Abstracts: Abstracts of 250 words to be submitted to cjmiles@bournemouth.ac.uk<mailto:cjmiles@bournemouth.ac.uk> by the extended deadline of *31st March*.

Review procedure: Notification of acceptance of abstracts will be communicated by 10th April.
/Organizers/
* Dr. Chris Miles (Department of Corporate and Marketing Communication, Bournemouth University, UK). Email: cjmiles@bournemouth.ac.uk<mailto:cjmiles@bournemouth.ac.uk>
* Dr. Tomas Nilsson (Department of Marketing, Linnaeus University, Sweden). Email: tomas.nilsson@lnu.se<mailto:tomas.nilsson@lnu.se>

/References/
Bonet, E., & Sauquet, A. (2010). Rhetoric in management and in management research. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 23(2), 120–133.
Brown, S. (2004). Writing Marketing: The Clause That Refreshes. Journal of Marketing Management, 20(3–4), 321–342.
Brown, S. (2005). Writing Marketing: Literary Lessons form Academic Authorities. London, Sage.
Cassin, B. (2000). Who’s Afraid of the Sophists? Against Ethical Correctness. Hypatia, 15(4), 102-120.
Corey, D. (2015). The Sophists in Plato’s Dialogues. Albany, State University of New York Press.
Hackley, C. (2003). “We Are All Customers Now . . .” Rhetorical Strategy and Ideological Control in Marketing Management Texts. Journal of Management Studies, 40(5), 1325–1352.
Hartelius, E. J., & Browning, L. D. (2008). The Application of Rhetorical Theory in Managerial Research: A Literature Review. Management Communication Quarterly, 22(1), 13–39.
Lanham, R. (1993). The Electronic Word: Democracy, Technology, and the Arts. Chicago. University of Chicago Press
Lanham, R. (2007). The Economics of Attention: Style And Substance In The Age Of Information. Chicago, University of Chicago Press.
Laufer, R., & Paradeise, C. (1990). Marketing Democracy: Public Opinion and Media Formation in Democratic Societies. London, Transaction Publishers.
Marsh, C. (2013). Classical Rhetoric and Modern Public Relations. London, Routledge.
McCloskey, D. (1983). The rhetoric of economics. Journal of Economic Literature, 21(2), 481–517.
McCloskey, D. (1985). The Rhetoric of Economics. Madison, University of Wisconsin Press.
McQuarrie, E. F., & Mick, D. G. (1992). On Resonance: A Critical Pluralistic Inquiry Into Advertising Rhetoric. The Journal of Consumer Research, 19(2), 180–197.
McQuarrie, E. F., & Mick, D. G. (1996). Figures of Rhetoric in Advertising Language. Journal of Consumer Research, 22(4), 424–438.
McQuarrie, E. F., & Mick, D. G. (2003). Re-Inquiries: Visual and verbal rhetorical figures under directed processing versus incidental exposure to advertising. Journal of Consumer Research, 29(4), 579–87.
Miles, C. (2010). Interactive Marketing: Revolution or Rhetoric? London, Routledge.
Miles, C. (2014). The rhetoric of managed contagion: Metaphor and agency in the discourse of viral marketing. Marketing Theory, 14(1), 3-18.
Miles, C. (2014). Rhetoric and the foundation of the Service-Dominant Logic. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 27(5), 744–755.
Nilsson, T. (2015). Rhetorical Business: A study of marketing work in the spirit of contradiction. Lund, Lund University.
O’Reilly, D. (2000). On the Precipice of a Revolution with Hamel and Prahalad. Journal of Marketing Management, 16(1–3), 95–109.
O’Shaughnessy, J. & O’Shaughnessy, N. (2004). Persuasion in Advertising. London, Routledge.
Palmer, M., Simmons, G., & Mason, K. (2014). Web-based social movements contesting marketing strategy: The mobilisation of multiple actors and rhetorical strategies. Journal of Marketing Management, 30(3–4), 383–408.
Persuit, J. (2013). Social Media and Integrated Marketing Communication: A Rhetorical Approach. New York, Lexington Books.
Press, M., & Arnould, E. J. (2014). Narrative transparency. Journal of Marketing Management, 30(13–14), 1353–1376.
Phillips, B. J., & McQuarrie, E. F. (2002). The development, change, and transformation of rhetorical style in magazine advertisements 1954-1999. Journal of Advertising, 31(4), 1–13.
Phillips, B. J., & McQuarrie, E. F. (2004). Beyond Visual Metaphor: A New Typology of Visual Rhetoric in Advertising. Marketing Theory, 4(1), 113–136.
Poulakos, J. (1983). Toward a Sophistic Definition of Rhetoric. Philosophy & Rhetoric
16(1), 35-48.
Scott, L. M. (1994). Images in advertising: The need for a theory of visual rhetoric. The Journal of Consumer Research, 21(2), 252–273.
Stern, B. B. (1988). Medieval allegory: Roots of advertising strategy for the mass market. The Journal of Marketing, 52(3), 84–94.
Stern, B. B. (1990). Other-speak: classical allegory and contemporary advertising. Journal of Advertising, 19(3), 14–26.
Tindale, C. (2010). Reason’s Dark Champions: Constructive Strategies of Sophistic Argument. Columbia, University of South Carolina Press.
Tonks, D. (2002). Marketing as Cooking: The Return of the Sophists. Journal of Marketing Management, 18(7–8), 803–822.?

