May 21, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm

Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre, Australia

Submission Deadline: January 31, 2020

Organizers: Pablo J. Boczkowski, Eddy Borges-Rey, Miriam Hernández, Ezequiel Korin, Eugenia Mitchelstein, Magdalena Saldaña & María Celeste Wagner

This preconference aims to examine the production, distribution, and consumption of digital media in Latin America. It is a follow up to the pre-conference on Digital Journalism in Latin America that was part of the 2019 annual meeting of the International Communication Association. For this second edition, we have broadened the scope to include all digital media practices, not just journalism, to create a platform that can showcase the richness of a wider variety of relevant research in and about Latin America.

As both digital media production and consumption have featured increasingly more prominently in the information landscape of Latin America, it is worth inquiring into whether the specificity of Latin America and its culture and institutions might entail differences with digital media as it is constructed and appropriated in other parts of the world. These are some possible topics (suitable additional topics will also be considered).

• Latin American journalism has been described as less professionalized and less independent than in more stable democracies (de Albuquerque, 2005; Hallin and Papathanassopoulus, 2002; Hughes, 2006). How have these two long-standing features affected the practices of online news production and the self-perception of reporters?
• Misinformation and fake news have become a hot topic in the region, especially during the presidential elections in Mexico, Chile, and Brazil. What factors affect the spread of false information in digital environments, and how does it compare to the spread of fake news we have observed in the Global North?
• Political communication in the region has become more polarized over the past couple of years. How does this trend contrast with comparable trends in other regions of the world?
• Social movements to fight gender-based violence, such as #NiUnaMenos, have embraced the potential of digital media to self-organize and have their voices heard. How are these practices? How do these practices and results compare to other social movements outside of Latin America?
• The ongoing migration of large swaths of Latin American populations has favored the adoption of peer-to-peer networks, such as WhatsApp, and social media platforms, such as Twitter or Facebook, to maintain and actualize familial relationships and, more generally, a sense of belonging to the countries of origin in Latin America. How do these practices redefine the social dynamics, both in the country of origin and in the country of destination? How are challenges and opportunities articulated in the use of digital media among Latin American migrants?

The keynote speaker will be Ingrid Bachmann, Associate Professor in the School of Communications at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.

Information about submission:

Authors should submit an extended abstract of no more than 500 words (excluding references) no later than 16:00 UTC, January 31st, 2020. The following is the link to the submission form: https://forms.gle/ntdZqptWXvzZXNGx5

Authors will be notified about whether their respective abstract has been accepted by February 15th, 2020.

Attendance to the preconference has a USD 25.00 fee.

If you have any other questions or concerns, please send an e-mail to: icapreconflatam@gmail.com