Call for Papers
Rothermere American Institute
University of Oxford
19 June 2020
This one-day interdisciplinary conference seeks to explore the nexus between race and the media from the dawn of television to the present day.
In the mid-twentieth century two revolutions took place, one technological and one political; the emergence of television and the advent of the civil rights movement both fundamentally altered American society and the wider world. Today, social media and digital technologies are reshaping social relations. At the same time, a surge in overt racial hatred has precipitated a new chapter in the long struggle for racial equality. This conference will put the study of the past in conversation with current debates about race and media.
We welcome proposals from scholars across the humanities and social sciences, artists, media practitioners, activists and community members, working on issues of race and ethnicity across news, entertainment, and social media considering the following questions:
· How does the media construct ideas about racial identity?
· How is racial identity enacted through the media?
· How have racial hierarchies shaped the evolution of media industries?
· How have different forms of media been used to amplify racist ideas or been taken up to disrupt racial hierarchies?
· What role does the media play in anti-racist activism?
· How can the historical relationship between race and the media inform current debates?
Abstracts should not exceed 250 words for papers lasting 20 minutes. Panel proposals should include details of each individual paper, along with a panel description. All submissions are to include the speaker’s name, institutional affiliation, email address, a short biographical profile and a list of five research keywords. Please send abstracts to racemediaconference@gmail.com.
The conference is committed to highlighting the work of individuals from diverse backgrounds and experiences. Preference will be given to panels that reflect this commitment to diversity and inclusion.
Organising committee: Sage Goodwin (sage.goodwin@history.ox.ac.uk); Cindy Ma (cindy.ma@oii.ox.ac.uk).