DOCUMENTARY AND ENTERTAINMENT
https://inmedia.revues.or
The purpose of this special issue of InMedia is to further the understanding of the documentary by linking it to the notion of entertainment, which has so far been underexplored in the expanding field of documentary studies. Our aim is thus to study the strategies and forms used by documentary filmmakers when they willingly choose to inject entertainment into their film. InMedia, the French Journal of Media studies, a peer-reviewed online journal (https://inmedia.revues.org/?lang=en), is published by the research unit CREW at Sorbonne Nouvelle University and was launched by Professor Divina Frau-Meigs, Nolwen Mingant, and Cécilia Tirtaine in 2011. The content of the journal is in English featuring articles by international scholars. Its current managing editors are Clémentine Tholas and Sébastien Mort.
The documentary, as a distinct film form, has often been associated with what Bill Nichols termed the “discourses of sobriety” (1)  and scholarly works on the subject have emphasized the serious political or social nature of the documentary, with a special focus on the rhetoric and politics of documentaries. Starting in the second half of the 20th century, “hard news” found in the news media was distinctly separate from the “soft news” in the entertainment media. In that respect, the documentary film form, whether for cinema or for TV, was principally meant to inform its audiences about topics they were not aware of. The technological and esthetic evolution of the documentary did not really have an impact on the public perception of what documentaries could do, as argued by Brian Winston, who contends that Direct Cinema is the continuation of the Griersonian heritage rather than a radical break from it. However in the last thirty years the media environment has considerably changed, blurring the lines between hard and soft news, as Delli Carpini and Willams clearly affirm: “…the form and content of news and entertainment [have] come to resemble each other more closely.” (2) These changes, mainly in the domain of television, brought about a new hybrid form that combines traditional news with entertainment, a form known as “infotainment”. If the authors now state that the term “infotainment” has “outlived whatever usefulness [it] might have once had (3)” historically it was widely used to describe influential TV shows such as The Daily Show or The Colbert Report. In retrospect, it seems that the lack of a comprehensive definition that would deal with what these new forms of entertainment and information media could do is linked to the historical evolution of their distribution platforms.

For feature documentary films, the groundbreaking film Roger & Me in 1989 by Michael Moore ushered in a new era where what was referred to then as “infotainment” could now be found in documentary films, thus departing from the classic models of the documentary film pioneers John Grierson, Dziga Vertov, and Robert Flaherty among others. For Moore, even the term “documentary” was anathema and should be replaced by “movie” as he feels it is necessary to abide by “the tenets of entertainment” (4). Thus, a documentary should both educate (following the hard news principles) AND entertain, which is what soft news was meant to do. As a result of this new interest in the relationship between documentary and entertainment, we seek contributions that focus on this unique combination.

