Communicating Emergencies
Faculty of Communication Sciences Università della Svizzera italiana
Lugano, Switzerland – October 28th-30th 2013
Communicating Emergencies
Faculty of Communication Sciences Università della Svizzera italiana
Lugano, Switzerland – October 28th-30th 2013
London, UK – June 17th-21st 2013
The Party’s Over?
63rd Political Studies Association Annual Conference
Cardiff, Wales, UK – March 25th-27th 2013
Linguaggi pop e decisioni hard. La comunicazione politica in tempi di crisi (Pop languages and hard decisions. Political Communication in a crisis era)
December 13-15 2012
Torino – Luigi Einaudi Campus
Call for papers
In recent years, contemporary democracies have had to address increasingly complex challenges. At a time when those in power are forced to make hard and unpopular choices, public distrust of politics leads governments to use communication as a strategic tool to reach disaffected citizens and to propose compelling and winning narratives. The importance assumed by communication and the transformations involving the media have fostered the expansion of what is now known as pop politics. This is a phenomenon that involves politicians, journalists and citizens and redefines forms of mediation and mutual relationships.
The 2012 annual conference of the Italian Association of Political Communication (Associazione Italiana di Comunicazione Politica) aims to explore the problematic nature of these new challenges. In particular, we encourage papers that – using different theoretical and methodological approaches – address the following issues:
1. Italian style Popularization
Featuring the presentation of the results of a national research project, this panel will discuss the concept of popularization and its empirical relevance, looking at the Italian context in comparative perspective as much as possible.
2. Communicate to win and to decide
With an eye to 2013 Italian General Election Campaign, this panel will debate empirical findings and theoretical reflections concerning the relation between campaigning and governing. Particular attention will be paid to the problems of consensus-building while in office, electoral mobilization and the formation of informed public opinion about decision-making processes.
3. Communication on the move: new actors and new flows between participating and protesting
This panel deals with the role that the Internet and online social networks have played (and play) in substantially innovating the forms of political communication. Particular attention will be devoted to the growing presence of unconventional political actors in public debate and to the rise of new forms of interaction between citizens and politics.
Abstracts (maximum 250 words), along with full contact information (title, name, affiliation, email) and a short biography (of between 50 and 100 words), should be submitted to convegno.asscom@unito.it by September 21, 2012.
Accepted papers will be announced in the first week of October 2012.
While the conference will be held primarily in Italian, papers in English are also welcomed.
“genial chuckles and smiles of appreciation.Good A+”
“I just watched the first two episodes (p and 1 ep), and I give it two Deity-sized thumbs up”
Only two of the many good comments about STUCK, the upcoming web series directed by Ivan Silvestrini, starring Riccardo Sardonè, Ivana Lotito, Vincenzo Alfieri, Valentina Izumi, Gaia Scodellaro, Mark Lawrence.It is a very good audiovisual product. Produced in Italy. Played in English. Excellent!
Scholarships for PhD students at the University of Leeds
ESRC White Rose Doctoral Training Centre Studentship
The University of Leeds has been allocated a number of ESRC studentships as part of the White Rose Doctoral Training Centre, a major collaboration between the Universities of Leeds, Sheffield and York. One of these awards is in the area of Communications and Media Studies and is available on either a 1+3 or +3 basis.
1+3 Studentships consist of a full-time integrated research-training Masters with a 3-year PhD programme.
+3 Studentships are for full-time 3-year PhD study for applicants who have already completed an ESRC-recognised Master’s Degree or appropriate research training programme.
Note: these awards are only available to nationals from the UK and EU and are not open to applicants who are liable to pay academic fees at the international fee rate.
Closing date for applications: 17 Feb 2012
For more information, please visit: http://ics.leeds.ac.uk/sub1.cfm?pbcrumb=PhD%20Scholarships or contact Kate Oakley at k.oakley@leeds.ac.uk
January 25th 2012January 25 marks the annual celebration of Scotland’s national poet Robert Burns.
Haggis, celebrations, facts: HERE
Happy New Year to all our followers and readers.
Peace and Happiness to everyone.
The Media, Communications and Cultural Studies Association (MeCCSA) is the UK subject association for those researching and teaching in the area, whether in arts, humanities or social sciences departments. In 2012 the MeCCSA annual conference will be hosted by the Bedfordshire Institute for Media, Arts and Performance at the Luton Campus Centre, University of Bedfordshire.
