[nettime-see] CFP: CULTURAL ATTITUDES TOWARDS TECHNOLOGY AND COMMUNICATION

[Smiljana Antonijevic <anto0082@umn.edu>]

Dear colleagues

Arrangements have been finalised for the next CATaC conference to be held
27 June to 1 July, 2004. It will be held in Karlstad, Sweden. Malin
Sveningsson has agreed to act as the Conference Vice-Chair, ably
assisted by Ylva Hard Af Segerstad. Both Malin and Ylva participated in
CATaC in Montreal last year.

Please pass on the following CFP to your colleagues, your favourite (and
relevant) discussion lists, conference calendars, etc.

We hope you can participate in CATaC04 and, if so, look forward to seeing
you in Karlstad!

Regards
Fay

CALL FOR PAPERS

Fourth International Conference on
CULTURAL ATTITUDES TOWARDS TECHNOLOGY AND COMMUNICATION
(CATaC'04)
27 June-1 July 2004
Karlstad University, Sweden
http://www.it.murdoch.edu.au/catac/

Conference theme:
Off the shelf or from the ground up?
ICTs and cultural marginalization, homogenization or hybridization

The biennial CATaC conference series provides a continuously expanding
international forum for the presentation and discussion of current research
on how diverse cultural attitudes shape the implementation and use of
information and communication technologies (ICTs). The conference series
brings together scholars from around the globe who provide diverse
perspectives, both in terms of the specific culture(s) they highlight in
their presentations and discussions, and in terms of the discipline(s)
through which they approach the conference theme. The first conference in
the series was held in London in 1998, the second in Perth in 2000, and the
third in Montreal in 2002.

Beginning with our first conference in 1998, the CATaC conferences have
highlighted theoretical and praxis-oriented scholarship and research from
all parts of the globe, including Asia, Africa, and the Middle-East. The
conferences focus especially on people and communities
at the developing edges of ICT diffusion, including indigenous peoples and
those outside the English-speaking world.

Understanding the role of culture in how far minority and/or indigenous
cultural groups may succeed - or fail - in taking up ICTs designed for a
majority culture is obviously crucial to the moral and political imperative
of designing ICTs in ways that will not simply reinforce such groups'
marginalization. What is the role of culture in the development of ICTs
"from the ground up" - beginning with the local culture and
conditions - rather than assuming dominant "off the shelf" technologies are
appropriate? Are the empowering potentials of ICTs successfully exploited
among minority and indigenous groups, and/or do they rather
engender cultural marginalization, cultural homogenization or cultural
hybridization?

Original full papers (especially those which connect theoretical frameworks
with specific examples of cultural values, practices, etc.) and short
papers (e.g. describing current research projects and preliminary results)
are invited.

Topics of particular interest include but are not limited to:

- Culture: theory and praxis
- Culture and economy
- Alternative models for ICT diffusion
- Role of governments and activists in culture, technology and
communication
- ICTs and cultural hybridity
- ICTs and intercultural communication
- Culture, communication and e-learning


SUBMISSIONS

All submissions will be peer reviewed by an international panel of
scholars and researchers and accepted papers will appear in the
conference proceedings. You may purchase the conference proceedings from
the 2000 and 2002 conferences from http://www.it.murdoch.edu.au/catac.

There will be the opportunity for selected papers from this 2004 conference
to appear in special issues of journals and a book. Papers in previous
conferences have appeared in journals (Journal of Computer
Mediated Communication, Electronic Journal of Communication/La Revue
Electronique de Communication, AI and Society, Javnost- The Public, and
New Media and
Society) and a book (Culture, Technology, Communication: towards an
Intercultural Global Village, 2001, edited by Charles Ess with Fay
Sudweeks, SUNY Press, New York).

Initial submissions are to be emailed to catac@it.murdoch.edu.au as an
attachment (Word, HTML, PDF). Submission of a paper implies that it has not
been submitted or published elsewhere. At least one author of each accepted
paper is expected to present the paper at the conference.

IMPORTANT DATES

Full papers (10-20 pages): 12 January 2004
Short papers (3-5 pages): 26 January 2004
Notification of acceptance: end February 2004
Final formatted papers: 29 March 2004


CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRS
 Charles Ess, Drury University, USA, cmess@drury.edu
 Fay Sudweeks, Murdoch University, Australia, catac@it.murdoch.edu.au
CONFERENCE VICE-CHAIR  Malin Sveningsson, Karlstad University, Sweden,
malin.sveningsson@kau.se

_______________________________________________

Smiljana Antonijevic, Research Assistant
Internet Studies Center
University of Minnesota
1994 Buford Ave., St. Paul, MN 55108
612-624-2240  
anto0082@umn.edu
http://www.isc.umn.edu


...............................................
Nettime-SEE mailing list
Nettime-SEE@nettime.org
http://www.nettime.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/nettime-see