One possible line of inquiry would be to look at the mutual influence of “infotainment TV”, understood as a historically specific form, and the documentary film: How has the documentary tradition and some of its practices (compilation films, editing, voice-over, social commentary, etc.) shaped the structure and esthetics of ”infotainment TV”? In turn, how has the TV medium influenced the contemporary documentary (fast editing, humor, overt bias, generalizations, etc.)? Is the “infotainment” documentary a new genre, or mode, in and of itself? To what extent is this new documentary film genre affected by the influence of Television and its short information format? Are these current trends in documentary film just a longer version of the television infotainment format? Or, could we say that they are just the translation of a classic documentary film with added elements from entertainment TV to bring it up to date?

A second axis of investigation would be to consider documentary as entertainment. Based on Annette Hill’s study of documentary modes of engagement (5), how is it possible to rethink and reinvent the tension between information and entertainment most people associate with the documentary? What is deemed an entertaining documentary (fast-paced, humorous yet informative)? How and why is it perceived as such? How has the technological and cultural evolution of what constitutes entertainment in our current society been incorporated into documentary film? At the level of production, do documentary filmmakers include the necessity to entertain (cf. Moore’s distinction between documentaries and movies) within their feature documentaries?
Finally, a third thematic axis would be to examine the political consequences of this new hybrid form between information and entertainment? How have politics and entertainment been successfully combined creating politainment, a new genre that has been gaining in popularity? In what ways is entertainment a new way to get the spectator involved in the political process?  How effective is it in delivering votes afterwards at the ballot box? From the political documentaries that shaped the 2004 American presidential election, as studied by James McEnteer, to the recent focus on Steve Bannon (6), Donald Trump’s Chief Strategist, as a former documentary filmmaker, what are the links between documentary, entertainment, and electoral politics? Has the documentary caused the transformation of politics into reality TV – a criticism that was already leveled, in different terms, against Robert Drew’s political documentaries in the 1960s?
We welcome individual proposals pertaining – but by no means limited – to the following thematic areas and their intersections with entertainment and documentary film:
●        The role of television in the evolution of the documentary
●        The fictional dimension of the documentary
●        The use of humor in documentary films
●        The emergence of entertainment TV elements in documentary film
●        Recent developments of ”infotainment” strategies in documentary film
●        The role and effectiveness of politainment in documentary film
●        The use of music in documentary films
●        The documentary and the shortening attention span of the modern spectator
●        Characteristics of the documentary of the 21st century
●        Reception studies of the documentary as entertainment
●        The “boring” documentary devoid of entertainment
●        “Mockumentaries” and their esthetic strategies, in film or on television
●        The representation of documentary filmmakers in fiction films and TV series
●        Documentary parodies in the Documentary Now! series
●        The typology of information and entertainment in documentary films

Although the journal is written entirely in English, the documentary films under study can come from countries that are not English-speaking. We are open to all types of approaches  (formal analysis, political science, media studies, semiotics, gender studies, race studies, etc…). Proposals should not exceed 300 words, should include a short bibliography and should be sent both to David Lipson (lipson.fr@gmail.com) and to Zachary Baqué (baque.zachary@neuf.fr) before September 8th 2017.

Notes
(1)        Bill Nichols, Representing Reality p. 29
(2)        Delli Carpini and Williams After Broadcast News,p. 164
(3)        Delli Carpini and Williams, p. 10 and following
(4) http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-moore/13-rules-for-making-docum_b_5834954.html
(5)        Annette Hill, p. 217, based on an expression by Bill Nichols
(6) http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/12/steve-bannon-films-movies-documentaries-trump-hollywood-214495

