ECREA WEEKLY digest ARTICLES

October 30 – 31, 2025

Faculty of journalism and mass communication, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”

Deadline (extended): September 30, 2025

THE FACULTY OF JOURNALISM AND MASS COMMUNICATION organizes a 6th International Scientific Conference that will be held on the 30th and 31st of October 2025 within the framework of the St. Kliment Ohridski Days on the video conference platform Teams.

The theme is:  The Changing Media: Professional. Regulatory and Ethical Challenges Facing Media and Communications in a Digital Environment

 We most politely invite the specialists in media and communications, as well as those who are involved with the problems of the media and communication environment and culture in their various dimensions and manifestations. We welcome the interdisciplinary approach to the contemporary challenges in the education and practice of journalism and to the communication activities as a whole.

See details following the link https://commed21.com/

Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg 

Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU), Germany, has the following open positions:

11 Doctoral Researchers in the Research Training Group: “The Experience of Stories in the Digital Age (TESDA)” (100% TV-L salary)

The positions will begin on April 1, 2026, and end on September 30, 2029. Each position is full-time. Remuneration will be based on the collective agreement for the public service of the German federal states (Tarifvertrag für den öffentlichen Dienst der Länder, TV-L).

Disciplines Involved: Communication Science, Psychology, Computer Science

The Research Training Group (RTG)

Humans spend a large part of life engaging with stories. Research from recent decades shows that stories have a strong influence on recipients, and scholars have identified experiential states that are characteristic of story engagement (e.g., narrative transportation, presence). Digital technologies and new media landscapes (e.g., artificial intelligence, virtual reality, social media, social robots) have introduced new challenges and opportunities to the field.

The aim of the RTG is to provide an interdisciplinary, collaborative research environment that enables doctoral researchers to conduct both disciplinary and interdisciplinary studies on stories in the digital realm. The challenges and opportunities of experiencing stories in the digital age will be explored across three main project areas:

1. Immersive virtual reality

2. New (para-)social encounters

3. Epistemic challenges

These three areas comprise a total of seven research projects. Two of the research projects focus on children.

Detailed information on the project areas and individual projects is available at https://www.uni-wuerzburg.de/grk3087/.

Your responsibilities

• Complete a doctoral thesis in your discipline within 3.5 years

• Actively participate in the joint activities of the RTG

• Contribute to the self-administration and self-organization of the RTG

Your qualifications

• Strong interest in pursuing an academic career

• An above-average master’s degree or equivalent in one of the relevant disciplines (exceptional candidates with a bachelor’s degree may be considered)

• Excellent command of English (all RTG activities will be conducted in English)

• Experience in empirical social science research; specific technical computer science/HCI skills for some positions

Application procedure

Your application should include:

a) A cover letter outlining your motivation to apply

b) A CV

c) A brief statement (maximum 2 pages) specifying which of the seven projects you are applying for and explaining your choice

d) Your BSc/MSc thesis and/or other scientific work

You may apply for one or more projects. Applicants with severe disabilities will be given preferential consideration when equally qualified. Please send your application and supporting documents, preferably by email, to jmu-grk.tesda@uni-wuerzburg.de. Review of applications begins on October 20, 2025, and will continue until the positions are filled.

Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Social Sciences

We are seeking two post-doctoral researchers to conduct ethnographic studies of game production for the ERC grant GAMEINDEX: Politics and aesthetics of indexical representation in digital games and VR. The project is headed by Dr. Jaroslav Švelch and located at Charles University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Institute of Communication Studies and Journalism, within the Prague Game Production Studies research group. The starting date is in 2026 and the duration of the position is 2 years, with the possibility of extension to 3 years.

The deadline for applications is 30 September 2025.

Project focus:

GAMEINDEX focuses on indexical representation in games – both as traces of real-life objects or people in the simulated worlds of digital games and VR, and as references to physical locations. Besides games themselves, we are interested in analyzing indexical techniques such as motion capture, 3D scanning, voiceover recording, and others. The post-doctoral researchers will primarily contribute to the work package that analyzes the use of indexical techniques within the production practices of video games and/or VR, and explores the transformation of real-life objects and people into in-game assets. The GAMEINDEX project presupposes that material will be collected in game/VR production studios using ethnographic methods (studio ethnographies, participants observation, interviews). Within the scope of the GAMEINDEX project, described here, the applicant is free to come up with their own research project with more specific research questions.

