From: gary hall [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 28 October 2004 17:04
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: cfp: The Internet and Alternative Political Practices

Call for Papers

Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture (WPCC)

Issue 2 (Spring-Summer 2005): The Internet and Alternative Political
Practices

Aiming to open up a critical dialogue on the Internet and alternative
political
practices, the second issue of WPCC is welcoming both theoretical and
applied
contributions. Stimulating this dialogue is the potential of the Internet to
transform
our notions of citizenship, democracy and political practice. The Internet
can also be
used as a tool by current social movements and alternative political
activists, changing
the way people organize and protest around their ideas. It may also foster
alternative
media practices that redefine our notions of the public sphere, alter social
and
political identities, and facilitate processes of development and
empowerment,
particularly for the politically disenfranchised.

Therefore, the coming issue of WPCC will be an attempt to address these
topics by drawing
on research that focuses on the following interrelated questions:

Ø How is the Internet transforming our notions of democracy, citizenship and
the public
sphere?

Ø Has the Internet changed political campaigning, both for electoral and
alternative
politics?

Ø Has it influenced political activism, organizing and participation?

Ø Is it transforming our perceptions of the political?

Ø How is it used by current social movements, both local and global?

Ø Does it foster alternative political and media practices?

Ø Does it affect the development and negotiation of social and political
identities?

Ø Does it empower the grassroots and the local?


Applicants may submit abstracts of no more than to 350 words to Anastasia
Kavada -
[log in to unmask] or Pantelis Vatikiotis - [log in to unmask] The
deadline for
the submission of abstracts is Monday 22 November.

Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture (WPCC) is a peer-reviewed
journal,
published twice a year in hard copy and PDF format. WPCC recognises the
interdisciplinary
nature of the field of Media and Cultural Studies, and therefore
deliberately encourages
diverse methods, contexts and themes. Particular interests include, but are
not limited
to, work related to Popular Culture, Media Audiences, Political Economy,
Promotional
Culture, New Media, Political Communication, Migration and Diasporic
Studies.

A major goal of the WPCC is to help develop a de-westernised and
transcultural sphere
that engages both young and established scholars from different parts of the
world in a
critical debate about the relationship between communication, culture and
society in the
21st Century.

WPCC invites contributions from all scholars; particularly those at the
beginning of
their careers.



--
Dr Gary Hall
Senior Lecturer in Media and Cultural Studies, Middlesex University
Co-editor of Culture Machine http://www.culturemachine.net
My website http://www.garyhall.info

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list made up of people who are interested in the interdisciplinary academic
study of Cyber Society in all its manifestations.To join the list please
visit:
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************************************************************************************
Distributed through Cyber-Society-Live [CSL]: CSL is a moderated discussion
list made up of people who are interested in the interdisciplinary academic
study of Cyber Society in all its manifestations.To join the list please visit:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/cyber-society-live.html
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