Different Bodies: (Self-)Representation, Disability and the Media
Friday, June 23, 2017, University of Westminster, 309 Regent Street, London
Register for free: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/different-bodies-self-representation-disability-and-the-media-tickets-34505139802
Programme available here: https://sites.google.com/view/mediadisfigurement/conference
This one-day conference seeks to explore representations of the body as strange, shameful, wrong, impaired, wounded, scarred, disabled, lacking, different or ‘other’ in contemporary media.
The advent of digital media has underlined the importance of visual culture and our curiosity in representations of the body to form opinions about ourselves and others. Media portrayals of bodies can affect our lives because media are one of the primary agents of socialization. Bodies we see in newspapers, on television and in our social media feeds are often made to appear perfect in order to conform to racialized and heteronormative ideals of what it means to be beautiful and normal in contemporary capitalist societies. This conference seeks to contribute to current debates in theoretical fields such as feminism, queer theory, disability studies, critical theory and postcolonial studies over presentations of the body that are white, young, slim and productive.
Keynote: Professor Lisa Blackman (Goldsmiths)
The conference will also feature a special panel by the UK charity Changing Faces
This conference is part of the research project ‘Facial Disfigurement in the UK Media: From Print to Online’, led by Dr Diana Garrisi (University of Westminster) and Dr Jacob Johanssen (University of Westminster).
Conference attendance is free. Lunch and refreshments will be provided. Please let the organisers know if you have any access or dietary requirements.
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