Required qualifications:

• A completed Ph.D. degree or a document from home university confirming that Ph.D. will be awarded by the starting date of contract
  
• Documented experience in social scientific or humanistic research of digital games or other media
  

Recommended qualifications:

• Experience with studio ethnographies or other ethnographic methods of researching game or media production
  
• A Ph.D. from fields such as media studies, film studies, anthropology, or sociology
  
• A solid record of publishing academic research in the English language
  
• Knowledge of contemporary game production and familiarity with indexical techniques (technical experience with them is welcome but not required)
  

Required materials:

• An academic CV and a list of published works
  
• Two references from within academia (include name, title, institution, email address, and phone number); an additional reference from the game industry may be provided if applicable. No letters needed.
  
• A copy of a Ph.D. certificate or an official record of planned/completed defence
  
• Research project – a 2,000 word description of your intended project, which should fit the aims and scope of GAMEINDEX but may reflect the applicant’s personal research interests and previous experience. The project should include: a theoretical background and positioning, research questions, methodology, a list potential case studies, risk analysis, and a rough work plan for the 2 years (Gantt chart not needed).
  
• Two samples of academic writing – ideally from published articles, dissertation, or conference papers
  

Practical arrangements:

The incoming applications will be screened by the GAMEINDEX team and suitable candidates will be invited for an online or in-person interview. Successful applicants are expected to relocate to Prague and are eligible for a relocation fee from the project budget.

Successful applicants will become full-time employees of Charles University, with benefits and a competitive salary commensurable with experience (details provided upon request).

Once employed, the researcher can be granted funding from GAMEINDEX to cover costs of fieldwork and conference travel.

Submissions:

Applicants may submit their applications by September 30, 2025, via e-mail to:

kariera@fsv.cuni.cz, with the subject: “Postdoc ERC GAMEINDEX”. Applicants may approach the PI Jaroslav Švelch at jaroslav.svelch@fsv.cuni.cz to ask questions about GAMEINDEX and the postdoc positions.

By responding to this advertisement, you consent to the Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University, located at Smetanovo nábřeží 6, Prague 1, Postal Code 110 01, processing your personal data for the purposes of the selection procedure. The processing of personal data is carried out in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR) and Act No. 110/2019 Coll., on the Processing of Personal Data.

IAMCR

Lead a global network advancing media and communication research. IAMCR, with 3,500+ members in 85 countries, seeks a full-time, remote Executive Director to run a small virtual secretariat, support specialised thematic groups, drive membership growth and funding, and help shape our flagship annual conference. The role suits a highly organised, self-directed leader experienced with professional/academic associations; fundraising skills are an asset. Limited travel (2 trips/year). English required; French/Spanish/Mandarin an asset. Start as early as January 2026. Salary commensurate with experience.

Apply by 17 October 2025 with: CV, cover letter, references (with contact details), and a brief vision statement. Interviews in November.

Full announcement & how to apply: https://iamcr.org/vacancy-ed

November 22, 2025

Online

Deadline: September 30, 2025

Dear colleagues,

From algorithmic cultures to participatory trends, from narrative futures to inclusive innovation – RE: TREND – Culture in Motion is calling for your contribution. 

We want to invite you to submit a communication proposal to the III Trends and Culture Management Colloquium, hosted by ICNOVA/iNOVA Media Lab in collaboration with CEAUL/Trends and Culture Management Lab.

This edition focuses on digital transformations and cultural practices in motion, encouraging critical and creative reflection on the signals of change shaping today’s culture. We particularly welcome submissions from students and early-career researchers. Participation is free of charge.

