MCLC: Political Contestation in Chinese Digital Spaces--cfp

[Denton, Kirk]

MCLC LIST
From: Guobin Yang <gyang at asc.upenn.edu>
Subject: Political Contestation in Chinese Digital Spaces--cfp
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Call for Submissions

Political Contestation in Chinese Digital Spaces
Special Issue for China Information <http://cin.sagepub.com/> guest edited
by Guobin Yang

Two decades after China was connected to the internet, more than half of
the Chinese population is online. The internet and other digital
communication technologies have become a crucial component of Chinese
life. Chinese digital spaces have expanded to encompass a vast array of
technological and cultural forms. They have also become an arena of
intense contention and contestation among multiple forces.

Who are the main actors in these digital contestations? What divides or
unites them? What actions and interactions preoccupy them? What are their
changing strategies and tactics? How do these contestations shape Chinese
digital spaces? What is produced and reproduced in these contestations?
How do they influence political expression and participation?

Examining these questions will not only illuminate the politics of the
internet, but also the changing forms of power, identity, and political
expression in Chinese society more broadly. On the twentieth anniversary
of the birth of a public Chinese internet, China Information will dedicate
a special issue to these questions. We invite submissions of original
research articles from scholars in diverse academic fields. Papers should
critically engage one or more of the following topics:

Types of digital contestants, their mutual perceptions, conflicts and
alignments:

-governmental and non-governmental entities
-business firms in public relations, marketing, and advertising
-web sites, internet firms, and ICT industries
-netizens, online opinion leaders, online communities (e.g. hackers)
-international media institutions and corporations
-international inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations

Civil and uncivil practices and strategies of contestation:

- ideological contention (eg. the new left and liberals) in cyber
communities
- cyber dissent and online activism
- forms of discrimination and prejudices (e.g. racism and sexism)
- politics of purification and contamination online
- cyber attacks and counter-attacks
- forms of deception and masking (invisible online advertising)
- database and software as technologies of surveillance
- changing forms of control (wumao, government on Weibo, etc)
- symbolism, narratives, and rhetoric in digital contestation

Submission instructions

China Information is a long-standing, peer-reviewed journal dedicated to
the publication of timely and in-depth analyses of major developments in
contemporary China and overseas Chinese communities in the areas of
politics, economics, law, ecology, culture, and society, including
literature and the arts. More information about the journal can be found
at: http://cin.sagepub.com <http://cin.sagepub.com/>

This special issue will be guest edited by Guobin Yang. Please contact the
Guest Editor at: gyang at asc.upenn.edu

Those who are interested to take part in the special issue should send an
abstract to the Guest Editor before 1 October 2012. The full manuscript
should be ready before 1 July 2013. All submissions will be reviewed
anonymously. The special issue is scheduled for publication in 2014.