ECREA WEEKLY digest ARTICLES

August 28-30, 2025

Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia

Deadline: April 15, 2025

Co-organised by the Slovene Communications Association 

Mid-term conference of the European Sociological Association, Research Network 18 – The Sociology of Communications and Media Research 

The small-scale and focused mid-term conferences of the European Sociological Association's Research Network 18 seek to ensure that the sociological investigation of media and communications is given full focus, distinguishing its work from that of large international associations, which provide important forums for communications and media research but do not have especially sociological concerns. 

The challenges facing societies today seem daunting even by the most volatile historical standards. These include deepening economic inequalities, class antagonisms, the rise of radical right-wing authoritarianism around the world and violent wars that may soon erupt into even wider international conflicts. Generative AI is increasingly reshaping virtually all relations, and digital tech giants are running amok along with their increasingly unhinged owners. Somewhere behind all this, looming on the horizon, is an ecological crisis. While many of these issues are intricately interlinked and, among other things, speak volumes about the deepening power imbalances and crises of liberal institutions, their causes and trajectories may be divergent and contradictory, with outcomes that seem difficult to predict. 

As the conference title suggests, no social issues can be addressed without recourse to communication or capitalism. For Hanno Hardt, critical scholar and former professor in Ljubljana, communication could be considered "the sine qua non of human existence" (1979, 1). In this sense, the study of communication must always be the first stepping stone, but one that is now influenced and shaped in various ways by digital giants and media-as-industries. Similarly, critical authors have historically regarded capitalism as a system that cannot be ignored in a holistic social analysis. Sociologist Wolfgang Streeck has, for instance, asserted "that contemporary society cannot really be understood by a sociology that makes no reference to its capitalist economy" (2012, 1). In other words, the sociology of communications and media must inevitably include or address these two of the most fundamental social relations in its research. 

In line with these premises, the conference will feature a plenary round table on digital platforms and labour and plenary talks by critical scholars who have addressed the dynamic between communication and capitalism throughout their careers: 

Kylie Jarrett (University College Dublin, Ireland) 

Graham Murdock (Loughborough University, UK) 

and Slavko Splichal (University of Ljubljana, Slovenia). 

The Communication and Capital(ism) conference aims to bring together contributions that explore the unpredictable and unstable social terrain in the era of digital capitalism. It seeks to critically engage with these issues and their consequences by focusing on the role of social communication, media, and journalism. We are looking for theoretical and empirical submissions that may include, but are not limited to, the following topics: 

• Theoretical reflections on political economy and cultural studies; 
  
• The role of critique and criticality for the sociology of media; 
  
• Digital capitalism, imperialism and colonialism; 
  
• Digital platforms and tech giants; 
  
• Labour and platformisation of working conditions; 
  
• Capital, class, gender, and race; 
  
• Global media corporations and media-as-industries; 
  
• Capitalism and journalism; 
  
• Sociology of news; 
  
• The material and ideological impact of advertising; 
  
• Transformations in political communication; 
  
• Democracy and democratic transformations; 
  
• The public sphere; 
  
• (Re-)presentations in journalism and the media; 
  
• Possible alternatives to the existing political/economic malaise and digital capitalism. 

Abstract submission: 

Abstract submission deadline: extended until 15 April 2025 

Notification of selected abstracts: 15 May 2025 

Conference dates: 28-30 August 2025 

Abstracts should be sent to: Conference Organising Committee, 

rn18esasubmission@gmail.com 

Abstracts should be sent as an e-mail attachment (400-600 words including title, author name(s), email address(es), and institutional affiliation(s)). Please insert the words "ESA RN18 Submission" in the subject. Although we do not provide a template for the abstract submission, we expect abstracts that include a rationale, research question(s), theoretical and/or empirical methods applied, and potential results and implications. Each abstract will be independently reviewed by two members of the ESA RN18 Board based on the call for papers.

Limerick, Ireland

We are happy to announce that we have a permanent position on staff here in the Department of Media and Communication Studies in Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland.

