ECREA WEEKLY digest ARTICLES

Liverpool University

Deadline: February 15, 2019

PhD Exploring The Future of Mixed Reality for Immersive Entertainment Immersive Technologies, such as AR, VR and MR, are continuing to transform the way we can engage in entertainment experiences. From television programmes and documentaries that you can literally walk into, to cinematic experiences where you can become a part of the narrative, to games that enable you to interact with your environment in creative ways. The narrative possibilities for combining the real and virtual are seemingly endless for media storytellers.

This blending of physical and digital worlds presents a number of challenges for content makers. From thinking about the ways that we might spatially engage with an interface or character, to using games engines and data to dynamically trigger and render content, to creating new opportunities and spaces to experience stories in location-based and at home entertainment.

This practice-based PhD* will be exploring this future, working between the Liverpool Screen School and the Department of Computing in the Faculty of Engineering at LJMU and our network of industry professionals across games, film, documentary and television.

You will be making and testing prototypes and speculative design ideas and concepts. You should have an interest in the future of spatial computing, mixed reality, augmented reality and immersive technology and ideas for how it could transform documentary, fiction or other forms of moving image.

Questions/Areas you might explore are:

• What are the future possibilities for the broadcast, film and games industries in adopting mixed reality? And how might this be appropriate for specific audiences
  
• What are the possibilities for narrative when it interacts with you and your environment, in both at home and out of home contexts?
  
• What might mixed reality cinema or television entertainment look like in the future?
  
• What are the User-Experience Design Challenges in developing Spatial User Experiences?
  

You will have access to a wide variety of facilities including the new Liverpool Immersive Experience Lab (LIVELab) and the content production facilities and resources in the Screen School. This includes facilities such as green screen film studios, mixed reality and augmented headsets, volumetric creation tools, cameras, content creation software and games engines, UX design tools and emotional measurement facilities.

There will also be opportunities to engage with our industry networks across games, film, television and the growing immersive sector in the region.

We are primarily looking for someone with strong conceptual and realisation abilities and an interest in the future of Mixed Reality and Augmented Reality. You should also have a background in either games development, immersive experiences, animation, 3d modelling, film, design or digital arts. Although we are open to interested candidates from a range of other disciplines.

In the first instance, please send an expression of interest and a brief outline of the area you would like to focus on to p.j.woodbridge@ljmu.ac.uk as soon as possible, and by 15th February 2019 at the latest. We will then look to working with you on the proposal which needs to be submitted by Monday 4th March 2019.

*PhDs can either be fully funded scholarships including stipend and fees, or fees only, they are offered on a competitive basis. For more details about the terms please see this link.

Deadline: March 1, 2019

The Centre for Media, Communication and Information Research (ZeMKI) at the University of Bremen is offering a 3-year PhD position at the newly established Computational Communication and Democracy (CCD) Lab. The PhD student will work with the lab director, Prof. Yannis Theocharis on the thematic area Digital Media and Democracy: Challenges and Opportunities

Description of the position

Duration: 3 years

Starting date: April 1, 2019 or soon as possible thereafter

Remuneration is based on grade E13 TV-L (50% of a full-time position) of the German federal employee scale (an increase to 100% is possible depending on application for external project funding)

General description of the position:

The PhD student will be embedded in the newly established CCD Lab, a research-oriented environment within the interdisciplinary ZeMKI of the University of Bremen. The research area Digital Media and Democracy: Challenges and Opportunities focuses on explaining how digital media are transforming the quality of democracy, concentrating on issues such as uncivil behaviour, the activities of countercultures, new forms of political participation and representation, misinformation and exposure to news or social media content in general. The PhD student will be actively involved in the research activities of the CCD Lab and assist in the evolution of its research agenda and research output. It is expected that the PhD student will be an active contributor to the interdisciplinary intellectual environment of the ZeMKI. For more information about the Lab and ZeMKI please see below.