Bibliography
BARNOUW Erik. Documentary, A History of Non-Fiction Film, New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1974, 1983, 1993.
BAUDRILLARD Jean. Simulacres et simulations, Paris: Editions Galilée, 1981.
BENSON Thomas W. & Brian J. Snee (eds.). The Rhetoric of the New Political Documentary, Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 2008.
DELLI CARPINI, M. and WILLIAMS B. After Broadcast News: Media Regimes, Democracy, And the New Information Environment New York: Cambridge University Press. 2011.
DELLI CARPINI, M. and WILLIAMS B. “Let Us Infotain You: Politics in the New Media Environment.” In BENNETT L. and ENTMAN R. (Eds.), Mediated politics: Communication in the future of democracy (pp. 160-181). New York: Cambridge University Press. 2001. DEBORD Guy.  La Société du spectacle, Paris: Gallimard, collection « folio », 1967, 1992. GOODWIN Andrew, WHANNEL Garry. Understanding Television, London: Routledge, 1992.
GRIERSON John. On Documentary, London: Faber & Faber, 1966.
HILL Annette. “Documentary Modes of Engagement.” In AUSTIN T. and DE JONG W. (Eds.), Rethinking Documentary: New Perspectives, New Practices (pp. 217-231). Maidenhead: Open University Press, 2008. HOLBERT R. Lance. “A Typology for the Study of Entertainment Television and Politics,” American Behavioral Scientist 49, n°3 (2005)
KELSO Tony. “And now no word from our sponsor, How HBO puts the risk back into television” in LEVERETTE Marc, Brian L. OTT and Cara Louise BUCKLEY (eds.), It’s Not TV, Watching HBO in the Post-television Era, New York & London: Routledge, 2008.
McENTEER James. Shooting the Truth: The Rise of American Political Documentaries, Westport CO and London: Praeger, 2006. MENAND Louis. “Nanook and Me: Fahrenheit 9/11 and the Documentary Tradition”, The New Yorker, August 9-16  2004, 90-96. , accessed January 12, 2014.
NICHOLS Bill. Blurred Boundaries: Questions of Meaning in Contemporary Culture, Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1994, 2001.
NICHOLS Bill.  Representing Reality: Issues and Concepts in Documentary, Bloomington : Indiana University Press, 1991.
NICHOLS Bill. Speaking Truths with Film: Evidence, Ethics, Politics in Documentary, Oakland: University of California Press, 2016. NINEY François.  L’Épreuve du réel à l’écran, Essai sur le principe de réalité documentaire, Bruxelles: De Boeck & Larcier, 2002, 2004. NISBET Matt. “That’s infotainment”, The Skeptical Inquirer April 30, 2001 accessed November 11, 2016, http://www.csicop.org/specialarticles/show/thats_infotainment
WINSTON Brian (Ed.) The Documentary Film Book, London/Palgrave Macmillan, 2013.

PARTNERSHIP FOR PROGRESS ON THE DIGITAL DIVIDE (PPDD)
2017 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE, 24-26 May 2017

Best Western Plus Island Palms Hotel & Marina
San Diego, California USA

http://www.ppdd.org/conferences/ppdd2017/

In response to numerous requests, we are extending the 250-word-maximum abstract submission deadline for those who need additional time.
In conjunction with the 67th International Communication Association Annual Conference

Partnership for Progress on the Digital Divide (PPDD) is the only academic professional organization in the world focused solely on the digital divide and on connecting research to policymaking and practice to strategize actions and catalyze solutions to this pressing societal concern.The academic research and practitioner community represented by PPDD stands ready to advance the agenda on broadband and the digital divide, to address the many challenges and opportunities presented by the digital world, and to further evidence-based policymaking and practice so that all citizens can participate fully in the digital, networked age.

The interdisciplinary Partnership for Progress on the Digital Divide 2017 International Conference brings together researchers, policymakers, and practitioners for an extended, in-depth dialogue about key issues that inform information and communication technologies and the digital divide around the world. The Conference works to identify new areas of necessary, productive focus, foster greater understanding, advance research, and enlighten policy and practice going forward. As a major outcome of PPDD 2017, we plan to produce an edited volume of the top papers as well as special issues of our Publishing Partners’ journals on specific themes within the digital divide area.

If you would like to present and discuss your work during PPDD 2017 and have it included in the online PPDD 2017 Conference Proceedings and/or if you would like to provide a Position Paper for inclusion in the PPDD 2017 E-Book, please see the Call for Participation (http://www.ppdd.org/conferences/ppdd2017/cfp/) for instructions on how to submit your work for consideration.

If you would like to just attend PPDD 2017 to explore the issues and grow your knowledge and network of connections, please know that you are very welcome and valued in the PPDD Conference Community.

