Calls & Grants

We invite submissions that address topics including, but not limited to, the following: the role of fringe platforms in the platformized public sphere and in the contemporary media ecosystem strategies of amplification of marginal voices and the influence of this greater visibility on political agendas practices of online global mobilization and funding of marginal radical groups spaces of communication consistent with fringe ideologies and political polarization fringe platforms, disinformation, manipulation, incivility, and propaganda narratives, imaginaries, public discussion on fringe platforms

The Special Issue “Well-Being in the Digital World” of the Weizenbaum Journal of the Digital Society (WJDS) will focus on one of the most pertinent goals the world faces today: ensuring individual well-being. Indeed, with challenges related to mental health becoming particularly pronounced during and in the aftermath of the pandemic, numerous stakeholders question the role of technology in contributing to users’ psychological health. Which role do digital technologies play in users’ well-being? What are the mechanisms behind the observed relationships? Who are the users most at risk to technology-enabled well-being and mental health effects? How can technology be designed and leveraged to ensure users’ well-being? How can technology use be best and most reliably operationalized in research to derive valid cause-effect estimates? What are the long-term effects of remote work and digital collaboration on workers’ mental health and well-being? Which strategies can users rely on to ensure a healthy use of social media? What is virtual and augmented reality's potential in the treatment of mental health conditions in the clinical context? The guest editors invite contributions that study this topic with interdisciplinary and multi-perspective approaches. We invite papers that apply various methodological approaches, including surveys, experiments, big data analytics, linkage designs, and qualitative methods, to name a few. Furthermore, we welcome contributions that follow very different conceptions or are designed in different formats, such as case studies, systematic or scoping literature reviews, opinion papers, and methodological or conceptual work.

Traditionally, translation (including interpreting) has been understood as an act of overcoming pre-existing linguistic and cultural differences. More recently, however, this understanding has been contested in Translation Studies. The idea that translation produces the differences it claims to overcome and that such differences can be regarded as effects of translation rather than conditions preceding it has been theoretically addressed with concepts like bordering (Sakai 2018, cf. Dizdar 2019, 2021). By producing differences and creating borders, translation is also effective in the construction of “collectivities” (Dizdar/Rozmyslowicz 2023) in the social world. When it marks a difference between languages, it simultaneously differentiates between individual speakers of a given language and between communities – which may differ in size and kind: national communities (e.g. Cronin 1996; Kothari 2007; Dizdar/Gipper/Schreiber 2015), gender identities (Simon 1996; Baer/Kaindl 2018; Robinson 2019), deaf and hearing communities (Young/Napier/Oram 2020), humans and machines (Rozmyslowicz 2023) – in short: between all sorts of collectivities (Dizdar/Rozmyslowicz 2023). The conference addresses the question of how translation participates in the construction and undoing of differences in the social world and how it sorts people into categories. Which categories become relevant in which situation and field (politics, science, law, religion, art etc.)? And how do they interact? Moreover: which categories and distinctions are inscribed in concepts and theories of translation? Which ‘centrisms’ (e.g. eurocentrism, anthropocentrism) or ‘biases’ can be identified? These and other related questions concerning translation’s power to construct difference can be discussed with reference to various empirical contexts or on a general theoretical level. The conference welcomes contributions on its main topic in the context of all research fields and perspectives. It aims to foster and intensify dialogue on translation by bringing together researchers from various backgrounds.

