Call for Papers National Seminar on ‘Social Media and Democratic Discourse’ (30 – 31 October, 2014) EFL University, Shillong Campus organized by Department of Journalism and Mass Communication in partnership with UNICEF Assam Call for Papers: Communication is seen as a fundamental social process, a basic human need, and the foundation of all social organization. It is central to the Information Society. Everyone everywhere should have the opportunity to participate and no one should be excluded from the benefits offered by the Information Society (Declaration of Principles Building the Information Society, 2003). Since the 1970’s, the contemporary world has been experiencing the Digital Revolution, the change from mechanical and electronic technologies to high tech, digital technologies. Central to this revolution is mass production and the widespread use of digital logic circuits and its derived technologies, including: computers, digital cellular phones, fax machines, and other devices. The use of computers and the Internet is rapidly transforming societal interactions and the relationships among citizens, private businesses, and the Government. The Information Age brought about significant changes not only in how people communicate with each other, but also to the broad political landscape. In the new wired world, collections of widely scattered individuals with a common interest or a shared concern about a specific social issue quickly form and make their collective voice heard. Such communication could not have existed only a few years ago. Politicians and political parties are using new information and communications technologies to an unprecedented degree, as are citizens, with potentially profound impacts on democracy and representative institutions. Informed discourse is central to democratic government. Theories of deliberative democracy posit that informed argument and rhetoric will lead to rational decision making Alternatively, some ―social choice‖ theorists suggest that such unfettered discourse is often a source of disequilibrium and may, in the end, result in confused and chaotic decision making and irrational outcomes. Social Networking Sites such as Facebook and MySpace are very new and little research is available on their use in democratic discourse. Political candidates have populated these social sites in earnest and utilize these sites for collecting funds, disseminating messages, creating groups, and initiating collective activities. Many researchers have focused on the creation and maintenance of ―social capital‖ in social networking environments and have noted that social networks tend to be hemophilic. New technologies are often greeted with political optimism. The Internet was thought to herald new possibilities for political participation, if not direct democracy, even in large and complex societies, as ―electronic democracy‖ might replace the mass-media democracy of sound-byte television. However, the high hopes for electronic democracy seem to have faded, as critics such as Cass R. Sunstein and Andrew Shapiro have come to argue that central features of the Internet and computermediated communication generally undermine the sort of public sphere and political interaction that are required for genuine democratic deliberation. Whatever the empirical merits of such criticisms, they do point to and as yet unclarified problem in discussions of electronic democracy: we still lack a clear understanding of how the Internet and other forms of electronic communication might contribute to a historically new kind of public sphere and thus to a potentially new form of democracy. The democratic potential of the Internet cannot be satisfied by listing its positive or intrinsic features—for example, its speed, its scale, its ―anarchic‖ nature, its ability to facilitate resistance to centralized control as a network of networks, and so on. The same is true for its negative effects or consequences, such as its well-known disaggregative character or its anonymity. The seminar will seek to pose pertinent issues related to Social media and the democratic discourse. This potential transformation of democratic institutions shows the fruitfulness of thinking about cyberspace in political terms that are related to the sort of publicness that it generates. On the other hand, such a potential public sphere can be secured only through innovative institutions. The Call for papers will provide a scope to raise the issue of Social media and Democratic Discourse through active participation at the seminar and submissions of thematic papers. The thematic rubric of the seminar is as mentioned below: 1. Social media and performing democracy. 2. Digital Democracy and its Challenges. 3. Social Media and Representation. 4. Civil Society and Social Media: Conflicts and Contestations. 5. Civil Society and Social Marginality: Voices of the disenfranchised. 6. Social Media, Civil Society and Child Rights. 7. Social Media, Civil Society and Public Sphere: Concerns of Gender. The abstract for the presentation should not exceed 250 words. Kindly give at least 3 keywords for your abstract in an alphabetical format. Along with the abstract kindly send your Name, Designation, Institutional affiliation, Office address, email id and phone number. The language of the seminar will primarily be in English and participants are welcome from disciplines such as Journalism, Social Science and Humanities background. Academicians, Faculty members, media practitioners, social media professionals, interested research scholars and post graduate students are encouraged to participate and send their abstracts on or before 21 September, 2014 to [email protected] (Please give the subject as Abstract for CHIME 2014 National Seminar) There is no registration fee for the National Seminar. Selected paper presenters will be provided with a fixed amount of travelling allowances and twin sharing accommodation during the seminar. The Communication In charge of the seminar will communicate with you during the entire process of this national seminar through email and telephone. Important Dates: 1. Last Date for Abstract submission: 21 September, 2014 (Sunday) 2. Acceptance notification of shortlisted abstract: 26 September, 2014 (Friday) 3. Last date for registration and confirmation for participation: 10 October, 2014 (Friday) 4. Full Paper Submission of the selected abstract: 25 October, 2014 (Friday) 5. Seminar Commences: 30 – 31 October, 2014 Coordinator: Mr. Alankar Kaushik [email protected] Hello me @ +91-9612951275 Assistant Coordinator: Mr. Abir Suchiang ([email protected]) Associate Coordinators: Dr. Caroline Wahlang ([email protected]) Ms Santidora Nongpluh ( [email protected])