Please join PPDD, our Local Digital Inclusion Program Hosts, and an unprecedented broad multi-disciplinary coalition of co-sponsoring organizations from academic and practitioner communities to share your insights and expertise. Together, we will enrich the dialogue, connect research, policy and practice, and advance the agenda on the digital divide.
Please contact conference [at] ppdd [dot] org with any questions.
—————————————————-
CALL FOR PARTICIPATION
—————————————————-
If you would like to 1) present and discuss your work during PPDD 2017 and have it included in the online PPDD 2017 Conference Proceedings, and/or if you would like to 2) provide a Position Paper for inclusion in the PPDD 2017 E-Book, we look forward with enthusiasm to your contribution and ask that you please follow the instructions provided at http://www.ppdd.org/conferences/ppdd2017/cfp/ to submit your work.Submissions are welcome from researchers, policymakers, and practitioners at all stages of their careers, from any theoretical and methodological approach, and across multiple disciplines.

1) Deadline to Submit Your 250-Word-Maximum Abstract for Consideration for Presentation:
6 March 2017 11:59 p.m. Hawaii Time to Receive Notification of Acceptance/Rejection on 24 March 2017
or

20 March 2017 11:59 p.m. Hawaii Time to Receive Notification of Acceptance/Rejection on 31 March 2017

If you have visa or other time-sensitive concerns, please submit your work as quickly as possible and email conference [at] ppdd [dot] org to request an expedited review so you can receive notification shortly after submission.

Before we can address the digital divide, we must first understand the nature of life in the digital age, the many challenges and opportunities it presents, and the interplay of influence between technological and social change. Then, in turn, we can fully understand digital inequality; its place alongside other long-standing, persistent issues of social equity, social justice, and media justice; and what it means to be disconnected from the most important technological advancement in communication in a generation and the myriad possibilities it facilitates. Thus, PPDD 2017 invites work that informs issues related to information and communication technologies (ICTs) and the digital divide broadly defined, including but not limited to:
– gaps in access and connectivity
– digital inclusion
– digital exclusion
– digital (dis)engagement
– challenges and opportunities
– social and cultural aspects of the divide
– the skills and digital/information literacy needed to interpret, understand, and navigate information presented online and the requisite curriculum
– effective use by individuals and communities
– the impact of socioeconomic factors on user behavior
– the role of motivation, attitudes, and interests
– differences in patterns of usage
– characteristics and conceptualizations of non-users
– the ways in which people use the Internet to create content
– content creation and inequality
– different forms of capital and power relationships, including in terms of content creation, labor, and ownership
– the role of theory in understanding ICTs and digital inequality
– the impact of new and evolving technologies
– the mobile divide
– the interplay of influence with mobile technologies
– human-computer interaction, human factors, and usability
– social media
– digital games
– apps
– socioeconomic and cultural effects
– social equity, social and economic justice, and democracy
– media justice and ICTs
– the ethics of digital inequality
– community informatics
– social informatics
– urban and regional planning
– social planning
– international development
– indigenous populations
– children and childhood
– education
– ICTs and well-being
– health
– disability and accessibility
– politics, digital government, digital citizenship, smart cities/citizens/government, civic engagement, adoption issues, and (in)equality
– global citizenship
– policy discourse
– law and policy and its impacts, including information/telecommunications policy, net neutrality, open access, open source, copyright, Internet filtering software, and censorship
– the digital security divide
– the digital privacy divide
– big data and inequality
– organizations and ICTs
– public access initiatives
– anchor institutions
– practitioner-oriented topics considering aspects of design, management, implementation, assessment, collaboration, challenges, problem solution, and opportunities
– architectural challenges and deployment experiences
– Internet access cost analyses
– the application of research to communities, practice, and public and private sector initiatives

2) Deadline to Submit a Position Paper for the PPDD 2017 Conference E-Book: 17 April 2017 11:59 p.m. Hawaii Time
All PPDD 2017 attendees may submit a position paper and all submissions that follow the guidelines provided at http://www.ppdd.org/conferences/ppdd2017/cfp/ will be included in the PPDD 2017 Conference E-Book.