Description of research duties. The PhD student will support the Lab director in the development of the research area. This involves providing assistance with data collection and analysis, coordination of existing, and development of new projects for the acquisition of third-party funding, carrying out administrative tasks related to the Lab’s operation (e.g. coordination of student research assistants) and involvement in the Lab’s publication output. The PhD student is expected to develop and carry out her/his own PhD project related to the broader research area.

Description of teaching duties: The position involves 2 hours of teaching per week.

Essential qualifications

• Master’s in Media and Communication, Political Science, Computer Science, Sociology, or related disciplines
  
• Skills in quantitative methods
  
• Skills in computational methods (a focus on text-as-data methods – especially automated text analysis and machine-learning – is a plus)
  
• Familiarity with, or willingness to build methodological expertise on, network analysis
  
• Experience with social media data analysis is desirable
  
• Interest in political communication
  
• Command of R (experience with Python is a plus)
  
• Strong command of English
  

The University of Bremen intends to increase the proportion of women in science and therefore urges women to apply. Handicapped applicants with the same professional and personal suitability are given priority. Applications from people with a migration background are encouraged. Candidates who already hold a PhD degree will not be considered.

For any questions please contact Prof. Dr. Yannis Theocharis at yannis.theocharis@uni-bremen.de

Application

The application should include the following documents:

A letter of motivation (no longer than 2 pages) that outlines your substantive research and methodological interests. Please describe why you believe your profile fits with the main objectives and mission of the CCD Lab

• CV
  
• A copy of your academic certificates
  
• A writing sample (research paper, publication, or Master’s thesis)
  
• Names of two referees
  

Please send your application including the reference number A4/19 until 01/03/2019 to:

Universität Bremen

Zentrum für Medien-, Kommunikations- und Informationsforschung (ZeMKI)

z.H. Frau Denise Tansel

Postfach 33 04 40

28334 Bremen

Germany

or as PDF via Email (single file) at: dtansel@uni-bremen.de

The employment is fixed-term and serves the scientific qualification, governed by the Act of Academic Fixed-Term Contract, §2 (1) (Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz). Therefore, candidates may only be considered for appointment if they still have the respective qualification periods available in accordance with § 2 (1) WissZeitVG.

About the Computational Communication and Democracy Lab

The Lab’s substantive research agenda is driven by the idea that the proliferation of digital media opens up new avenues for social and political interaction that have radical effects on democratic processes: participation, organisation, representation. As such, digital communication offers opportunities, but also poses enormous challenges that fundamentally affect the quality of our democracies. Relying on developments in the field of computational social science as a point of departure, the Lab’s is also interested in methods through which new types of digital information can be processed and repurposed for studying a variety of social and political phenomena enabled by digital technologies. The lab has two main goals. First, to lead research on different but interdependent substantive topics for understanding, the social and political impact of digital communication and address methodological and epistemological issues related to conceptualisation, operationalisation, measurement and inference. Second, to offer BA, Masters, and PhD students a path for specialisation in computational and data science methods, with applications to communication and media research.

About the Centre for Media, Communication and Information Research (ZeMKI)

As an inter-faculty research institute, the Centre for Media, Communication and Information Research (ZeMKI) bundles research activities at the University of Bremen in the area of media and communicative change regarding a broad range of cultural, social, organisational and technological context fields. The research institute is committed to interdisciplinary cooperation, integrating researchers from the areas of media and communication studies, cultural studies, information management and media pedagogics. In addition to their research activities, ZeMKI members are active in the various media related study programmes at the University of Bremen. The ZeMKI oversees the profile-building research group "Communicative figurations of mediatized worlds" of the University of Bremen. The research group has been supported as a "Creative Unit" by the institutional strategy "Ambitious and Agile" of the University of Bremen funded within the frame of the Excellence Initiative by the German Federal and State Governments.

An edited volume comissioned by Palgrave

Deadline: February 25, 2019

If you are working on this or a similar topic, please consider submitting an abstract. The deadline is tight, February 25 for a 500 words abstract and March 31 the chapters.

To find out more, get in touch at toub.fox@wlv.ac.uk. 