The 18th Vienna Games Conference – FROG 2024 – is dedicated to connections between play & games, crisis and hope, and invites game scholars, creators, educators, students, activists and enthusiasts from around the globe to come together and reflect on the apocalypse through a lens of games & play. Possible topics include, but are not limited to: Games about the apocalypse: what fascinates us about doom, and how is the (post-)apocalypse “modeled” in games? What makes the end of the world such a fruitful premise for computer games and other media? Games for a sustainable future: in what ways can games help understand the problems we face today, and how can they assist us develop strategies to save it? Apocalyptic visions in games: how do games change the ways we think about our world and the threats to it? Is there something specific about the dystopian futures presented in computer games, and what can games help us see about the future (and what do they obscure?) that other media don’t? Gamers against doom: what are the skills games teach us that can help us face the future together? Are gamers better equipped to face the challenges of a world in crisis? And can gamification help to bring humankind together across ideological divides to avoid its downfall? Games in education for crisis awareness: How can game-based education approaches help to inform and educate about current or imminent crises? What potential do games have to simulate crisis scenarios and develop critical thinking? And how can they foster resilience, not only during times of crisis, but also against the disconcerting effects of (fake) news and conspiracy narratives that herald impending doom? Games for hope: what are the visions for a better future that games can promote? Can games instill hope differently than other media, and in what way? And how can we avoid that such hopes end up in mere escapism, but foster real life action instead?

The internationalization of research in the Media and Communication field holds immense potential, yet also faces numerous challenges when it comes to including scholars from the Global South. Against this background, emerging technologies and practices - such as digital media, online publishing, and non-profit open-access initiatives - are powerful tools for democratizing scholarly dissemination. Accordingly, such technologies offer the opportunity to overcome geographical barriers and connect with audiences worldwide, enabling scholars from peripheral and semi-peripheral countries to share their findings globally without being hindered by traditional gatekeepers that may favor Western-centric perspectives. Additionally, non-profit open access and open science initiatives promise to offer unrestricted access to research findings, breaking free from financial constraints that disproportionately affect scholars from resource-constrained regions. This special issue aims to expand our understanding of such phenomena and bring together contributions - especially cross-national comparison empirical studies - to discuss the challenges and opportunities for the internationalization of academic production and collaboration among countries in the South with or without partners from the Global North. We welcome manuscript submissions related (but not limited) to the following topics. Disparities in knowledge production and research dissemination among countries of the Global South and the Global North when it comes to Communication and Media studies. Inequities in access to academic resources, such as research funding, infrastructure, updated facilities, and technological resources, exploring their respective impact on research from the Global South. Structural barriers to the global circulation of knowledge, namely challenges to the international dissemination of findings by researchers, students, and academic publications in Communication. Challenges encountered by students and researchers from the Global South in pursuing academic mobility and establishing international collaboration opportunities. Obstacles and opportunities in Communication Studies for fostering a more equitable and inclusive educational environment that recognizes diverse perspectives worldwide. The roles of digital media/online publishing and non-profit open access in leveling the playing field of scholarship publishing for scholars from the Global South. Case studies highlighting successful dissemination of Global South scholarship, as well as difficulties faced by non-Global North publication outlets and academic associations. Critique of ideologically biased academic standards and procedures that disadvantage the Global South, unrelated to academic rigor and research integrity. Discrepancies in publishing opportunities and impacts among English and non-English speaking countries. Evaluation of policies and strategies aimed at reducing disparities in the internationalization of communication studies. Investigation of the role of international academic networks and collaboration in promoting equitable internationalization and knowledge exchange in communication studies. Exploration of intersectionality and power dynamics in internationalization efforts, influencing the participation and recognition of scholars from underrepresented backgrounds. Innovative solutions to level the playing field for scholars in the Global South and non-English speaking countries. Future directions of internationalization in communication studies, including potential shifts in paradigms, practices, and policies.

The aims of the Programme are to nurture future leaders; to develop in-country capacity to achieve national SDG goals; and to build positive relationships with Ireland. The Programme is intended to support graduates on their return home, through the skills they develop, to contribute to capacity building in their home countries and to become one of the next generation of leaders in their respective fields. It is also envisaged that they will contribute to building enduring positive personal and professional relationships with Ireland, promoting institutional linkages. Eligible Countries: Argentina Belize Bolivia Brazil Colombia Costa Rica Ecuador El Salvador Guatemala Honduras Paraguay Peru Venezuela