The title may be confusing “Assistant Professor” but  the grade is that of “Lecturer”.  This is a higher level than the title used in the advertisement may show, it is not a junior position. The salary scale reflects that. It is €63,309 to €101,462.

The job specification and application form are available here: https://www.mic.ul.ie/about-mic/vacancies

The closing date is 22nd April.

September 29-October 2, 2024

Puchberg, Austria

Deadline: April 30, 2025

Join us at the first DCLead Salzburg School taking place from 29 September to 2 October 2025 in Puchberg, Austria!

This four-day PhD School invites early-stage researchers (PhDs and advanced MA students) to explore global perspectives on communication, sustainability, and social good. The programme includes workshops & academic feedback,  keynote talks, and excursions. It awards 5 ECTS credits, then working language is English. 

The application deadline for the DCLead Salzburg School is 30 April 2025. The application must include an abstract (3,000–6,000 characters), a motivation letter (up to 5,000 characters), and the details of a referee, including their email address.

Fee: € 490 / € 250 (based on currency strength; includes accommodation, meals, excursions)

Find more information on our homepage https://dclead.eu/ and apply now!

Helena Atteneder, Olaf Kühne, Timo Sedelmeier

Publisher: Springer, 2025

Link: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-80707-7

The book offers an interdisciplinary introduction to cartographic representations as multimedia constructs, drawing from media and communication studies, geography, and cartography. It addresses both theoretical foundations and practical applications, with examples from public discourse on climate change, COVID-19, and the war in Ukraine.

We hope this publication will be of interest to scholars working in media geographies, visual communication, and critical cartography.

Please let me know if you need any further details or a short blurb.

Thank you very much in advance – I’d greatly appreciate it!

Warm regards,

Helena Atteneder

October 30-31, 2025 

Stockholm, Sweden 

Deadline: May 1, 2025 

The conference aims to foster engaged debates about, and a comprehensive understanding of, challenges related to the quickly transforming algorithmic society, for media users across Europe. We welcome a wide range of approaches and look forward to discussions that will contribute to scientific analysis of our contemporary media world. 

Read more: https://www.sh.se/english/sodertorn-university/calendar/events/2025-10-30-ecrea-audience-and-reception-studies-2025 

Ipek A. Celik Rappas

Cornell University Press, 2025

Filming in European Cities explores the effort behind creating screen production locations. Ipek A. Celik Rappas accounts the rising demand for original and affordable locations for screen projects due to the growth of streaming platforms. As a result, screen professionals are repeatedly tasked with chores such as transforming a former factory in Istanbul to resemble a war zone in Aleppo, or finding a London street that evokes Barcelona. 

Celik Rappas highlights the pivotal role crew members play in transforming cities and locations into functional screen settings. Examining five European media capitals—Athens, Belfast, Berlin, Istanbul, and Paris—the book delves into the overlooked aspects of location-related screen labor and its ability to generate production value. Filming in European Cities demonstrates that in its perpetual quest for authentic filming locations, the screen industry extracts value from cities and neighborhoods, their marginalized residents, and screen labor, enriching itself through this triple exploitation. 

https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501779985/filming-in-european-cities/#bookTabs=1 

Please use code 09BCARD for 30% discount 

Media Industries, Media Geography, European Studies

Edited By: Nelson Ribeiro, Barbie Zelizer

ISBN 9781032756011, March 2025, Routledge

A critical and timely collection that argues for the centrality of propaganda in discussions about the contemporary media landscape and its informational ecosystems.

This book explores how “propaganda,” a foundational concept within media and communication studies, has recently been replaced by alternative terms (disinformation, misinformation, and fake news) that fail to capture the continuities and disruptions of ongoing strategic attempts to (mis)guide public opinion. Edited by Nelson Ribeiro and Barbie Zelizer, the collection highlights how these concepts must be understood as part of a long legacy of propaganda and not just as new phenomena that have emerged in the context of the digital media environment. Chapters explore the strategies and effects of propaganda through a variety of globally diverse case studies, featuring both democracies and autocratic regimes, and highlight how only by understanding propagandistic forms and strategies can we fully begin to understand how public opinion is being molded today by those who resort to deception and falsehood to gain or keep hold of power.