Topos

Deadline: June 15, 2019

We invite papers that address the changes of human subjects – their bodies and selfhood, the modes of private and public interaction – in the light of various technological and institutional innovations in medicine occurred over the past few decades. The researches are encouraged to pay particular attention to integration and dissemination of the latest biotechnologies within the medical sector (locally and globally) and to the effects they have on existential experience, moral judgement and necessity of legal regulation. Similarly, we are interested in the changes of patients’ awareness, and also in the self-reflection of medical community in regard to gradual liberalization of public life and cultural globalization in the post-Soviet countries.

Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• 4P Medicine: social prospects and ethical frictions,
  
• Boundaries between treatment and enhancement,
  
• Redefinition of “death” and “dying” in the age of new medical technologies
  
• De-stigmatization of oncology patients,
  
• “Neurochemical selves”: the spread of antidepressants use as social and anthropological problem,
  
• Spread and reglamentation of assisted reproductive technologies in the post-Soviet societies
  
• “Narrative turn” in medicine: results/prospects of application in Western and Eastern European contexts
  
• Choice vs. care: alternative logics of interaction between doctors and patients in biomedicine
  

Here you can find Author Guidelines and Submission Preparation Checklist: http://journals.ehu.lt/index.php/topos/about/submissions.

To make your submission, please, register at the web-site of the Topos Journal here http://journals.ehu.lt/index.php/topos/login and submit your article via “Make a Submission” button. In case of any questions, please contact journal’s academic secretary Kseniya Shtalenkova on: mailto:journal.topos@ehu.lt.

April 11-12, 2019

Utrech University

Deadline: February 15, 2019

This annual conference is aimed at research-oriented MA students and PhD candidates from all (sub)disciplines of the humanities from both Dutch research institutions and comparable institutions abroad, and is held at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands.

For this year’s edition What’s the Point?, we invite contributions from MA’s and PhD’s from all these disciplines on the twinned issues of Impact and the Future of the Humanities. Prospective contributors should send a 200-300 word abstract with a short biography to whatsthepoint@uu.nl by 15 February 2019.

For full details of the Call for Papers: https://hgsc.sites.uu.nl/call-for-papers/

For general information on the conference: https://hgsc.sites.uu.nl/

Contact us: https://hgsc.sites.uu.nl/contact/ or whatsthepoint@uu.nl.

Deadline: February 20, 2019

Permanence, replicability, scalability and searchability: these four affordances properties of networked publics have become foundational to how scholars think about internet content (boyd 2008).

Ten years later, these affordances still apply to much of the content produced and circulated within social media. However, online spaces seem to be heading towards a more circumscribed and unsteady form of publicness, as materials are less permanent, less searchable, and, for researchers, more difficult to scale and replicate (e.g.: closed Facebook groups, Whatsapp group chats, Telegram channels, and the ephemeral contents of Snapchat and Instagram Stories). Along with recent platform “lockdowns” that have led some authors to talk about a “post API era”, this trend toward reduced access to online materials points out the need to discuss the impacts of these transformations on the future of internet studies.

The first AoIR Flashpoint Symposium seeks to investigate platform-driven changes and emergent practices of everyday-life content production occurring “below the radar”, or outside of previous standards of visibility and accessibility, thus calling into question theoretical, methodological and ethical developments in internet studies.

The #AoIR Flashpoint Symposium 2019 welcomes contributions that address these themes, including but not limited to the following questions:

• How do ethnographic and qualitative methods allow us to study such spaces?
  
• How have quantitative methods been utilized to study these environments – and with the closure of APIs, what new methods have emerged?
  
• To what extent, and for whom, is scraping viable in a “post-API era”?
  
• What ethical questions arise in relation to inclusion in semi-private spheres?
  
• How do these spheres specify and connect to public discourse?
  
• How might we approach questions of data validity and representativeness even as it becomes increasingly difficult to define the target universe of these conversations?
  

Proposals for papers and/or posters should be in the form of a title and 500 word abstract. Please include information on authors, institutions, and titles (these will be removed for the blind review process). Submissions are due by 20 February 2019.