The conference will be held on 11-13th January 2012, in the Luton New Campus Centre of the University of Bedfordshire
The conference will also feature scholarly papers, presentations of practice, posters and panels across the full range of interests represented by MeCCSA and its networks.
Further information: http://www.beds.ac.uk/meccsa/conference

Rt Hon Alex Salmond MSP – Politician of the Year
Salmond, who previously won this award in 2007, was again selected unanimously by the judging panel for this award. They said: ‘At the last Scottish Parliamentary Elections Alex Salmond demonstrated the full extent of his political skill. The campaign run under Salmond’s leadership not only resulted in the party’s best election result since the 1970s but also in a mathematically improbable majority. This performance demonstrates not only Salmond’s appeal and political prowess but also the traits which single him out as Politician of the Year.’ In pursuing the SNP agenda Alex Salmond has expanded the party’s appeal beyond the issue of national independence, a feat which helped secure its historic victory in the 2011 elections. However, Salmond is committed to pursuing the issue of independence and when asked in a recent interview for the Times; ‘What is the earliest at which Scotland could become independent?’ he stated: ‘I am working on a referendum for this Parliament, so in a few years at the earliest. I believe the destination of Scottish independence is as near inevitable as anything can be.’
An academic article (by Emiliana De Blasio, Matthew Hibberd, Michele Sorice) about the so-called “horizontal leadership” and Mr. Alex Salmond, HERE
Happy St. Andrew’s Day, from Mediaresearch and the Political Communication Lab.
Here First Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond, issued a St Andrew’s Day message, ahead of celebration across the country to mark Scotland’s national day.
Department of Media and Communications public lecture
Date: Thursday 24 November 2011
Time: 6.30-8pm
Venue: Sheikh Zayed Theatre, NAB
Speaker: Professor Manuel Castells
Chair: Professor Terhi Rantanen
How are Social Movements shaped by the availability of horizontal communication networks based on the Internet and wireless communication? How can indignation become collective action by the connection between neural networks, digital social networks and urban networks? Which are the cultural and political consequences of these developments? Case studies in different contexts ground a theory of power and social change in the network society presented in the book Communication Power (Oxford University Press, paperback edition 2011) is to be presented in this lecture.
Manuel Castells is University Professor and the Wallis Annenberg Chair in Communication Technology and Society at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. He is a Harold Lasswell Fellow of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, as well as a fellow of the Spanish Royal Academy of Economics, a fellow of the Academia Europea, a fellow of the Mexican Academy of Sciences and a fellow of the British Academy.
http://www2.lse.ac.uk/publicEvents/events/2011/20111124t1830vSZT.aspx
Now available a new short essay in e-book format, published by the Centre for Media and Communication Studies “Massimo Baldini” based at LUISS University at Rome.
The e-book, Popular politics, populism and the leaders. Access without participation? The cases of Italy and UK, has been written by Emiliana De Blasio (LUISS University), Matthew Hibberd (University of Stirling) and Michele Sorice (LUISS University).
It represents an important starting point to study the complexity of the relationships between political leadership and populism in the media age.
The e-book is downloadable for free at http://communication.blogs.luiss.edu (section WP). You can also read it in ISSUU reader, clicking this link.
Seminar at LUISS University, Rome, Italy, about the crisis of politics in Europe and the new political leaderships across the continent.
Wednesday October 12th 2011, h 5.45-7.45 pm
Room 101, LUISS (Viale Romania, 32 – Rome, Italy)
With:
Free access
Four words to begin an open debate. Seminars at LUISS University, Rome, Italy.
Programme:
Wed October 12th 2011, h 17.45-19.45, room 102
With: Sergio Fabbrini, Ludger Helms, Philip Schlesinger, Michele Sorice. Chairperson: Emiliana De Blasio
Thu October 13th 2011, h 10.45-12.15, room 102
With: Philip Schlesinger and Michele Sorice
Tue October 18th 2011, h 14.00-15.30, room 307b
With: Emiliana De Blasio and Philip Schlesinger
Wed October 19th, h 14.00-15.30, room 305a
With: Emiliana De Blasio and Philip Schlesinger
Thu October 20th, h 10.45-12.15, room 102
With: Philip Schlesinger and Michele Sorice
Venue: LUISS University, Viale Romania, 32 – 00197 Rome, Italy
Info: communication@luiss.it