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Archives for July 2021

CALL FOR PAPERS: Virtual Social Media Symposium

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The Virtual Social Media Symposium will be Sept. 30-Oct. 1, 2021.
Cathy Hughes School of Communications
Call for papers, panel proposals, posters, audio, video and interactive presentations

From COVID-19 to the ballot box: Social media and race-based disinformation in 2020 and beyond http://socialmediatechnologyconference.com/

The NAACP has said disinformation—falsehoods and rumors, purposefully meant to cause harm—is “a perpetual attempt to tarnish and erode our democracy.”  The theme of this year’s Social Media Symposium focuses on dissecting how disinformation campaigns used real-world instances of systemic racism to discourage Black participation in COVID vaccination protocols, voting and debates about reexamining police power following the murder of George Floyd. Social media recommendation algorithms control what we see and when, based on previous engagement habits, pushing some of us into filter bubbles designed to convince us the earth is flat (yes, that is a real Facebook community endorsed by NBA player Kyrie Irving). The problem is when these communities convince social media users elections have been stolen and lead to Jim Crow-era mob violence like we saw at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

Journalists at the MIT Tech Review discovered the spread of dis- and misinformation that are part of the Facebook business model. However, opportunities for foreign-based Internet trolls to control the national discourse have not been stopped at Facebook and have found their way into mainstream news and information outlets.

The interdisciplinary conference seeks to discuss this and more. The presentations during the two-day virtual conference will examine these challenges and new possibilities as social media matures into the mainstream, and it will create opportunities for scholars, practitioners and observers to make more informed assessments about the information appearing on their social media timelines, and often in the news media, and how it impacts their analogue lives.

The Symposium also will provide a special track for graduate students and undergraduate journalism and communications students. Select students will receive grants to work with a mentor to develop research for the conference. Students will present research papers, posters, reported articles and interactive pieces related to the conference theme. Their work will appear on the student-focused fact-checking site, TruthBeTold.news and selected students will receive monetary awards for exemplary work in these categories: History, Current Events, News Reporting, Multimedia (audio, video, mixed media).

To submit, click here: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=smtcw21

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
CALL EXTENDED TO August 27, 2021

Paper Submissions
Respondents for this category should submit a 3-5 page proposal that includes an overview of the study as well as research design that includes brief review of the literature, methodology and findings, if possible. with a 100-word abstract. All respondents in this paper category should clearly identify the submission type on their proposal and send the proposal through EasyChair by August 27, 2021 at the following site:  https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=smtcw21

Panel Submissions
Respondents should submit a 3-5 page proposal addressing the purpose of the panel and specific issue(s) to be covered. The proposal should include a list of the confirmed guests or those who will be solicited for the panel as well as their brief biographies. In addition to the proposal, a file should be uploaded with a 100-word description of the proposed panel as well as a 100-word biography for each presenter. Submission without the biography will be rejected. Presenters will be notified by late-July of the status of their acceptance and should register to attend the conference by September 1, 2021. All respondents in this category should send the proposal through EasyChair by July 30, 2021 at the following site: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=smtcw21

Workshop Submissions
Respondents should submit a 1-page proposal addressing the purpose of the workshop, details about the technology, social media trend or tool to be explored and what attendees will gain from attending it. Workshops are scheduled for 90 minutes, so content should be sufficient enough to fill the time slot. If applicable, the proposal should include a list of the confirmed guests or those who will be solicited for the workshops as well as their brief biographies. In addition to the proposal, a file should be uploaded with a 100-word description of the proposed workshop as well as a 100-word biography accompanied by a photograph for each workshop presenter. Submission without the biography will be rejected. All respondents in this category should send the proposal through EasyChair by August 27, 2021 at the following site: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=smtcw21

STUDENT SUBMISSIONS

The Symposium also will provide a special track for graduate students and undergraduate journalism and communications students. Students will present research papers, posters, reported articles and interactive pieces related to the conference theme. Their work will appear on the student-focused fact-checking site, TruthBeTold.news and selected students will receive monetary awards for exemplary work in these categories: History, Current Events, News Reporting, Multimedia (audio, video, mixed media). All respondents in the student category should clearly identify the submission type on their proposal and send the proposal through EasyChair by August 27, 2021 at the following site: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=smtcw21

Contact: Ingrid Sturgis, isturgis@howard.edu

<Call for Nominations

2022 Senior Scholar Grants

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AEJMC Members Can Apply for 2022 Senior Scholar Grants

The AEJMC Senior Scholar Research Program will award up to two $5,000 grants to senior scholars to fund innovative and timely research projects in journalism and mass communication.