All submissions should be emailed to: ymposiasubmissions@aoir.org

Registration Details will be available very soon!

Please email symposia@aoir.org with any questions.

Location

Room D1 – Palazzo Volponi

Via Saffi 15 – 61029

URBINO (PU)

Italy

Key Dates

20 February 2019 – Submissions Due

10 March 2019 – Notification of Acceptances

1 April 2019 – Full Symposia Program Available

24 June 2019 – AoIR Symposium

Deadline: February 20, 2019

The editors of forthcoming book titled Educational Technology and Integrated Writing Skills are pleased to invite you and members of your working group to submit a chapter for this book volume, to be published by Apple Academic Press, USA.

Proposed Book: Educational Technology and Integrated Writing Skills

Editors: Aditya Sinha & Arindam Nag Assistant Professor-cum-Scientist, Department of Extension Education, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur, India

Important Dates

• February 20, 2019: Chapter abstract Submission Deadline
  
• February 28, 2019: Notification of Acceptance of Chapter abstract
  
• April 30, 2019: Full Chapter Submission due
  
• May 20, 2019: Review Results Returned
  
• May 31, 2019: Final Acceptance Notification
  

The Book

Technological advancement is going on at a hasty pace affecting every dimensions of social and cultural life of people. Learning atmosphere is rapidly witnessing changes due to educational technologies. This book desires to integrate the concepts related to educational technology and written communication competency enhancement for undergraduates and thereafter.

Objective

The proposed book will explore technological dimension in teaching learning environment. Adult educational context is different yet challenging due to numerous factors like attention span, motivation etc. Thus this book will cut across the psychological paradigm of physical boundary to boundary less education through digital technology. This book will ponder upon the utilization of Educational Technology in multidisciplinary setting; promotion of effective learning environment; motivational aspects of adult learning; enabling better comprehension ability; enhancing written communication proficiency etc.

US OFFICE:

• Apple Academic Press, Inc.Apple Academic Press, Inc. 9 Spinnaker Way3333
  
• Mistwell Crescent Waretown,
  
• New Jersey
  
• 08758 USA
  
• Tel: 732–998–5302
  
• Tel: 289-937-6300
  

CANADIAN OFFICE:

• Oakville, Ontario
  
• L6L 0A2 Canada
  
• Fax: 866–222–9549
  
• Fax: 866–222–9549
  

info@appleacademicpress.com

http://www.appleacademicpress.com

Target Audience The target audience of this book will include researchers and professionals working in the field of education and disciplines of humanities and social sciences who are interested in knowing the role played by technology on educational space of human behaviour. It would provide the readers a wide collection of updated tools for use in the real classroom situations. The students would find the content extremely useful for enhancing written communication skills for writing better academic content.

Recommended Chapters: Following are some of the indicative chapters however authors can suggest any suitable topic under the theme educational technology and integrated writing skills.

Educational Technology related

1. Genesis of Educational Technology in Teaching and Learning

2. Theories on Teaching and Learning

3. Instructional design and tools

4. Media in Education

5. Techniques in Teaching

6. Emerging technologies in enhancing teaching and learning experiences

7. Adult learning and advancements

8. Motivational/ Behavioral aspects of teaching and learning

9. Professional ethics in the use of Educational Technology

10. Scope for integration of technology-enabled learning in academic program and Teaching Evaluation

11. Artificial Intelligence in Education

12. Implications of Machine learning and deep learning in teaching learning situation.

Integrated Writing Skills related

1. Theories in the teaching of writing

2. Academic writing vs. Popular writing

3. Writing analytically and argumentatively

4. Ways to respond to student writing/ Writing evaluation

5. Ways to prevent and detect plagiarism

Submission Procedure Scholars and Researchers are invited to submit chapter abstract indicating chapter rationale, objectives and outlines (within 350 to 500 words) on or before February 20, 2018. The confirmation of selection of chapter abstract with chapter guidelines will be intimated before February 28, 2019. Full chapters are expected to be submitted by April 30, 2019, and all interested authors must consult the guidelines for manuscript submissions at http://appleacademicpress.com/pdfs/AAPBookChapterInstructions1-5.pdf prior to submission.