We invite abstracts (250–300 words) for 10-minute online presentations in Portuguese or English, addressing one or more of the following themes (but not limited to):

• Living Intelligence & Algorithmic Cultures

• Culture in Beta: Labs, Prototypes and Experiments

• Trendspotting, Semiotics and Brand Strategies

• Narrative Futures and Sociocultural Anticipation

• Datafied Culture and Inclusive Innovation

• Fandoms, Microcultures and Participatory Trends

• AI and Trend Research

• Communication, New Media and Trends

Date: Saturday, 22 November 2025

Format: Online

Keynote speaker to be announced soon

Submit your abstract: https://bit.ly/trendscolloquium

Deadline for submissions: 30 September 2025

We look forward to your contribution.

For more details, please visit: https://trendsandculture.fcsh.unl.pt

Best regards,

Ana Marta M. Flores & Organising Committee

April 9-10, 2026

Copenhagen, Denmark

Deadline: December 1, 2025

The research projects Algorithms, Data & Democracy (the ADD-project) and Strategic Communication and Artificial Intelligence (SCAI) are pleased to announce the Controversies of AI society conference to be held at Copenhagen Business School, Denmark, on 9-10 April 2026. We invite contributions across disciplines and hope to see you there.

With the accelerated implementation of algorithmic technologies, now broadly referred to as ‘artificial intelligence’ (AI), across all dimensions of society, it is imperative to consider how technological and societal developments shape each other: What social formations do AI systems invite? How do emerging uses of AI inform further developments across public, private, and third sectors? What social changes emerge out of these new technologies, and how are social dynamics embedded within their infrastructures? How do business models and consumption patterns enable some technological developments (and not others), and what relations of production and consumption are pushed by AI technologies? Can legal frameworks and political agendas influence the operations of the tech industry, and what are the alternatives to established actors, organizational forms, and ways of working? Can such alternatives influence technological developments, and how are public perceptions and collective actions informed by the material conditions of technological innovation, from venture capital through computing power to data centers? How, in short, might we understand the current constellation(s) of technocapitalism? 

To inquire into these issues, and the many that follow from them, please join us for an interdisciplinary conference on the controversies of AI society.

As no one perspective can fully capture the complex interplay between technology (in its various forms) and society (in its various forms), we invite participants to address this broad agenda from within, from outside, and from the intersections of relevant disciplines across the social sciences, humanities, and technical sciences. That is, investigations of the relationships and tensions that constitute AI society, such as, but not limited to:

• Civil society and democratic concerns
  
• Corporate strategies and business models
  
• Data, data sciences, and data practices in society
  
• Digital platforms and algorithmic publics
  
• Educational systems and approaches to learning
  
• Environmental sustainability and planetary crisis
  
• Ethics, (in)equality, and sovereignty in AI society
  
• Political imaginaries and forms of governance
  
• Public administration and state-citizen interactions
  
• Technological innovations and industry developments
  

Current trends and tendencies may be many things – consensual, collaborative, contentious, or even contradictory – but no matter how we see them, or what powers support them, they all help us see a little bit further. They may never fully line up, they may be messy, but this messiness is integral to how they exist in the world. For instance, some might argue that regulation stands in the way of innovation or that the interests of industry actors are always already misaligned with those of civil society. Others might claim that the interests of industry and democracy can be aligned only through policy, and that we need regulation to curb the excesses of unfettered competition. Yet others might claim that real technological innovation grows from grassroots communities, which need to be be politically and economically supported. Three competing narratives that contribute to the discussion, playing their part – along with multiple others – in narrating the messy whole of AI society, controversies and all.

In sum, we see the developments of what might be termed ‘AI society’ as by their very nature debatable and suggest such debates benefit from interdisciplinary perspectives. Consequently, we particularly welcome interdisciplinary contributions, but we also invite participants to shed light on ongoing practical and theoretical controversies from within specific disciplines – and from outside them. We wish for the conference to be an inclusive space for lively and robust debate, not only welcoming controversies but celebrating them.

We accept two forms of contributions: abstract-based presentations and full papers. Please, submit your abstract of no more than 500 words OR your paper of maximum 8000 words (including references) by 1 December 2025. We welcome both technical papers and position papers as well as conceptual, empirical, and methodological contributions. Author guidelines will be posted on this website shortly.

All submissions will undergo peer review, and a decision will be communicated by mid-January. Abstracts will be assessed on an accept/reject basis. Authors of full papers will receive reviewer comments, and those who are invited to participate, will be offered the chance of revising their manuscript towards publication in the conference proceedings. The proceedings be published through AAU OPEN.