—————————————————————
HOTEL AND OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES
—————————————————————
On the PPDD 2017 Hotel and Optional Activities page (http://www.ppdd.org/conferences/ppdd2017/hotelactivities/), you will find full details about the PPDD 2017 Conference hotel, optional 23 May 4-Hour Field Trip to our Local Digital Inclusion Program Hosts’ Sites Plus Early-Bird Group Dinner, optional 25 May Group Dinner at a Polynesian Restaurant Overlooking San Diego Bay, and sightseeing information about the San Diego area as well as helpful information if you are also attending the International Communication Association (ICA) Annual Conference.
We have secured extremely low room rates at a beautiful waterfront hotel with great amenities:
Best Western Plus Island Palms Hotel & Marina
2051 Shelter Island Drive
San Diego, California 92106 USA

To make your hotel room reservation, please call +1-800-922-2336 or +1-619-222-0561, or email res@islandpalms.com <mailto:res@islandpalms.com> and be sure to identify yourself as part of the PPDD group to be eligible for the deeply-discounted rate of $135USD/night (plus tax), including complimentary Internet access, recreational activities, parking, and more.PPDD 2017 room rates are available from 20 May through 29 May — please see http://www.ppdd.org/conferences/ppdd2017/hotelactivities/ for complete details.
Reservation Deadline: This special discounted room rate will be available until 24 April or when the group block is sold-out, whichever comes first.
For those attending ICA as well as PPDD, there is easy access from PPDD’s hotel to the ICA Hilton Bayfront Hotel via an inexpensive, approximately 20-minute Uber or taxi ride.

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REGISTRATION
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The PPDD 2017 Conference registration fee is:
$99USD for students
$129USD for college/university/non-profit/NGO affiliates
$179 for for-profit corporate affiliates
and includes full access to the Conference as well as hot buffet lunches on 24, 25, and 26 May plus the Conference reception and banquet dinner after the Conference programming on 24 May.
Registration will open in March 2017.Please visit http://www.ppdd.org/conferences/ppdd2017/registration/ for complete details.

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YOUR PPDD 2017 CONFERENCE LEADERSHIP TEAM
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Conference Organizer
Susan B. Kretchmer, Partnership for Progress on the Digital Divide
EuropeOrganizer
Grant Blank, Oxford University and Oxford Internet Institute
AfricaOrganizer
Bill Tucker, University of the Western Cape and Bridging Application and Network Gaps
Asia, the Pacific, and the Middle East Organizer
Ellie Rennie, RMIT University
CanadaOrganizer
Richard Smith, Simon Fraser University and Centre for Digital Media
United StatesOrganizer
Susan B. Kretchmer, Partnership for Progress on the Digital Divide
Latin America and the Caribbean Organizers
Laura Robinson, Santa Clara University
Hopeton S. Dunn, University of the West Indies, Jamaica and Caribbean Institute of Media and Communication
Policymaker and Practitioner Liaison
Angela Siefer, National Digital Inclusion Alliance

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CO-SPONSORS
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American Anthropological Association Committee on the Anthropology of Science, Technology, and Computing
American Library Association Office for Information Technology Policy
American Political Science Association Information Technology and Politics Section
American Public Health Association Health Informatics Information Technology Section
American Sociological Association Communication, Information Technologies, and Media Sociology Section
Community Informatics Research Network
International Association for Media and Communication Research Communication Policy and Technology Section
International Association for Media and Communication Research Digital Divide Working Group
International Association for Media and Communication Research Global Media Policy Working Group
International Communication Association
International Communication Association Communication and Technology Division
International Communication Association Communication Law and Policy Division
International Communication Association Mass Communication Division
iSchools
National Digital Inclusion Alliance
NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network
Urban Libraries Council, Edge Initiative

Working with a distinguished international board, the Journal of Science and Popular Culture – a new, peer-reviewed academic publication – aims to create a unique forum in which to analyse, chronicle, and interpret the interrelationship of science and society. Contributions from academics, scientists, communicators, industry professionals, practitioners, and others with an interest in the interface of science and culture are now invited. The first issue will be published October 2017 with ongoing publication starting 2018. Submissions for the first issue must be received by April 30.

The Journal of Science and Technology of the Arts (CITARJ) is an open-access, peer-reviewed publication, without any article processing fees.
The Journal covers a wide range of topics related to the study and practice of Creative and Artistic work approached through Science and Technology.

2017 Volume

CITARJ is permanently open for submissions, but to guarantee that your submission can appear in the 2017 volume, please submit by June 1, 2017.
To submit, register at http://artes.ucp.pt/citarj and follow the submission instructions.