www.appleacademicpress.com

Abstract Submission components

• Title of chapter
  
• Author name/s, institutional details
  
• Corresponding author’s email address
  
• Abstracts should be of 350-500 words long containing a brief summary of the chapter theme and content
  
• Keywords (no more than 5)
  
• A short bio (Maximum 100 words)
  

Additional guidelines

Commissioned chapters will be around 20 – 35 pages (5,000 – 7,000 words). Accepting an abstract does not guarantee the publication of the final manuscript. Note: There are no submission or acceptance fees for manuscripts submitted to this book publication, Educational Technology and Integrated Writing Skills. All manuscripts are accepted based on a double-blind peer review editorial process. All contributing authors will receive pdf copy of the published chapter/ book. All proposals should be submitted to inc.aditya@gmail.com or arindam.apdj@gmail.com

Publisher This book is scheduled to be published by Apple Academic Press, Inc., an independent international publisher focusing on academic and professional books in STEM and other fields. With a focus on relevant content as well as first-class production, Apple Academic Press is dedicated to publishing cutting-edge, informative books written and edited by internationally renowned experts in their fields. Apple Academic Press has partnered with CRC Press, a member of the Taylor & Francis Group, for marketing and distribution worldwide. For additional information regarding the publisher, please visit www.appleacademicpress.com. This publication is anticipated to be released on or before December 31, 2019.

Inquiries should be forwarded to

Aditya Sinha Email: inc.aditya@gmail.com Mobile: 979-864-9444

Arindam Nag Email: arindam.apdj@gmail.com Mobile: 997-318-0046

Universität Bremen

Deadline: March 15, 2019

The German Science Foundation funded project "The Reciprocal Relationship of Public Opinion and Social Policy" under Principal Investigator (PI) Nate Breznau at the SOCIUM Research Center on Inequality and Social Policy at the University of Bremen seeks to employ - under the condition of job release - 2 PhD Fellows

Salary level 13 TV-L (0,65)

Reference number A332/18

Ffor a duration of three years, starting from September 1st, 2019 through August 31st, 2022

Project description

Fellow "A" will focus on the macro-comparative part of the research and Fellow "B" will focus on the German case, see "Eligibility" for each fellowship below. Both Fellows will collectively contribute to the project and its output such as reports and publications, thus Fellows should be prepared to work in a team environment. Both Fellows are expected to develop academic research and writing skills, statistical analysis skills and attend and present findings at international conferences. English language fluency is necessary as the main project language is English. More details and a project description are available here.

Concurrent to the project work, the Fellows will pursue their doctoral degrees at the University of Bremen as Affiliated with the Bremen International Graduate School of Social Sciences (BIGSSS). The Fellows will have about half of their weekly working time free for the pursuit of this goal. The topics of their dissertations are open; however, having topics related to the project is ideal.

Finally, Fellows should be aware that this project seeks to practice ethical and open science. Therefore, Fellows should be interested in data and code sharing, open access publications, developing shared workflows using online technologies (such as the Open Science Framework and GitHub), and a commitment to transparency in all of their work.

Fellow A - Macro-Comparative Focus. Eligibility

Candidates should have studied sociology or related social science disciplines and be interested in macro-comparative social policy. Ideally these candidates want to pursue a dissertation related to comparative welfare states, social policy and/or social inequality. Although this position will focus on the macro-comparative aspect of the project it also includes some work on the German case study, thus some knowledge of or willingness to learn the German language is desirable.

This Fellow will focus on collecting and analyzing cross-national comparative data. Primarily opinion data will come from the International Social Survey Program and the European Social Survey. Policy indicators will come from a variety of sources and the candidate will be expected to develop creative ways to measure policy and welfare states. This candidate must know or be willing to learn Stata or R, and to develop skills to implement multilevel statistical analysis. The ideal candidate will simultaneously pursue a dissertation topic in comparative welfare states or institutions, although this specific topic is not a strict requirement.