Important dates:

• 1 November: Submission platform opens
  
• 1 December: Submission deadline (abstracts and papers)
  
• 19 January: Decisions (and reviews of full papers) sent to authors
  
• 9 March: Revised papers (for publication in the conference proceedings) due in camera ready format (guidelines on formatting to follow)
  
• 9-10 April: Conference

Read more here.

The International Journal of Communication (SPECIAL SECTION)

Deadline: December 1, 2025

Few technological developments spark more debate today than artificial intelligence. From promises of human advancement to fears of existential risk, AI generates a multitude of visions, conflicts, and societal debates. This “imaginative landscape of AI” goes beyond technical issues, encompassing political struggles, social movements, and ideas about the future of communication and society.

The International Journal of Communication is launching a Special Section on The Imaginative Landscape of AI: Visions, Positions, Conflicts. The editors of this Special Section, Andreas Hepp and Nathan Schneider, invite submissions that empirically explore emerging imaginaries, ideological positions, and conflicts surrounding AI.

Key deadlines:

• Abstracts (500 words) due December 1, 2025
  
• Notification of acceptance by January 1, 2026
  
• Full manuscripts due May 1, 2026
  
• Publication in spring 2027

More information and the submission form can be found here:

View the Call for Papers (PDF):https://comai.space/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/CfP-Imaginative-Landscape-of-AI.pdf

Link to the submission form: https://nc.uni-bremen.de/index.php/apps/forms/s/ctFFdYg5X3XKpeBBjoEQSMGm

Special issue/edited volume

Deadline: November 17, 2025

When does the experience of watching a film truly begin? Could it start long before the movie theatre or the living room, but on a backstreet, a remote field, or a historical site where a local film shoot is taking place? These questions invite us to rethink spectatorship not as something that only happens in front of a screen, but as a lived, spatial, and participatory experience embedded in the making of the movies.

Set-going is a novel concept referring to the practice of visiting filming locations during the principal photography of a movie. This practice opens a rich and overlooked field of interaction between audiences and production cultures. Set-going is not merely a variant of fan studies or media tourism; it is a socially embedded experience transforming how spectatorship, spatial belonging, and film culture are understood. Unlike film tourism or film-induced tourism, which typically involves visits to sound stage studios or iconic shooting locations after a film gains popularity, set-going centres on the live presence of non-professionals during the filmmaking process itself, making it an immediate, participatory, and temporally bound engagement with cinema (Şavk et al., 2025). 

Rooted in the New Cinema History (NCH) paradigm—which emphasises the social and cultural dimensions of cinema through research on audiences, exhibition practices, and the lived experience of film consumption—set-going extends this approach upstream into the production phase. NCH has redirected attention from film texts to the contexts in which films are distributed and viewed, as seen in studies of cinema-going habits, neighbourhood theatres, and audience memories (see Maltby, Biltereyst & Meers, 2011). Rather than focusing solely on how films are consumed, set-going shows that spectatorship begins before exhibition and is co-produced through on-site encounters among publics, places, and industry labour. Set-going thus offers a fresh perspective on how cinematic meaning and participation are shaped not only in the theatre but also on the set.

This perspective resonates with and seeks to extend several key strands of media and cinema scholarship. Studies of production cultures have shown how the backstage dynamics of filmmaking reveal broader industrial reflexivities and critical practices (Caldwell, 2008), while research in spatial media theory has foregrounded the significance of place in the experience and negotiation of media (Jansson & Falkheimer, 2006; Reijnders, 2011). The concept of set-going also builds on work in audience memory and cultural geography that emphasises spectatorship as an embodied, affective, and place-bound activity (Kuhn, 2002). At the same time, it offers a necessary counterpoint to discussions of fan cultures and participatory media (Jenkins, Ford & Green, 2013; Hills, 2002) by focusing on forms of engagement that may be informal, improvised, or locally rooted rather than networked and transnational. By bridging these bodies of work, set-going enables a rethinking of how film cultures are lived, co-produced, and remembered across time and space.