Senior scholars who are AEJMC members may submit proposals for these grants in the fall of 2021, and selections will be announced by early January 2022.

The AEJMC Senior Scholar Research Program is designed to support researchers in a wide area of study. These funds may sup­ port research assistants, travel to research centers or relevant locations, or pay for supplies and services associated with the re­ search. This program seeks to recognize senior (typically tenured) scholars who aim to engage in extended research projects. For at least one of the two awards, priority will be given to a project that requires travel. Members holding an endowed professorship or an endowed chair are not eligible to apply.

Proposals should outline the applicant’s significant research project. Proposals may also be submitted by a team of scholars who would share the award if selected.

AEJMC will showcase initial results from the projects selected for the 2022 grants at a special session at the AEJMC 2022 conference in Detroit. In addition to the $5,000 grant, AEJMC will also provide $750 for each selected proposal to assist scholars with travel expenses to that conference.

Deadline for submitting proposals is Friday, Oct. 1, at 4:59 p.m. Eastern Time. All application materials should be emailed as one attachment to Lillian Coleman at lillian@aejmc.org (attachment MUST have a document suffix, such as .doc, .docx or .pdf). All material should come in ONE file in the order outlined under the “Application Process” section of this call. Incomplete proposals will NOT be reviewed.

PROPOSAL CRITERIA

  • The proposed topic should center on Journalism and Mass Communication and related disciplines. Topics in related disciplines should also include a central element within mass communication.
  • Applicants must be current AEJMC members. Check your membership status before you submit your proposal. Proposals submitted by non­members, or members whose memberships are not current, will be eliminated from the competition.
  • Only one proposal per person will be considered. (If you submit as part of a team, that is the only proposal you may submit.)
  • The program is looking for proposals from senior faculty members teaching full­-time (preferably tenured).
  • The proposal should include a demonstration of past research success and the likelihood that this project can be completed by February 2023.
  • For the proposals selected, a five-­page interim report is due to AEJMC by July 15, 2022, and will be part of the 2022 conference session. Applicants should submit proposals for projects on which they would be able to make significant progress by that time.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Applications should contain five sections and include the following materials:

  1. A cover sheet that lists the following information: (a) name, address, telephone number and email address; (b) a 200­word bio of applicant(s); and (c) a 300­word abstract of the project.
  2. A proposal written for a general mass communication scholarly audience, of no more than 1,500 words (excluding endnotes) describing the project, which must include the following: (a) scope and purpose of project; (b) how the project will expand knowledge; (c) detailed description of the project, including methods, survey information (if used), etc.; (d) current status and timeline for completion; (e) anticipated outcomes; (f) a list of potential publication venues for the finished project. (Proposals that exceed this word count will NOT be reviewed.)
  3. A one­-page, detailed budget that fully explains the expenses necessary to complete the project. Maximum grant amount is
    $5,000. Funds may not be used for university indirect costs or PI stipend. If project will cost more than the maximum grant amount, explain where you will get the remaining funds to complete the project.
  4. One letter of support from your immediate supervisor. For proposals with more than one author: if co­authors are in same department at the same school, one support letter is sufficient, but if co­authors are at different colleges/universities each must have separate letter of support.
  5. A three-­page vitae — edit it so it is only three pages. If project has more than one author, each author must submit a three­-page vita.

All proposals will undergo peer review by JMC scholars. After a competitive judging process, applicants will be notified of the status of their proposals by early January 2022.

Questions about the program should be directed to Lillian Coleman at lillian@aejmc.org.

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