An important resource for students and scholars of media and communication studies and those who are studying and/or researching media and propaganda, media and power, disinformation, fake news, and political communication.

The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons [Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC BY-NC-ND)] 4.0 license.

Groningen University, Centre for Media and Journalism Studies

We’re happy to announce that we are taking applications for 3 fully funded positions at the Centre for Media and Journalism Studies at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands! 

The open PhD positions offer unique opportunities to work in an internationally recognized research centre and gain valuable research experience at a top-ranked European university. As a PhD candidate, you will develop your own research project in consultation with the supervisory team. You will conduct independent and original academic research and report results via peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations, and ultimately a PhD dissertation. The PhD thesis is to be completed within four years. You are also requested to teach. 

The Groningen Centre for Media and Journalism Studies conducts interdisciplinary research in the field of media and journalism studies. It aims to do cutting-edge research that addresses issues that are essential to understand processes of communication in an increasingly mediatized society. 

The positions will all be associated with the CMJS, with an expected start date in September 2025. Deadline for applications is 30 April 2025. 

Open positions:

Gendered Visual Disinformation

This PhD project investigates disinformation at the intersections of gender, visual communication, and political discourse. It studies how women politicians’ intersectional identities are targeted in false and misleading (visual, GenAI) content (e.g., deepfakes), and explores how such discourse poses new challenges for women’s political representation in democratic discourse and civic life. 

For more information: e.r.amit-danhi@rug.nl or m.gehrke@rug.nl  

For the full ad and application link: https://www.rug.nl/about-ug/work-with-us/job-opportunities/?details=00347-02S000B8ZP 

Uncovering Women’s Cultural Production in India’s Marathi Film Industry Archives

This PhD project investigates the representation and preservation of feminist and women’s cultural heritage within India's Marathi film industry archives. We are particularly interested in projects invested in studying the Marathi film industry post-independence, including any period between 1947-2025. This project aims to (a) address the gaps in archival material related to women's contributions to Marathi cinema and (b) explore how these representations have evolved and what they reveal about broader industrial and socio-cultural changes over time.

For more information: a.v.m.copeland@rug.nl or s.n.mehta@rug.nl  

For the full ad and application link: https://www.rug.nl/about-ug/work-with-us/job-opportunities/?details=00347-02S000B8YP 

Media literacy as resilience for Ukrainian refugees

This PhD project will study how Ukrainian refugee families in The Netherlands use and co-develop media literacy skills to cope with wartime information challenges. The project will involve ethnographic (including traditional and digital ethnography) work with Ukrainian refugees in The Netherlands, following their daily media use practices to develop a theoretical framework and practical tools for building resilience against disinformation and mediated trauma during war

For more information: o.pasitselska@rug.nl or a.neag@rug.nl

For the full ad and application link: https://www.rug.nl/about-ug/work-with-us/job-opportunities/?details=00347-02S000B8JP

September 11-12, 2025

Vilnius University, Lithuania

Deadline: May 18, 2025

Five years after the pivotal conference “Belarus 2020 and Beyond: Path Dependency or Break with the Past?”, the Institute of International Relations and Political Science of Vilnius University is hosting a new international conference to examine Belarus’s evolving political landscape in the face of continued repression, war, and shifting geopolitical situation. The event will take place at the Institute of International Relations and Political Science of Vilnius University on September 11-12, 2025.

The 2020 protests marked a defining moment in Belarusian history. However, in the years that followed, the Lukashenka regime intensified its authoritarian grip and aligned itself more closely with Russia’s war in Ukraine. This conference will critically assess the consequences of these developments, the transformation of the Belarusian state and society under deepening repression and co-option, and the changing geopolitical situation. The event will also address such topics as diaspora, exiled political leadership, and civil society.

Bringing together scholars, policymakers, and experts, this conference will explore the geopolitical struggle over Belarus, analysing Russia’s strategic influence and the EU’s policy responses in the situation of shifts in the US foreign policy. As Belarus remains at the intersection of regional instability and great-power politics, this conference aims to provide an in-depth analysis of its developments. Reflecting on five years after the mass protest in authoritarian Belarus and three years after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, what lessons have been learned?