Certain commonalities emerge across film industries and countries where set-going has developed as a component of cinema culture. Foremost among these is the practice of shooting on real locations rather than exclusively in sound stage studios. The partial or complete use of real settings is a key factor enabling local residents to become set-goers. Secondly, these cinema cultures tend to emphasise locality, making set-going a critical practice through which audiences engage with films at a community or regional level. When local identity holds significant cultural and economic value within a film culture, set-going gradually shifts from being tolerated to being a desired phenomenon. Thirdly, cinemas where set-going is prevalent often operate under lower-budget and more pragmatic production modes, rather than adhering strictly to high-end industrial standards. On-location shooting environments typically do not allow for, nor enforce, absolute control, thus making it difficult to prevent the presence of set-goers.  

We invite proposals that explore the concept of set-going across different cinematic traditions, historical periods, and geographic contexts. Submissions from scholars working in areas such as cinema history, fan studies, film tourism, production cultures, media studies, urban history, and cultural geography are especially encouraged.

We welcome abstracts on topics including, but not limited to, the following:

• Historical and contemporary case studies of set-going in various national and regional cinema contexts;
  
• Theoretical engagements with set-going as a form of audience-making, participatory spectatorship, or informal labour;
  
• Explorations of how set-going intersects with class, gender, place, memory, and the politics of access;
  
• Theoretical and cultural connections between set-going, fan studies and film tourism;
  
• Archival or oral history sources that offer insight into everyday interactions at film sets;
  
• Set-going practices in the context of TV productions and platform series;
  
• Set-going as an area of encounter and conflict between film professionals, the public and local authorities;
  
• Transnational comparisons of production visibility and on-location shooting within the context of set-going practices;
  
• Strategic use of set-going activities as part of marketing and publicity. 

Please send your abstracts of 300-500 words along with short bios (max. 100 words for each author) to serkan.savk@ieu.edu.tr  no later than November 17, 2025. These abstracts do not need to follow a rigid format, but are encouraged to include:

• A short and precise description of your proposed subject;
  
• Relevant methodological tools and resources are required for examining the subject;
  
• Current state of the proposed research: Have you already begun working on this topic, or is it something you relate to after reading the call but have not yet started? (This information will not prejudice the evaluation of your abstract);
  
• Tentative research plan (where necessary);
  
• 2-3 key references. 

Based on the number and content of proposals, this publication project will take the form of either a special issue of a reputable journal indexed by Scopus and/or Web of Science or an edited volume by a recognised academic or university publisher. Word count and citation format of the final manuscripts will be decided accordingly. Accepted papers will go through the peer-review process required by the journal/publisher. Please note that editorial acceptance does not guarantee publication. 

Timeline

• Abstract submission:  November 17, 2025
  
• Notification of acceptance:  December 22, 2025
  
• Full paper submission:   July 6, 2026 (peer-review process starts)
  

Scholars who are interested in rethinking where and how cinema is experienced and how such encounters might be written into the broader story of film culture are warmly encouraged to respond. No payment from the autors will be required for this publication. 

Editors

• Serkan Şavk
  

Gulf University for Science and Technology

Izmir University of Economics

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Serkan-Savk 

• Aydın Çam
  

Çukurova University

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Aydin-Cam

Works cited

Caldwell, J. T. (2008). Production culture: Industrial reflexivity and critical practice in film and television. Duke University Press.

Hills, M. (2002). Fan cultures. Routledge.

Jansson, A., & Falkheimer, J. (Eds.). (2006). Geographies of communication: The spatial turn in media studies. Nordicom.

Jenkins, H., Ford, S., & Green, J. (2013). Spreadable media: Creating value and meaning in a networked culture. NYU Press.

Kuhn, A. (2002). An everyday magic: Cinema and cultural memory. I.B. Tauris.

Maltby, R., Biltereyst, D., & Meers, P. (Eds.). (2011). Explorations in new cinema history: Approaches and case studies. Wiley-Blackwell. 

Reijnders, S. (2011). Places of the imagination: Media, tourism, culture. Ashgate.

Şavk, S., Çam, A., & Şanlıer, İ. (2025). Set-going chronicles: Rethinking Turkish cinema through the lens of new cinema history. Journal of Cinema and Media Studies, 64(2), 126–147. 