The priority program conducts interdisciplinary and multi-perspective research into the developments of both the social and cultural-political significance and the handling of Jewish cultural heritage in Europe and its global connections. The overarching goal of the program is the (re-)discursification of the cultural heritage of Jews with reference to Critical Heritage Studies. The latter show how the cultural heritage of the past is activated in the present and how it is socially constructed and linked to a range of social, economic, cultural and political processes. In the first phase of the program, desiderata in the scientific research, cultural-political representation and social use of Jewish heritage were identified and translated into questions on the basis of interdisciplinary research. The second phase focuses on empirically based and contemporary basic research, which shows potential for practical implementation through the development of concrete models and concepts for the vitality and sustainability of Jewish heritage. If, for example, Jewish cultural heritage, in its material and immaterial form, is integrated into the contemporary lifeworlds of Jews and non-Jews, the question arises as to whether and to what extent empirical research into those lifeworlds provides important insights into the contemporary, often transformed forms, echoes, provides meanings and contexts of Jewish heritage. How does knowledge of the social embedding of Jewish cultural heritage require concrete measures to preserve and pass on it? To what extent can empirically collected data on society's handling of Jewish heritage cause a reorientation of the discourse on cultural sustainability and ultimately lead to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals being reconsidered? Target group and methodological framework The priority program is aimed at scientists from all disciplines who deal with objects and concepts of contemporary Jewish cultural heritage in an interdisciplinary manner, with critical consideration of questions of cultural sustainability. The prerequisites for participation in the priority program are, in addition to the content orientation in the sense of the above-mentioned scientific objective - formally, the interdisciplinary structure of the individual projects as a tandem (involvement of at least two disciplines); - methodologically, the integration of social constructivist perspectives in the sense of critical heritage studies, which clearly go beyond purely affirmative and documentary approaches to Jewish cultural heritage; - and an empirical approach as a basis for developing transfer concepts between science and society. Participatory or dialogic integration is also desirable - Jewish actors and institutions in the sphere of influence of local and/or global cultural heritage policy; - citizen science approaches, for example at the interface between academic and practice-oriented areas of cultural heritage; or - Actors of cultural work at the levels of education, cultural mediation, cultural/minority policy, community work, museum practice, remembrance policy or civil protection. Against this background, the following can and should be critically questioned and reflected: - the multidimensional relationships between Jewish cultural heritage and society; - the heterogeneous publics of Jewish heritage, taking into account the current status of Jewish cultural heritage in contemporary Jewish living environments, which are largely determined by current social developments in the world; - Transformations of Jewish heritage in the present, or in a (well-founded) historical perspective. The project applications should therefore provide information about the project's internal understanding of transfer-oriented research and its theoretical premises, as well as the intended form of the application potential developed from the projects.

Embracing a Relational Paradigm to Navigate Cultural Complexity. We invite scholars from diverse disciplines, including but not limited to cultural studies, communication studies, organizational theory, anthropology, sociology, psychology, and philosophy, to contribute conceptual contributions, empirical studies, interviews and reviews that explore a relational view on cultural complexity and its conceptual and practical implications. Topics of interest include but are not limited to: • Mapping the current developments and trends in intercultural communication under the lens of a relational paradigm • Overview of relational concepts in the field of intercultural communication (e.g. Bolten 2020, etc.) • Theoretical frameworks for understanding the creation of shared meaning and action • The role of relational processes in shaping culturally complex events and practices • Strategies for navigating cultural complexity in organizational contexts • Innovative approaches to cross-cultural communication, management and cooperation • Implications of cultural complexity for inter- and transcultural competence and training • The impact of globalization and digitalization on inter-, cross- and transcultural practices • Methodological approaches for studying relational aspects of cultural complexity • Teaching and learning concepts building on a relational view on cultural complexity Submissions should engage with contemporary debates and offer insights into the potentials of a relational paradigm for the fields of intercultural communication, multicultural teamwork or transcultural cooperation. 2024-12-31 Submission of papers 2025-03-31 Feedback based on peer-reviews 2025-05-31 Submission of revised papers 2025-09-30 Publication of the special issue Submission information In the scheduled issue, articles may be published in English, German, French, Spanish or Portuguese as well as in more than one of these languages. The editorial team is therefore accepting abstracts in these languages. Please e-mail abstracts no longer than 300 words to the co-editor Julika Baumann Montecinos, and reach out to her for inquiries or further information, too: julika.montecinos@hs-furtwangen.de