The invitation extends to the researchers interested in Belarus, its domestic and foreign policies and working in the academic fields of area studies, comparative politics, international relations, security studies, economics, history, sociology, anthropology, cultural studies and related disciplines. Organisers suggest the following Conference topics, but proposals for papers on other topics related to the developments in Belarus and Belarusian diaspora after 2020 are also welcome:

Belarus in the current geopolitical situation: security and military threats

We invite submissions of papers on official Minsk’s foreign policy and Belarusians’ geopolitical orientations, as well as Russia and the EU’s responses to developments in Belarus amid shifts in US foreign policy. Contributions may explore hard and soft security issues, including military aspects of Russia-Belarus cooperation, security threats linked to energy and the Astravets nuclear power plant, and challenges related to disinformation and cyber security. Papers may also examine Belarus’s role in regional power struggles and its geopolitical future.

Belarusian diaspora and migration

We invite submissions of papers analysing issues related to Belarusian migration and diaspora, focusing on Belarusians in Lithuania in particular. Papers may examine the political, social, and economic dynamics of Belarusian migration, the role of the diaspora, exiled opposition and civil society in promoting democratic norms, and the relations between Belarusian migrants and host societies. Topics may include but are not limited to analysis of a post-2020 Belarusian diaspora in different countries, transnational networks, and the challenges Belarusians abroad face.

Ukraine, Belarus, and regional security: war’s impact and responses

We invite submissions examining Belarus’s role in Russia’s war against Ukraine, focusing on the Lukashenka regime’s support for the Kremlin and the Belarusian opposition and civil society’s solidarity with Ukraine. Papers may explore the geopolitical and security implications of Belarus’ alignment with Russia and its impact on regional stability. Additionally, we welcome analyses of how the war has shaped attitudes toward Belarusians, both in Ukraine and among other democratic nations, and growing security concerns linked to Belarus.

The Belarusian economy in a shifting geopolitical situation

We invite submissions of papers examining the economic situation in Belarus. Contributions may explore the impact of EU sanctions on Belarus in the situation of possible changes in the US sanctions policy. We welcome analyses of Russia-Belarus economic cooperation, including Moscow’s increasing economic leverage over the country and the risks of deeper economic absorption. Papers may address, but are not limited to, topics such as the structural challenges of the Belarusian economy, trade and energy dependencies, and the prospects for economic diversification.

Media and civil society in Belarus: resistance and cooption. Human rights, gender and inclusion

We invite papers examining the role of media and civil society in Belarus, focusing on resistance and, vice versa, state-led co-optation. We are interested in research on human rights, gender equality, and inclusion, which are both instrumentalised and actively suppressed by the authoritarian regime. Papers may explore media censorship, propaganda, disinformation, grassroots activism, civil society, and human rights.

Public administration, government, and governance in Belarus

We invite submissions of papers exploring public administration issues in Belarus and how democratic concepts and norms—such as good governance and transparency—are promoted, adapted, and manipulated in the authoritarian state. Papers might include but are not limited to analysis of civil service, public finances and budgeting, international development, and infrastructure programmes and projects in Belarus focused on governance issues.

The deadline for the paper submission is the 18th of May, 2025. Proposals have to be submitted in English by filling out the this form.

All proposals will undergo a selection procedure by the Conference Programme Committee. The Committee will send e-mail notifications of acceptance by the 2nd of June, 2025.

There is no Conference fee. The organisers will issue visa invitations if needed.

In-person conference participation is strongly encouraged. Remote online participation is allowed only under extraordinary circumstances. In such cases please contact belarusconference@tspmi.vu.lt.