December 10, 2025

MediaCity, University of Salford, Manchester, UK

Deadline: September 28, 2025

Conference Convenors

• Pete Deakin
  
• Rania Kosmidou

Keynote Speaker: Professor Kirsty Fairclough, School of Digital Arts (SODA), MMU 

Call for papers

In the 1970s Anglo-American feminist scholars in a variety of disciplines began to explore the problematic representations of women in Hollywood cinema, issues and concerns over female spectatorship, as well as the history of women’s cinema in Hollywood and beyond. Two seminal works Marjorie Rosen’s 1973 Popcorn Venus: Women, Movies and the American Dream, and Molly Haskell’s 1974 From Reverence to Rape: The Treatment of Women in the Movies, pointed to stereotypical portrayals of women mostly in Hollywood films. The conclusions were epitomised by Molly Haskell when she said, “You’ve come a long way baby … and it’s all been downhill.” Meanwhile in Britain several female scholars developed ideas grounded in psychoanalysis, semiotics and Marxist ideology. Claire Johnston (1973) discussed how cinema can construct a particular view of reality and stereotypical images of women from a semiotic point of view and proposed instead a counter cinema; Laura Mulvey (1975) used psychoanalysis to show how the female character in classical Hollywood cinema is made passive and powerless, is there to-be-looked-at, and proclaimed that there is no place for a female spectator in classical narrative cinema (ideas that she revisited later on). Others were not so pessimistic. Miriam Hansen (1986) demonstrated how the male character on screen can also be the object of desire for a female spectator; Johnston (1975) introduced the concept of masquerade in relation to female spectatorship, a notion explored further by Mary Ann Doane (1982/1991) who discussed masquerade not as cross-dressing, but as a mask of femininity among others. Such accounts raised questions about female spectatorship and the male gaze. They also questioned the female gaze and the male body. 

By end of the millennium, for cultural commentators like Susan Faludi (1999), it was curiously Western masculinity that had apparently reached an apocalyptic state. Its traditional markers – strength, a breadwinner status, social dominance, emotional self-efficacy and regulation – had been pathologised. In the wake of this sociocultural evolution, old jobs were lost; so-called masculine spaces once filled with miners, dockers and engineers were left barren or converted to penthouse homes and middle-management sites for the newly saturating white collar (so went the rhetoric), while the modern western male was increasingly under pressure to conform to commercial cultures of style, celebrity, and consumption. Ros Coward (1999) asked: when looking back on the achievements of feminism, “Is it now holding us back?” Is it demonising men and denying them the right to understanding and equality in a world that is perhaps far harsher for them than ever before? 

Many years later, and in wake of the #MeToo Movement and the current sociopolitical climate that has seen Andrew Tate’s brand of hypermasculinity, misogyny and anti-feminism poll favourably in and beyond the ‘manosphere’, we believe there is an urgent need to re-examine gender in contemporary cinema. From researchers and scholars, from outreach initiatives to practice-based research among others, we welcome a diversity of approaches from a broad variety of perspectives on how film is grappling with contemporary portraits of gender in cinema in and beyond Hollywood.

Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• The status of cinematic masculinity nowadays
  
• The status of cinematic femininity nowadays
  
• Challenging male or female dominance on screen
  
• The female spectator then and now
  
• The female gaze then and now
  
• The male gaze then and now
  
• The male spectator then and now
  
• The more recent appropriation of cinematic texts into the “manosphere” (by individuals such as Andrew Tate) and/or far- and alt-right communities
  
• Gender equality in contemporary cinema
  
• Gender in cinema and identity formation
  
• Gender bending in cinema
  
• Impact of gender stereotypes on screen
  
• The evolution of gender and sexual diversity in cinema
  
• Toxic masculinity as a cinematic theme
  
• Gender and empowerment on screen
  
• Gender and social change on screen
  
• Women’s and/or men’s weaknesses on screen
  
• Women’s and/or men’s strengths on screen
  
• The role of women filmmakers in shaping cinematic discourse
  
• The role of men filmmakers in shaping cinematic discourse

Please submit abstracts for individual papers (max 250 words) with presentation title, up to 5 key words, your full name, affiliation, 50 word biography, and email address to conferencesalford@gmail.com

Submission deadline: 28 September 2025. 

