What coheres the many field(s) of media studies? Rather than attempting to answer this question by looking for “common ground” – a single thread, principle, or shared object that weaves together otherwise disparate branches of media studies – this iteration of the titular conference considers what has traditionally been left out, neglected, or sidelined in media studies. By considering what is on the margins rather than at the heart of media studies, we hope to create a space that generates vibrant debate over what media studies can be as opposed to what it “is.”
Rather than trying to locate origins for this hyper-dynamic and multi-pronged field, therefore, we embrace its messiness and incoherence. Yet this mess cannot be uninvestigated. Sifting through the multiple possibilities embedded in the margins, we consider what sits outside the gamut of normative discipline, canon, geography, form, theory and ideology. What gets left in the marginalia, uninvestigated, unsituated and noninstitutionalized? In writing in/at and from the margins of media studies, what fresh insights can we bring to our field(s)?
For the ninth iteration of Common Ground therefore, the conference committee invites submissions from scholars and media creators across disciplines, geographies, positionalities and theoretical methodologies. we seek work that:
- Engages with non-canconical thinkers, scholars, and practitioners
- Decenters normative theoretical and methodological frameworks
- Unsettles hegmonic conceptions of what (and who) gets to be studied
- Is created by people traditionally on the margins of media studies
- Is situated beyond the traditional confines of media studies yet engages with media in some way that enhances the project
The conference accepts submissions in many forms including ones at the early stages of development. Submission categories include research presentations, research in progress, creative and journalistic works, and workshop participation for creative and journalistic works in progress.
Abstracts of no more than 300 words are due here by Dec. 31.
For film and other multimedia projects, upload your submissions here.
If you have any questions, please contact our conference committee.