Fellow B - German Case-study Focus. Eligibility

Fellow B candidates should have studied political science or related social science disciplines and be interested in the political system of Germany. Given the project's inquiry into German politics, history and public opinion, candidates must be fluent in German with native German being ideal.

This Fellow will focus on analyzing the content of public opinion and policymakers' discussions throughout German history since 1945. In this process they will take responsibility for developing a database for later quantitative analysis. They will develop skills in qualitative content analysis for identifying the nature and direction of policy and opinion over time. The ideal candidate will simultaneously pursue a dissertation topic related to German politics, although this is not a strict requirement.

Hiring Considerations and Requirements

Application materials should include a Curriculum Vitae ("Lebenslauf"); a 1-2 page Cover Letter indicating why the candidate is interested in the position, why they think they are a good fit, what research skills they have, and an indication of what they might like to pursue as a dissertation topic; and a copy of the Master's Degree or a note indicating completion plans. Applicants must have completed a Master's Degree before Sept. 1st, 2019.

Applicants must be able to obtain a visa in case they are offered a position, please see visa requirements on the Federal Foreign Office website for more details.

Applications should be submitted as one combined Adobe pdf document no later than March 15, 2019 to socium-bewerbungen@uni-bremen.de

Interviews will take place in April or May. Candidates from far away can interview via internet video conferencing if necessary.

For any other job-related inquiries please contact Nate Breznau, the PI, at nbreznau@uni-bremen.de

The University of Bremen has received a number of awards for its diversity policies and offers a family-friendly working environment as well as an international atmosphere.

The University is committed to a policy of providing equal employment opportunities for both men and women alike, and therefore encourages particularly women to apply for the position offered. Persons with disabilities will be considered preferentially in case of equal qualifications and aptitudes.

The University of Bremen explicitly invites persons with migration background to apply.

Mailing address:

SOCIUM Forschungszentrum Ungleichheit und Sozialpolitik

Universität Bremen / Bremen University

Postfach 33 04 40

The cost of application and presentation cannot be reimbursed.

Website: https://www.socium.uni-bremen.de/ueber-das-socium/stellenausschreibungen/project-the-reciprocal-relationship-of-public-opinion-and-social-policy/

Kinephanos

Deadline: February 28, 2019

Edited by Audrey Bélanger and Stéfany Boisvert

Theme

Not unlike other media, television is undergoing major changes. The Internet, as well as the possibilities of digitisation and storage, has contributed to the transnational circulation of content and, most importantly, the development of over-the-top (OTT) media services. These new digital portals (Lotz 2017), or streaming services, offer a library of audio-visual productions online without the intermediary of a distribution or broadcasting company. OTT services therefore act as gateways to a wide range of audio-visual content, without having to rely on a schedule (Lotz 2017; Wayne 2017; Johnson, 2018), which changes our perception of the medium and deeply influences the modes of production, distribution and reception of /television/ itself.

In the new industry of Internet-distributed television (Lotz 2017), it goes without saying that the multinational company Netflix currently occupies the most enviable position. Even though contents offered by this streaming company are not only “televisual”, Netflix’s influence on contemporary TV productions is undeniable, and has even been documented by a significant number of scholars. Several topics have already been addressed, such as the question of algorithms and Netflix’s system of recommendations (Gomez-Uribe et Hunt 2015); Netflix’s role in the broader history of television (Jenner 2014, 2018); the multinational company’s production/distribution strategies and their impact on viewing habits (Matrix 2014); or the brand image and branding strategies of streaming platforms (Wayne 2018). Whole books are dedicated to the study of Netflix and its history (Keating 2012), its specific modes of production and distribution, its users’ viewing patterns (Barker et Wiatrowski 2017), or its impact on the television industry (McDonald et Smith-Rowsey 2016, Jenner 2018, Johnson 2018).