Notification of acceptance of papers: 5 October 2025.

We support the presentation of practice-as-research, with papers and screenings. We also welcome abstracts from early career and postgraduate researchers.

All or a selection of papers will be considered for publication.

No Registration Fee.

Nordicom Review (Special Issue)

Deadline: September 15, 2025

Franziska Marquart (University of Copenhagen) and Xénia Farkas (DIGSUM, Umeå Univesity) invite scholars from the fields of media, communication, political science, and related disciplines to submit extended abstracts for a special issue of Nordicom Review. This issue will explore the evolving landscape of visual political communication in the Nordic countries, focusing on comparative aspects, content, and effects of visual politics in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden.  

Editors:

Franziska Marquart (University of Copenhagen) 

Xénia Farkas  (DIGSUM, Umeå University)

Contact:

Franziska Marquart: fm@hum.ku.dk

Xénia Farkas: xenia.farkas@umu.se

Important dates:

• Deadline for extended abstracts: 15 September 2025
  
• Invitation to submit full paper: 3 October 2025
  
• Full paper submission: 9 February 2026
  
• Peer review processing: Spring 2026
  
• Expected publication (Open Access): Early 2027
  

Background and aim

Visuals have always been central to political communication, shaping how political actors convey messages and how audiences interpret political realities (e.g., Graber, 1988; Lanzetta et al., 1985; Masters et al., 1986). Research has long recognised the unique cognitive and emotional power of visual information, acknowledging that images are processed and remembered more efficiently than verbal communication (e.g., Graber, 1996) and can influence political attitudes and behaviours (Grabe & Bucy, 2009). Despite early recognition of its importance, visual political communication has only gained sustained scholarly attention in recent decades (Farkas, 2023; Schill, 2012). 

In addition, the rise of digital media platforms has fundamentally transformed the visual dimension of political discourse (Lilleker, 2019; Marquart, 2023). Political narratives are increasingly constructed and contested through images, memes, videos, and data visualizations. These developments call for research that do not only consider the general content, strategies, and effects of visual political communication, but also account for their broader societal embeddedness and implications for trust, engagement, and democratic resilience.

In the Nordic context, where political systems are marked by high levels of institutional trust, transparency, and democratic participation, visual political communication takes on distinctive characteristics. While the region is often associated with social cohesion and stable governance, it is not immune to political polarisation, populist rhetoric, and digital disinformation. Recent years have seen intensifying debates on immigration, identity, and climate change – all heavily mediated through visual content. At the same time, the widespread use of social media has enabled new forms of political expression by citizens, activists, and alternative media actors.

This special issue invites contributions that explore how visual political communication unfolds across the Nordic countries in this evolving digital landscape, assessing the production, spread, and impact of visual content across a range of contexts – from electoral campaigns and protest movements to policy advocacy and state communication. We are particularly interested in how visual strategies interact with core democratic values in the region, such as openness, inclusivity, and (political and media) trust. We welcome empirical studies, theoretical contributions, and methodological innovations that engage with visual political communication from diverse perspectives. Comparative and longitudinal designs are especially encouraged, as they can illuminate both shared trends and country-specific dynamics shaped by cultural, regulatory, and technological factors. 

Ultimately, the aim is to deepen our understanding of how visuals contribute to the transformation of political communication in the Nordic region and what this means for democracy in a digital age.

Submissions may address, but are not limited to, the following themes:

• Visual strategies in political campaigning: The use of imagery, video, and branding by parties, candidates, and campaign teams during elections and referenda
  
• Visual activism and protest culture: How activists, movements, and civil society actors use visual media to mobilise, resist, and advocate for change
  
• Memes, infographics, and short-form videos: Emerging visual formats on platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and X, and their role in shaping political discourse
  
• Influencers as political communicators: Exploring how digital influencers shape political discourse through visual content, for example, through agenda-setting, issue advocacy, or political endorsements, particularly in addressing youth audiences
  
• Personalisation and performance: The visual representation of political leaders, including aesthetics of authenticity, relatability, trust, and authority
  
