The 2004 ICA conference in New Orleans, to be held May 27 - 31, is just around the corner, and FSD has planned its largest and hopefully best conference ever. FSD’s nine paper sessions and 11 panel sessions represent the largest number of sessions we’ve ever had, which reflects both the growth of the division within ICA as well as the increasing influence and importance of feminist scholarship. The exceptional quality of the scholarship and the wide range of topics bodes well for very exciting and stimulating sessions.
Two special theme sessions are among the panels. "En-gendering War, Empire, and Resistance: Interrogating the Public Interest Role of Wartime Media," scheduled for Friday from 9:45 to 11 a.m., provides a critical analysis of how mediated communication functions in the interests of war and empire, calling into question the public interest role of media in the current geopolitical climate. The other session, "Communication in the Public Interest: Feminist Research for International Social Change," addresses the conference theme, "Communication Research in the Public Interest," in discussing political action for social change within an international context that sees a breaking down of the traditional antagonisms of feminist theory/practice and privileged/marginalized discourses within feminism. This panel of key women in the field of feminist media studies will be held Monday from 9:45 to 11 a.m.
Other times to put on your calendar are the FSD Business Meeting, which will be held Friday from 5:15 to 6:30 p.m., and the FSD reception, which immediately follows. Eileen Meehan, who holds the Lemuel Heidel Brown Endowed Chair in Media and Political Economy at the Manship School of Mass Communication at Louisiana State University, will be the guest speaker at the reception. Her topic, "Communication in the Public Interest: Does that Include Us?," addresses both the conference theme as well as the marginalization of feminist research. Eileen has written extensively in the area of feminist political economy. Her current research and writing looks at the targeting of women by television and the television ratings system. Her most recent book is the co-edited Sex and Money: Feminism and Political Economy in Media Studies (2002, U of Minnesota Press).
On a less positive note, the pre-conference retreat that Vicki Mayer was organizing has been cancelled. In the end, not enough people were able to make it. Those who want to come to New Orleans early and need an affordable place to stay can still stay at the planned retreat site. It is a convent serving Loyola University and is within easy reach of the conference at the Sheraton New Orleans as well as the rest of the city. Please contact Vicki for more information:vmayer(@)tulane.edu
Hope to see you in New Orleans!
Marian Meyers, Vice Chair |