This special issue hopes to tease out and strengthen the connections between interculturality and ecology by showing what such a dual focus can bring to light. Specifically, we invite articles engaging with, but not limited to, the following questions and areas of inquiry: How are notions and discourses about culture, identity, community, and borders constructed and mobilized to talk about the ecological collapse? How can a dual focus on interculturality and ecology be used to renew the field of intercultural communication and some of its central concepts such as competence, dialogue or reflexivity? How can a dual focus on interculturality and ecology be applied in research various contexts such as education (e.g. sustainability (language) education), interpersonal relationships (e.g. interspecies dialogue), mediated communication, health etc.? How can the study of interculturality and ecology benefit from and contribute to other lines of work such as decolonial scholarship, environmental justice, pluriversality and post-humanism? What methods and paradigms are particularly useful to explore the interplay between interculturality and ecology? How can the ecological turn in intercultural communication be used to move the field away from the Euro-western-centric production of knowledge and give room to indigenous and marginalized academic voices?

Für die geplante Publikation sind Beiträge aus allen Sozial-, Kultur- und Geisteswissenschaften, insbes. der Sozialphilosophie, aber auch der Rechtswissenschaft willkommen, die die Dialektik von Differenz- und Identitätsbehauptungen in den gesellschaftlichen Auseinandersetzungen der Gegenwart systematisch in den Blick nehmen und dabei die Frage nach ihren jeweiligen Geltungsbedingungen stellen. Gewünscht wären Beiträge, die idealerweise eine systematisch-konzeptionelle mit einerempirisch orientierten Perspektive auf das Debattenmaterial der aktuellen gesellschaftlichen und wissenschaftsbezogenen Auseinandersetzungen verbinden. Aber auch rein systematische oder empirische Beiträge sind willkommen.

We particularly welcome contributions which address The conceptual messiness of meme audiences: from users to audiences, lurkers, prod-users and/or prosumers? Including but not limited to addressing ‘meme’-as-verb and meme practices: from using to reading, sharing, interpreting, engaging and/or participating. Research methodology and methods to develop the discussion of what in-depth qualitative approaches to meme audiences enable; including but not limited to ethnographic methods inside and outside of digital contexts. The wide variety of meme audience practices and forms of engagement, including their affective engagement with memes and meme-makers. Different meme audience contexts: including but not limited to cultural, social, and political settings, groups and spaces not yet previously explored in the meme studies literature. Meme audience agency and power; including but not limited to user agency within and related to various technical and commercial infrastructures, tools, and platforms. The identity and group-related work/processes of meme audiences; including but not limited to boundary maintenance, othering, cultural and/or political citizenship. Meme audiences’ digital literacies, genre work and/or technical/analytical skills. Such contributions, we believe, will help theorize meme audiences as a distinctly qualitative, in-depth, phenomenon – thus making a vital contribution to meme studies literature.

This initiative aims to bring together relevant and competitive researchers from Germany and Costa Rica to design and carry out jointly organised research projects of outstanding scientific quality. Funding within this initiative will be available for collaborative research projects consisting of researchers from Germany and Costa Rica. Within these research teams, each national funding organisation will generally only fund those project components that are carried out within its own country (DFG in Germany and CONARE in Costa Rica). The collaborative research projects should involve active communication and cooperation between the participating researchers. (...)