• Disinformation and visual manipulation: The role of images and videos in spreading misleading or false political content, including deepfakes and edited footage
  
• Algorithmic visibility: How platform logics and recommender systems shape the prominence and reach of political visuals
  
• Public service and institutional communication: Visual strategies employed by state institutions and public broadcasters to engage citizens and maintain trust
  
• Crisis communication: Studying the visual strategies employed during political conflicts, economic, environmental, or health crises, and their effectiveness in managing public perception and behaviour
  
• Ethics and accountability: Addressing ethical considerations in the creation and dissemination of political visuals, including issues of consent, manipulation, and the responsibilities of content creators

We welcome submissions employing a wide range of theoretical frameworks and methodological approaches, including (but not limited to) qualitative visual analysis, content analysis, computational methods, discourse analysis, and mixed-method designs. Interdisciplinary perspectives from political science, media and communication studies, sociology, visual culture, and digital humanities are particularly encouraged. 

Procedure

Please send an extended abstract of no more than 750 words to both fm@hum.ku.dk and xenia.farkas@umu.se by 15 September 2025. The abstract should outline the main theme and approach of the intended paper and mention how it fits with the overall theme of the special issue.  

Authors invited to submit a full manuscript (6,000–8,000 words, excl. references) will be notified by e-mail when all abstracts are assessed by the editors. Also, authors who are invited to submit a full paper will be invited to an online seminar where the rationale for the special issue and the steps that follow will be discussed in more detail. All submissions should be original works and must not be under consideration by other publishers. 

 After the initial submission and review process, manuscripts that are accepted for publication must adhere to our guidelines upon final manuscript delivery. You may choose to use our templates to assist you in correctly formatting your manuscript.

Read the full instructions for authors and download a manuscript template

References

Farkas, X. (2023). Visual political communication research: A literature review from 2012 to 2022. Journal of Visual Political Communication, 10(2), 95–126. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1386/jvpc_00027_1

Grabe, M. E., & Bucy, E. P. (2009). Image bite politics: News and the visual framing of elections. Oxford University Press. https://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195372076.001.0001/acprof-9780195372076 

Graber, D. A. (1988). Processing the news: How people tame the information tide (2nd ed). Longman.

Graber, D. A. (1996). Say it with pictures. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 546, 85–96. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1048172

Lanzetta, J. T., Sullivan, D. G., Masters, R. D., & McHugo, G. J. (1985). Emotional and cognitive responses to televised images of political leaders. In S. Kraus, & R. E. Perloff (Eds.), Mass media and political thought. Sage. 

Lilleker, D. G. (2019). The power of visual political communication: Pictorial politics through the lens of communication psychology. In A. Veneti, D.

Jackson, & D. G. Lilleker (Eds.), Visual political communication (pp. 37–51). Springer.

Marquart, F. (2023). Video killed the Instagram star: The future of political communication is audio-visual. Journal of Visual Political Communication, 10(1), 49–57. https://doi.org/10.1386/jvpc_00024_1 

Masters, R., Sullivan, D., Lanzetta, J., Mchugo, G., & Englis, B. (1986). The facial displays of leaders: Toward an ethology of human politics. Journal of Social and Biological Systems, 9(4), 319–343. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-1750(86)90190-9 

Schill, D. (2012). The visual image and the political image: A review of visual communication research in the field of political communication. Review of Communication, 12(2), 118–142. https://doi.org/10.1080/15358593.2011.653504 

About the publisher  

Nordicom is a centre for Nordic media research at the University of Gothenburg, supported by the Nordic Council of Ministers. Nordicom publishes all works under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) licence, which allows for non-commercial, non-derivative types of reuse and sharing with proper attribution. All works are published Open Access and are available to read free of charge and without requirement for registration. There are no article processing charges (APC), and authors retain copyright.  

Nordicom Review is an international peer reviewed journal devoted to new Nordic media and communication research. In 2023, Nordicom Review recorded a Journal Impact Factor of 2.0, a CiteScore of 2.8, and an H-Index of 23.

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Read the call for papers here: https://www.nordicom.gu.se/en/latest/news/call-papers-visual-political-communication-nordic-region-strategies-narratives-and