However, this centrality of Netflix within academic publications conveys a rather restrictive view of our media ecosystem, almost as if Netflix was the /only/ platform available. Indeed, publications on new forms of Internet-distributed television mostly focus on Netflix, even when they are published outside the United States. This situation leads us to ask: what about other OTT media services or streaming platforms? What about local media industries? What is the situation of other portals, whether they originate from the United States or elsewhere, and how do they manage — or not — to secure a position in the new industry? On the flipside, how do traditional broadcasters –– which, it must be reminded, are still in operation today – are influenced by streaming services and their in-house productions, and how do they try to secure (or preserve) a position for their own company? Also, in this era of multi-platform viewing practices, what are the various consumption and viewing habits adopted by viewers?

This issue of Kinephanos seeks to better understand the advent of OTT media services (portals) and the new ways of viewing/distributing TV productions, by trying to look beyond (or beneath) Netflix in order to provide a more complete picture of our current TV industry. By deliberately putting aside the most popular platform, trying to think “outside the box”, this issue wants to encourage reflection on other streaming services and topics related to OTT, and, by doing so, to promote diversity (whether geographic, cultural, or generic). This issue of Kinephanos is multi-disciplinary, and therefore open to many different forms of analysis and approaches (institutional, aesthetic, sociological, narratological, political, cultural, feminist, queer, reception-based, etc.).

Articles may cover, but are not limited to, the following topics:

• Other streaming platforms and websites, their economics, operations, catalog, etc.,
• The state of national televisions in the context of increasing competition with streaming services;
• The regulations in different territories regarding streaming services;
• The state of linear/traditional television (broadcasting, cable industry). The viewing habits related to linear television, and/or those adopted for streaming services and websites;
• The circulation of contents on different platforms and websites;
• Economic, political, or social issues related to new forms of over-the-top television
• Thematic, aesthetic, narrative (etc.) analyses of TV shows developed for portals other than Netflix, and/or their influence on other media;
• The development of original content for streaming services, that is,
• TV shows commissioned and/or produced by those companies in order to be distributed exclusively (or primarily) on their platform
• Since “failure studies” can also help us better understand our media industry, we are also interested in articles documenting cases of streaming services that failed or went bankrupt –in other words, that did not find their audience.
  

How to submit?

Please send an abstract, between 300 and 500 words (excluding references), in English or French, by February 28, 2019, to belanger.audrey@uqam.ca and boisvert.stefany@uqam.ca

The abstract must specify the topic and the object(s) of study, along with the preferred methodology. Don’t forget to indicate key bibliographical references, your name, email address, and you institutional affiliation.

Selected contributors will be advised by email. Full papers will be submitted by summer 2019, and the exact calendar will be communicated to the accepted authors. The issue will be released at the beginning of 2020.

September 20-22, 2019

Die Wolfsburg, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Essen, Germany

Deadline: April 15

"The Bat-Man, a mysterious and adventurous figure, fighting for righteousness and apprehending the wrong doer, in his lone battle against the evil forces of society… his identity remains unknown."

Detective Comics #27 (1939)

In 2018, the superhero genre reached a remarkable milestone with the eightieth anniversary of Superman, with the character’s signature title of Action Comics reaching its one thousandth issue, which sold over half a million copies and, not unimportantly, finally returned The Man of Steel to his iconic red trunks.

And yet, it was undoubtedly a banner year for the genre beyond that, particularly in the realm of cinema, where the superhero maintains an aggressive dominance: the Marvel Cinematic Universe celebrated its tenth anniversary, its grand inter-connected narrative reaching no less than twenty films (and eleven television series); the Ryan Coogler-directed Black Panther achieved enormous cultural impact, widely deemed to be a vital moment in black American history; the electrifying Spider-Man: Into The Spider Verse set a thrilling new benchmark in animation and a vivid view of the Spider-Man mythos; Aquaman returned some lustre to the faltering movie endeavours of DC Comics, grossing over one billion dollars.