November 3-7, 2025

Charles University, Czech Republic

Deadline: July 1, 2025

https://culcorc.fsv.cuni.cz/phd-course-on-discourse-theory/

Course coordinator and leader: Nico Carpentier

Course credits: 5 credits

Course location: Centrum Voršilská, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic

Contact person: Mazlum Kemal Dagdelen

COURSE BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE

The course aims to discuss two methods in the field of discourse studies: Discourse-theoretical analysis (DTA) and Discursive-material analysis (DMA). Both are grounded in so-called high theory, with discourse theory as its main starting point, but with elements of actor-network theory and new materialism. This course will start with an introduction to these theoretical models but will then move on to their analytical deployment in communication and media studies research. 

Special attention will be spent on the creation of a theory-grounded analytical model to guide the research. Apart from attending lectures, participants will be expected to participate in both theoretical and research-driven workshops.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

On completion of this course, successful students will be able to:

• have a deeper understanding of the field of discourse studies and, in particular, of its discourse-theoretical component; 
  
• have a deeper understanding of the theoretical relationship between the discursive and the material;
  
• know how to translate discourse-theoretical models into analytical practice through the use of the notion of the sensitising concept (applied to discourse theory and to discourse-theoretical rereading of other theories);
  
• set up an analytical model for a discourse-theoretical analysis and a discursive-material analysis.
  

TEACHING AND EVALUATION

The one-week course will be organised in 10 teaching slots, combining lectures and workshops. These workshops are partially theoretical (presenting an article or chapter) and partially research-driven (presenting an analytical model). 

A certificate (with a grade “Pass”) is given after 1) attendance of a minimum of 8 meetings, 2) a working group theoretical presentation, and 3) an individual case study presentation.

AVAILABLE PARTICIPANT SLOTS AND COSTS

A total number of 20 participant slots are available. The participation fee is 50 euros and only covers course attendance. Participants are required to pay themselves for their travel and accommodation costs, and all other expenses.

REGISTRATION

To register for this course, the following three documents have to be submitted:

• A motivation letter
  
• A brief description/abstract of the ongoing (PhD) research (including the current stage of the research) 
  
• A CV (including information about your university affiliation and your contact information)
  

Please use this form to submit your application. If you need assistance regarding registration, please get in touch with Mazlum Kemal Dağdelen, mazlum.dagdelen@fsv.cuni.cz

The deadline for the application submission is 01 July 2025; the applicants will be notified about the results by 31 July 2025. The accepted applicants will receive further details for registration and payment in due time.

COURSE READINGS

Main reading:

Carpentier, Nico (2017) The Discursive-Material Knot: Cyprus in Conflict and Community Media Participation. New York: Peter Lang.

Secondary readings:

Butler, Judith (1993) Bodies that matter. On the discursive limits of 'sex'. New York, London: Routledge.

Dolphijn, Rick, van der Tuin, Iris (2012) New materialism: Interviews and cartographies. Ann Arbor: Open humanities press.

Glynos, Jason, Howarth, David (2007) Logics of critical explanation in social and political theory. London and New York: Routledge.

Howarth, David (2000) Discourse. Buckingham, Philadelphia: Open University Press.

Howarth, David (2012) "Hegemony, political subjectivity, and radical democracy", in Simon Critchley and Oliver Marchart (eds.) Laclau: A critical reader. London: Routledge, pp. 256-276.

Howarth, David, Stavrakakis, Yannis (2000) “Introducing discourse theory and political analysis”, in David Howarth, Aletta J. Norval and Yannis Stavrakakis (eds.) Discourse theory and political analysis. Manchester: Manchester University Press, pp. 1-23.

Laclau, Ernesto, Chantal Mouffe (1985) Hegemony and Socialist Strategy: Towards a Radical Democratic Politics. London: Verso.

Latour, Bruno (2005) Reassembling the social. An introduction to Actor-network-theory. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Mouffe, Chantal (2005) On the Political. London: Routledge.

Philips, Louise, Jørgensen, Marianne W. (2002) Discourse Analysis as Theory and Method. London: Sage.

Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty (1988) "Can the subaltern speak?", in Cary Nelson and Lawrence Grossberg (eds.) Marxism and the Interpretation of Culture. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, pp. 271-313.

Torfing, Jacob (1999) New Theories of Discourse: Laclau, Mouffe, and Zizek. Oxford: Blackwell

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