[liberationtech] CfP - International Journal of Communication Special Issue - (Un)civil Society in Digital China

[Jiang, Min]

Dear colleagues,

Please see the following CfP and kindly share it with our colleagues. Apologies for cross-posting. Many thanks!

Min

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Min Jiang (Ph.D. Purdue), Associate Professor of Communication Studies
Affiliate Faculty, International Studies
Co-coordinator, Digital Arts, Sciences & Technologies (DAST) <http://clas-pages.uncc.edu/dast/>
5011 Colvard N., UNCC, 9201 University City Blvd. Charlotte, NC 28223
704-687-0768 | Min.Jiang at uncc.edu<mailto:Min.Jiang at uncc.edu> | Web<http://clas-pages.uncc.edu/min-jiang/>site<http://clas-pages.uncc.edu/min-jiang/> | Twitter<http://www.twitter.com/mindyjiang> | LinkedIn<http://www.linkedin.com/in/minjiang>

Research Affiliate
Center for Global Communication Studies, University of Pennsylvania
_____________________________________________________________________


(Un)civil Society in Digital China
Special Issue for Publication in the International Journal of Communication
Call for Proposals


Editors

Min Jiang (Ph.D.), Associate Professor of Communication Studies, UNC Charlotte, USA
Ashley Esarey (Ph.D.), Visiting Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of Alberta, Canada


Rationale

Civil society’s role in furthering democratization and the development of a public sphere has long attracted scholars whose work has traced the historical roots of civil society in China and celebrated its emergence offline and online. While decades of economic reforms have empowered myriad civil society organizations, volatile contention has arisen among social groups along ideological, class, ethnic, racial and regional fault lines. Uncivil exchanges, amplified by the Internet and social media, often work at cross purposes and fail to produce consensus or solutions to public problems. These disputes, and the underlying social/political/cultural schisms, threaten to undermine constructive citizen engagement and the promise of civil society in China. They also challenge the notion of a unified civil society standing in solidarity against a monolithic, authoritarian state.

Consider the following examples:

o   The Internet flame war between Han Han and Fang Zhouzi that delegitimized the notion of “public intellectual” in China

o   Left-Right debate amongst China’s intellectual communities that spill over into street brawls

o   Vigilantism and breaches of privacy (i.e. instances of “human flesh search engine” and the Guo Meimei Red Cross scandal)

o   Online conflicts between “haves” and “have-nots” amidst extreme inequality

o   Virtual contention between Han and ethnic minorities over the status of Tibet and Xinjiang

o   Racial discourse on mixed-race Chinese and immigrants

o   Clashes over Taiwan’s “sunflower movement” expressed on the Internet

o   Divergent online opinions about the “umbrella movement” in Hong Kong

This special issue invites contributors to unpack the multilayered, multidimensional reality and contradictions that define the Chinese Internet, focusing on the big-picture ramifications of online contention. With a population of nearly 650 million, Chinese Internet users are more diverse than the tech-savvy, liberal elites who first went online two decades ago. The groups active online today include politically conservative, nationalistic, apathetic, and even reactionary individuals. They also evince complicated attitudes towards the state, business and other demographic segments. The complex make-up of Chinese civil society and the nature of its self-representation thus challenge, on the one hand, an idealized notion of civil society that is independent from the private sphere, government and business, and on the other, the implicit assumption prevalent in Chinese Internet studies of a liberal subject demanding social justice, media freedom and political reform.

Questions for contributors:

o   What are the characteristics of Chinese civil society? What is its potential or limitations? Does the proliferation of the Internet in China necessarily empower civil society in China? Is the opposite possible?

o   Is civil society always civil? Can it be uncivil, fractious and even reactionary? How does the Chinese Internet amplify or mitigate (un)civil tendencies? To what extent is online public debate or collective action becoming more fragmentary, working at cross purposes, or resulting in “echo chamber” effects and polarization? Do nationalistic, jingoistic and even reactionary forces overwhelm and dominate “civil” discourse?

o   Are the “uncivil” tendencies of the Chinese Internet inevitable in a society composed of increasingly diverse groups? To what extent do commercial and state institutions influence uncivil tendencies online through intervention or even manipulation? What roles do powerful Internet businesses and elite personalities play?

o   Under what circumstances might incivility online prove advantageous for political or social change?

o   What evidence do we have for (un)civil society in China? Examples might include the formation of informal groups and formal organizations, discourses, and their intersection with collective action, social movements, and other social behavior.

Contributions to this special issue will map a spectrum of key actors, issues, and orientations of a contentious civil society that has been submerged under a larger body of research on China and established democracies that assume state-society confrontation and fail to explore intra-societal tensions. Collectively, the contributions promise to produce a theoretically-interesting and empirically rich body of work that expands and deepens Chinese Internet research dominated by work focused on such topics as Chinese Internet censorship and propaganda, online activism, civic associations, deliberation and online culture. Insights generated from this special issue will in turn inform and advance research on civil society by debating its essence and examining the conditions conducive or unfavorable to its growth, with implications going beyond China. Although contributions will emphasize what polarizes Chinese society and sometimes seem to tear it apart, we welcome contributions that analyze the prospects for rising above incivility, bridging sociopolitical schisms, and building consensus without compromising self-expression and personal security.


Affiliated Conference

We encourage interested contributors to attend the 13th Chinese Internet Research Conference (CIRC) that includes as its theme “(un)civil society in digital China.” The conference will be held at the University of Alberta, Canada on May 27-28, 2015. The deadline for submitting paper abstracts (400 words) is February 15, 2015. For more information, please visit:
http://www.china.ualberta.ca/Conferences/Chinese-internet-research-conference.aspx


Proposed Schedule


Abstract Deadline                                         Jul 1, 2015
Notice of Abstract Acceptance                     Aug 1, 2015
Full Paper Deadline                                      Jan 1, 2016

Reviews Deadline                                         Mar 1, 2016
Revisions Deadline                                       May 1, 2016
Finalized Paper                                             Jul 1, 2016



Paper Guidelines


o   Submitted papers will go through double-blind peer review.

o   The maximum word count is 9,000 words (including the abstract, keywords, images with captions, references, and appendices, if any).

o   Abstracts submitted for pre-screening should be less than 500 words.

o   Submitted full papers are not guaranteed acceptance.

o   Formatting of the special issue follows the general guidelines of the International Journal of Communication (IJoC).


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