Meanwhile, in the source medium of comics, the superhero genre continues to generate works of great diversity and nuance: Jeff Lemire’s Black Hammer (Dark Horse) explored, with exquisite melancholy, the aftermath of a superhero saga; Superman (DC) has compellingly utilised the character’s role as a father in highlighting his innate goodness Captain America (Marvel) has powerfully examined the hero’s identity within the contemporary political divisions in the United States; Mister Miracle (DC) masterfully fuses interpersonal family drama with Kirby-esque spectacle; Batman: White Knight (DC) was a striking and thoroughly gripping inversion of the power dynamic between The Dark

Knight and his nemesis, The Joker and The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl (Marvel) offered a heady mix of comedy and female empowerment. In the midst of such vibrant activity, however, the comics industry was rocked by the death of Stan Lee, the “Marvel Bard”, who was very much the genial, effervescently-creative face of the superhero genre for decades. Soaring into its ninth decade, then, the superhero currently occupies a diverse and expansive space in modern popular culture. Perceived as a modern form of mythology or folklore, the character's signature emblems are among the most recognisable in the world, functioning as powerful, pervasive and vastly profitable brands. Yet, while still largely American in focus, the superhero has become increasingly international, capable of reflecting specific issues and operating as a powerful messenger of them - a power they have possessed since their inception

The superhero remains regarded as an inspirational figure, but also a divisive one, perceived in some quarters as a promoter of violence and vigilantism. Superheroes position themselves as purveyors of a specific set of moral values, sometimes above the law, but always striving for the greater good. Superheroes are typically depicted in a constant struggle with notions of personal responsibility, and questions of identity and destiny, in line with Joseph Campbell's "Monomyth". As more and more people wear the symbols of superheroes (via t-shirts et al) as an expression of values as well as fandom, the superhero is becoming us.

The 3rd Global Conference on Superheroes invites inter-disciplinary discussion on superheroes and the notion of the super-heroic. In particular, this edition welcomes a focus on Batman, whose eightieth anniversary is being marked in 2019.

Indicative themes for discussion may include but are not limited to:

1. Post-Humanism:

• Technology & augmentation / armour
• Cyborgs
• Prosthesis
• The Übermensch
• Mutations and genetic engineering

2. Dual Identities:

• The power of the mask
• Alter-egos and secret identities
• Costume and Disguise
• Cosplay

3. Gender & Ethnicity:

• Hyper-masculinity
• Depictions of the female superhero
• Ethnic diversity in superhero comics and their readership

4. Sexuality:

• LGBT Superheroes
• Queer readings of established characters
• Gay Representation in Superhero Comics
• Camp and the Superhero
• Superheroes vs Sexual Violence

5. Deconstruction:

• The anti-hero
• The post-9/11 Superhero
• The Everyman superhero

6. Social Responsibility:

• Vigilantism
• Superheroes as role models
• Childhood play
• Heroism and cowardice

7. The Heroic & the Patriotic:

• The monomyth (the hero's journey)
• Patriotism and nationalism
• National personification
• The Soldier as Superhero
• "Truth, justice and the American way"

8. Pop Culture Depictions:

• Adaptation
• The superhero as brand
• Merchandising and franchising
• Fans and cultural capital

What to Send:

300 word abstracts should be submitted by Monday April 15, 2019 to the following e-mail: super3@uni-due.de

If an abstract is accepted for the conference, a full draft paper should be submitted by Friday 16th August 2019. Abstracts should be submitted simultaneously to both Organising Chairs; abstracts may be in Word or RTF formats with the following information and in this order: a) author(s), b) affiliation as you would like it to appear in programme, c) email address, d) title of proposal, e) body of proposal, f) up to 10 keywords.

E-mails should be entitled: *_SUPER3 Abstract Submission_*.

Please use plain text (Times Roman 12) and abstain from using any special formatting, characters or emphasis (such as bold, italics or underline). We acknowledge receipt and answer to all paper proposals submitted. If you do not receive a reply from us in a week you should assume we did not receive your proposal; it might be lost in cyberspace! We suggest, then, to look for an alternative electronic route or resend.

Organising Chairs

Danny Graydon (University of Hertfordshire): d.graydon@herts.ac.uk

Torsten Caeners (University of Duisburg-Essen): torsten.caeners@uni-due.de