School of Journalism and Communication, CUHK - The Chinese University of Hong Kong Communication Visiting Scholar Program 2022
 

The Chinese University of Hong Kong Communication Visiting Scholar Program 2022

"Communicating/Miscommunicating the COVID-19 Pandemic on Digital Media" Call for Papers

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Introduction

The School of Journalism and Communication at the Chinese University of Hong Kong has been organizing the annual Communication Visiting Scholar Program since 2008. The Program aims to promote academic exchange and links among Chinese-speaking scholars in cultural China and improve the quality of research of the Chinese research community. The Centre for Chinese Media and Comparative Communication Research (The C-Centre) of the School of Journalism and Communication will play host to this program in 2022.

 

Program Theme 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic has gone global since its outbreak in late 2019. The pandemic has accelerated the digitalization of everything, making people more dependent on digital media to stay informed, manage daily living under lockdowns, and take action to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. It is no exaggeration that almost every aspect of people’s lives is being digitized during this pandemic, ranging from working from home, online schooling, livestreaming e-commerce, and using smartphones and QR health code for traveling and management of cross-border population.

Unfortunately, the information technologies we depend on are turned into outlets for spreading “infodemics”—an overabundance of false or half-true information, which includes mis, dis and mal-information on digital media. Like a virus itself, infodemics can cause public panic, confusion and distrust. It poses a great challenge to fight the global pandemic. Furthermore, fake news, rumours, and conspiracy theories, stigmatizes certain social groups, stirs up hate speech, politicizes public health issues, and leads to greater social polarization. In fighting the infodemics, different approaches were adopted in Chinese and Western societies. The different responses provide communication scholars with opportunities to explore how these approaches have been shaped by different political, economic, and cultural forces, and learn what works and what does not in communicating the COVID-19 pandemic effectively to the public.

Against this backdrop, we invite communication scholars to patriciate in the discussions of issues themed on “Communicating/ Miscommunicating the COVID-19 Pandemic on Digital Media”. We welcome submissions of both empirical research and theoretical works. Submissions can be Chinese or English (all presentations will be in Chinese). We are open to all methodologies: scientific, critical, ethnographic or big data. The sub-themes for the workshop include but are not limited to:

 

  • COVID-19 pandemic, media and digitalization of everything
  • COVID-19 pandemic, vaccine supply and geopolitics
  • The role of traditional media in reporting the pandemic, risk perceptions and preventative measures
  • COVID-19-related misinformation and its definition, sources, attributes, classification, debunking and management
  • COVID-19-related misinformation and its diffusion model, KOL and impact
  • Infodemics, stigma, hate speech and discrimination against ethnic groups
  • Infodemics, crisis management and institutional trust
  • Comparative analysis of the diffusion of infodemics and coping strategies in Chinese societies
  • Big data and methodological challenges and innovations of researching infodemics
  • Other sub-themes that are related to the COVID-19 pandemic, communication and media

 

Visiting Period

The visiting scholars participating in the workshop are expected to stay in Hong Kong for 13 days from 13 January 2022 to carry out intensive academic exchange and research. The School will provide a daily living allowance of HK$350 and accommodation for each visiting scholar.

 

Call-for-Paper

All participants are required to present a paper related to the said theme at the workshop in Chinese. The deadline for the submission of extended abstracts is 15 June 2021 and the full paper submission deadline is 15 October 2021. All submissions should be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Please refer to the Chinese version of the workshop pamphlet for details.

 

 

The Annual Workshop Committee

Prof. Ran Wei (Co-Convener)
Prof. Ven-hwei Lo (Co-Convener)
Prof. Joseph Chan
Prof. Francis Lee
Prof. Christine Huang
Prof. Donna Chu
Prof. Yunya Song
Prof. Hai Liang
Prof. Dong Dong

 

Enquiry

Dr. Daisy Cheng
Phone: 3943 8709
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.