Dear OURMedia members, PLATFORM: Journal of Media and Communication Volume 2, Issue 2 (Sep 2010) Call for Papers: "Deliberation, Collaboration, Mobilisation: Digital Media and Networked Participation" As Manuel Castells observed in his seminal work "The Rise of the Network Society", the network has become the dominant organising logic of society today. It has transformed our homes into hyperconnected nodes for communication, interaction, and information sharing. The traditional, hierarchical structure of local and national government is giving way to the complex and intricately interwoven architecture of the global economy. And the ubiquity of mobile media devices, WiFi networks, and networked infrastructure in urban space has replaced the archaic ‘grid’ layout of the city with a vast, sprawling network of cables and telecommunication lines. The rise of digital networks has opened up new possibilities for public participation and engagement by revolutionising the way we communicate with our friends, communities, political institutions, and the physical environment. Earlier this year, political activists in Moldova used Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and other social networking technologies to stage public protests and storm government office buildings. The proliferation of citizen journalism websites, Massively-Multiplayer Online games, and user-generated advertising campaigns has made media organisations increasingly reliant on content created by a global network of users to thrive (and make a profit). And in the United States, Barack Obama has made public participation, transparency, and civic engagement through online initiatives a cornerstone of his administration’s approach to governance. But while networked technologies enable public participation and mobilisation on a scale not possible in the pre-digital era, they also create tensions and provoke conflicts with potentially devastating consequences: The same technologies that allow us to organise social gatherings or political protests were used to coordinate the Mumbai terrorist attacks and the 2005 Cronulla race riots in Sydney. These technologies may establish spaces for public engagement and networked participation, but they can equally have undesirable effects and unexpected outcomes which challenge traditional structures of power and control, or reinforce others. PLATFORM, an online graduate journal of media and communication, is currently seeking submissions from graduate students which critically examine policy initiatives, projects, online services, or interventions in the area of “Digital Media and Networked Participation”. Possible case studies might include: * E-democracy and online deliberation (Lincoln Dahlberg, James S. Fishkin and others) * Networked mobilities (Castells, Communication Power; Rheingold, Smart Mobs; Mitchell, Me++) * Citizen journalism and collaborative news production (Axel Bruns, Blogs, Wikipedia and Second Life) * Crowdsourcing (Daren C. Brabham) * P2P and peer production (Michel Bauwens) * Participatory culture/Remix culture (Jenkins, Convergence Culture; Lessig, Remix) * Viral marketing/User-generated advertising * Networked cities and public interventions (Open 11 special issue; McQuire, The Media City) * Urban design and participatory planning projects (Marcus Foth, Urban Informatics) * Locative media/Augmented space (see edited book Space Time Play by Frederick von Borries et al) Submission guidelines: All submissions to PLATFORM must be from current graduate students (no more than 6 months after graduation) undertaking their Masters, Ph.D. or international equivalent. All eligible submissions will be sent for double-blind peer-review. Email proposed papers to: [log in to unmask] Deadlines: 29 January, 2010: Abstracts/Proposals (500-800 words) 31 March, 2010: Full Papers (6,000-8,000 words) For more information and to read the full call for papers, visit: http://www.culture-communication.unimelb.edu.au/platform/call_papers.html Or contact: Dale Leorke [log in to unmask] Editor-in-Chief, PLATFORM Vol 2, Issue 2 Apply to Peer-review: PLATFORM is currently seeking early career, PhD and Masters researchers to peer-review its scholarly submissions. If you would like to apply, please submit a 150 word bio as well as a CV highlighting research projects, publications and paper presentations to [log in to unmask] ***************************************************** PLATFORM is a new international peer-review graduate journal, available online through open-access. PLATFORM is refereed by an international board of established and emerging scholars working across diverse paradigms in Media and Communication. It is edited by graduate students at the University of Melbourne, and published by the School of Culture and Communication, University of Melbourne. The aims of PLATFORM include: * To provide a platform for media and communications graduate student researchers to showcase, share, and support the work of one anotherthrough publication, peer-review, and comments; * To provide a platform for emerging media and communications scholars to build a publication record and to contribute subsequently to other academic publications; * To increase scholarly appreciation of media and communications research across diverse theoretical, methodological, and empirical interests; and * To encourage international awareness and collaboration through the discussion of issues associated with the rising significance of multiple media and communications platforms for societies and individuals in and across various globalised and localised environments. [EDITORS] Esther Chin (Founding Editor, Editor-in-Chief, Vol. 1) Amira Firdaus (Editor-in-Chief, Vol. 2 Issue 1) Dale Leorke (Editor-in-Chief, Vol. 2 Issue 2) Gin Chee Tong Sandy Joy Watson (Essay Section) Sebastien Kubitschko (Essay section) Elias Mokua Nyatete [WEBSITE, DESIGN & CREATIVE EDITOR] Gin Chee Tong [COPYRIGHT & EXTERNAL LIASION] Blaise Murphet [JOURNAL MANAGER] Akina Mikami [ADVISROY BOARD] Ingrid Volkmer, University of Melbourne, Australia Sean Cubitt, University of Melbourne, Australia Jenny Lee, University of Melbourne, Australia Brian Fitzgerlad, Queensland University of Technology, Australia [EDITORIAL BOARD] Tamara Witschge, Young Scholars Network, ECREA Benjamin De Cleen, Young Scholars Network, ECREA Stefania Milan, Emerging Scholars Network, IAMCR Mikaela Marlow, Student Board, ICA Michele Cheng Hoon Khoo, Student Board, ICA Diana Bossio, ANZCA -- Akina Mikami Master of Global Media Communication BA (Hons)(Media and Communications) Dip. in Modern Languages in French The University of Melbourne [log in to unmask] Journal Manager PLATFORM: Journal of Media and Communication http://www.culture-communication.unimelb.edu.au/platform/