The Book Series aims to provide a diverse overview of the work of ECREA members and working groups, showcasing a diversity of topics and areas within the field of contemporary media and communication research, and addressing this diversity from a variety of interdisciplinary perspectives, and through promoting collaborative research of our members, either within or between ECREA Sections, Networks and Temporary Working Groups (S/N/TWGs). The Book Series aims to provide a diverse overview of the work of ECREA members and working groups, showcasing a diversity of topics and areas within the field of contemporary media and communication research, and addressing this diversity from a variety of interdisciplinary perspectives, and through promoting collaborative research of our members, either within or between ECREA Sections, Networks and Temporary Working Groups (S/N/TWGs).

Es handelt sich um einen laufenden Call for Papers. Einreichungen sind jederzeit möglich. Die Zeitschrift "Interkulturelles Forum der deutsch-chinesischen Kommunikation" (IFDCK) ist ein wissenschaftliches Forum für den Austausch zwischen Forscher*innen der interkulturellen Kommunikation zwischen China und den deutschsprachigen Ländern. Sie ist die einzige deutschsprachige Zeitschrift, die sich hauptsächlich diesem Thema widmet. IFDCK konzentriert sich auf Erfolgsmodelle, Mechanismen, Probleme, Missverständnisse und Konflikte in der interkulturellen Kommunikation. Sie richtet sich an Wissenschaftler*innen, die theoretisch und praxisorientiert arbeiten möchten. Die Zeitschrift veröffentlicht originäre Forschungsergebnisse, die auf Ansätzen der Sprachwissenschaft, Literaturwissenschaft, Erziehungswissenschaft und Soziologie basieren. Sie ist offen für interkulturelle Untersuchungen in Politikwissenschaft, Geschichte, Philosophie, Management, Wirtschaft und Psychologie. Beiträge werden in folgenden Rubriken veröffentlicht: Interkulturelle Wissenschaftskommunikation Interkulturelle Medienkommunikation Interkulturelle Wirtschaftskommunikation Interkulturelle politische Kommunikation Interkulturelle Kanonrezeption Zusätzlich können Rezensionen und Interviews mit Persönlichkeiten aus Politik, Wirtschaft und Kultur erscheinen. Die Publikationssprache ist Deutsch, englische Beiträge sind in Ausnahmefällen möglich. Es werden nur Erstveröffentlichungen akzeptiert. Die Redaktion wird von der Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press (China) geleitet und die Zeitschrift erscheint zweimal jährlich bei De Gruyter (Deutschland) und der Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press (China).

The society is continuously changing with a rapid pace under digital transformation. Taking advantage from a solid transformation of digital communication and infrastructures and with great progress in AI (Artificial Intelligence), IoT (Internet of Thinks), ML (Machine Learning), Deep Learning, Big Data, Knowledge acquisition and Cognitive technologies, almost all societal areas were redefined. Transportation, Buildings, Factories, and Agriculture are now a combination of traditional and advanced technological features. Digital citizen-centric services, including health, well-being, community participation, learning and culture are now well-established and set to advance further on. As counter-effects of digital transformation, notably fake news, digital identity risks and digital devise are also progressing in a dangerous rhythm, there is a major need for digital education, fake news awareness, and legal aspects mitigating sensitive cases. DIGITAL 2025 continues a series of international events covering a large spectrum of topics related to digital transformation of our society. We solicit both academic, research, and industrial contributions. We welcome technical papers presenting research and practical results, position papers addressing the pros and cons of specific proposals, such as those being discussed in the standard fora or in industry consortia, survey papers addressing the key problems and solutions on any of the above topics short papers on work in progress, and panel proposals. Industrial presentations are not subject to the format and content constraints of regular submissions. We expect short and long presentations that express industrial position and status. Tutorials on specific related topics and panels on challenging areas are encouraged. The topics suggested by the conference can be discussed in term of concepts, state of the art, research, standards, implementations, running experiments, applications, and industrial case studies. Authors are invited to submit complete unpublished papers, which are not under review in any other conference or journal in the following, but not limited to, topic areas.