Letter from the Chair

Dear Section members,

It’s already more than a month since our Madrid conference on ‘Comparing Political Communication Across Time and Space’. Everybody who attended the conference will certainly agree with me that this was a fantastic event, both academically and socially. Some people I spoke to even said that this was one of the best conferences they’ve ever been to. I found the quality of the papers of extremely high standard throughout, indicating the maturity of our field and the tremendous progress that has been made in comparative research. The social programme, including a choice of lovely tapas bars and an exciting flamenco show, also contributed to making this conference a memorable occasion in the history of our section. So I would like to express a big Thank You to the local organiser Maria Jose Canel and her excellent team.

During the conference we also had a business meeting: for those who are interested, the minutes can be downloaded here. You’ll find more information about activities of the Section past and future as well as details about the conference itself, including selection of papers. The business meeting also agreed on a revised text for our section website including our objectives. These documents need the approval of the ECREA Board and will be uploaded as soon as we get their okay.

Looking ahead, the call for papers for the next general ECREA conference, which will be held in Istanbul 24-27th October 2012, has now been issued. More details can be found on the conference website. Please remember that the deadline for submitting proposals is 28th February 2012. Proposals should be submitted through the conference online submission system, and there should be a clear indication on your proposal which section you want your paper to be considered for.

Maria Jose, Jesper and myself wish you all a very enjoyable Christmas break and we hope to see you all next year in Istanbul and/or at any other occasion.

With best wishes,
Katrin Voltmer (Chair)

New book on comparative political communication

Now a new book om comparative political communication has just been published. The title is How Media Inform Democracy. A Comparative Approach, and it is edited by Toril Aalberg and James Curran (Routledge, 2012). The book builds upon comparative content analyses and surveys in the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, Norway and Sweden. The main focus is on cross-national differences and similarities in how the media cover politics and current affairs, and how that contributes to and helps shape political knowledge and attitudes.

More information about the book can be found here.

New issue of Political Communication Report

Now the October issue of the Political Communication Report, the newsletter for the Political Communication Divisions of the International Communication Association and the American Political Science Association, has been published. Among other things, it includes a roundtable on “The Flow of Political Information in the Digital Age”.

Final conference program

Now it is only about a week to go until the conference “Comparing Political Communication Across Time and Space”, organized by the ECREA Political Communication Section. The final program can be downloaded here.

Call for Papers: Special Issue of Public Relations Journal

Now the Public Relations Journal has annonced a special issue focused on political public relations. More information and instructions for submissions can be found at the journal’s website.

Conference Program Now Finalized: Comparing Political Communication Across Time and Space

Now the program for the 2011 ECREA Political Communication Section Conference – Comparing Political Communication Across Time and Space – is finalized and published. It can be downloaded either at the conference website or here.

It promises to be a very exciting and interesting conference in the beautiful city of Madrid, thanks to the many and strong submissions we received, and we are very happy with the program.

The conference registration is now also open, for those who have not yet registered but wish to attend the conference.

Conference Registration Now Open: Comparing Political Communication Across Time and Space

Now the registration for the 2011 ECREA Political Communication Conference – Comparing Political Communication Across Time and Space – is open. The conference will be held in Madrid between October 20-21, 2011. For more information and registration, please visit the conference website.

New issue of Political Communication Report

Now the new issue of the Political Communication Report, the newsletter for the Political Communication Divisions of the International Communication Association and American Political Science Association, has been published.

New book on European political communication

Now Ashgate has just published the new book Political Communication in European Parliamentary Elections, edited by Michaela Maier, Jesper Strömbäck and Lynda Lee Kaid (Ashgate, 2011). More information about the book can be found at the publishers website.

If any members of ECREA’s political communication section has published a new book and want it listed at this webpage, just sent an email to jesper@jesperstromback.com.

Upcoming Conference: Political Communication in the Era of New Technologies

On September 22-23, the Polish Communication Association and the Institute of Political Science at the University of Warsaw will organize the conference Political Communication in the Era of New Technologies. The conference is sponsored by ECREA’s Political Communication Section, among others. For those interested in attending the conference, more information can be found at the conference website.