July 2026 - Air-L - lists.aoir.org

[AoIR HQ] Reminder: An Update about the Air-L Mailing List
by Association Coordinator 03 Aug '26

03 Aug '26

Hi AoIR community, We wanted to reshare an earlier announcement about the shift of the Air-L. As the change over date approaches, we want to make sure everyone is aware which address is correct. If you have any questions, please reach out to ac(a)aoir.org or air-l-owner(a)lists.aoir.org. Thank you! — Some housekeeping about the air-l mailing list. We're moving the list to a new host with updated software. Air-L isn't going anywhere, and for the most part you won't have to do anything. The new setup makes a few things easier. You’ll be able to better manage your own subscription settings, and switching between digest mode and individual messages without having to email an administrator. The one change that affects you is the list address. It's changing slightly: Old: air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org<mailto:air-l@listserv.aoir.org> New: air-l(a)lists.aoir.org<mailto:air-l@lists.aoir.org> The old address will keep working during the transition, but starting on August 1st mail sent to air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org<mailto:air-l@listserv.aoir.org> will stop going through and you will be directed to report it through the new email. If you have the address saved in your contacts or email filters, update it to air-l(a)lists.aoir.org<mailto:air-l@lists.aoir.org> when you get a chance. Nothing is being lost in the move. The full archive and all past messages are available on the new mailing list servers. If you run into anything, you can reach the list manager at air-l-owner(a)lists.aoir.org<mailto:air-l-owner@lists.aoir.org>. — Best, Emerson (she/her) AoIR Communications and Membership Coordinator ac(a)aoir.org<mailto:ac@aoir.org> Looking for Michelle? After nine years, Michelle has officially stepped down from her position at AOIR. I'm Emerson, and I'll be stepping in to continue her work. As I'm sure anyone familiar with Michelle knows, I have big shoes to fill, and I appreciate your patience as I get up to speed!

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CfP - What does a good digital society look like? 10/11 June 2027, Sheffield UK
by Helen Kennedy 03 Aug '26

03 Aug '26

Submissions are open for the ESRC Digital Good Network's final two-day conference ‘What does a good digital society look like?’ on 10 & 11 June 2027, at Sheffield Hallam University, UK. Submit your abstract or proposal by 29 October 2026. WEBSITE: https://digitalgood.net/conference-2027/ Digital technologies should be good for people, societies and the planet, but there is ample evidence that they are often not. Social scientists, humanities scholars and others have provided rich empirical evidence of the harms and inequities that can result from digital tech deployments. For example, dating apps are used to harass and control as well as to enable romantic connections. Social media platforms deny users access to communities of wellbeing support in the process of moderating content to limit self-harm. Generative AI can provide creative assistance and make skills accessible, but it also hallucinates, infringes copyright and results in job losses. And there are environmental costs from data centres’ energy consumption and the global appetite for new devices. The negative consequences of tech deployments make clear the digital society we do not want. The next step is to ask what a good digital society looks like, a question which is attracting growing interest around the globe. What does a good society look like? is a two-day conference which addresses this question. It takes place in Sheffield, UK, on 10-11 June 2027. The conference represents the culmination of the five-year long Digital Good Network, which is collectively concerned with the notion of the ‘digital good’: both what it means, and how we achieve it. *Keynote speaker* We are delighted to announce that *Professor Ruha Benjamin*, transdisciplinary scholar, writer, educator, and cultural worker, and Professor of African American Studies at Princeton University, will give the keynote address at the conference. Her work is a major source of inspiration for our own, especially her (2019) invitation to "Remember to imagine and craft the worlds you cannot live without, just as you dismantle the ones you cannot live within". She is also Founding Director of the Ida B. Wells JUST Data Lab, and author of four books, Imagination: A Manifesto (2024),Viral Justice (2022), Race After Technology (2019), and People’s Science (2013), and editor of Captivating Technology (2019). *Plenary speakers will include* *Jean Burgess,* Distinguished Professor of Digital Media, Queensland University of Technology and Associate Director of the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society *Rachel Coldicutt OBE*, Founder and Executive Director of Careful Industries *Susan Halford*, Professor of Sociology, University of Bristol and Director of the ESRC Centre for Sociodigital Futures *Details * When: Thursday 10 and Friday 11 June 2027 Where: Sheffield Hallam University, UK Participation fee: £150 full fee / £100 for PhD students or those without institutional support. The fee covers conference attendance, refreshments and lunches during the event and an evening reception on the first day. Travel, accommodation and evening meals are not covered. -- Professor Helen Kennedy FBA FAcSS Professor of Digital Society, University of Sheffield, she/her Director of: ESRC Digital Good Network <https://digitalgood.net/> (@digitalgoodnet) + Living With Data <https://livingwithdata.org/> (@Living_WithData) + Public Voices in AI <https://digitalgood.net/dg-research/public-voices-in-ai/> Formerly Director of: Seeing Data <https://seeingdata.org/> Co-editor of: Data Visualization in Society <https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.12657/22273/9789048543137…> *Recent publications:* Kennedy, H., Aiello, G., Annabell, T. & Anderson, C.W. (2025) Generic visuals in the news as public images: Activating emotions, experiences and identities. *European Journal of Cultural Studies*. https://doi.org/10.1177/13675494241310675 Kennedy, H., Ditchfield, H., Oman, S., Bates, J., Perea, I. M., Fratczak, M., & Taylor, M. (2024). How people connect fairness and equity when they talk about data uses. *Big Data & Society*, 11(4). https://doi.org/10.1177/20539517241303162 Ditchfield, H., Oman, S., Kennedy, H., Frątczak, M., Bates, J., Taylor, M., & Medina-Perea, I. (2024). 'What ifs: The role of imagining in people’s reflections on data uses', *Convergence*. https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241300898 The Digital Good Network (2024) 'What do we mean when we talk about a good digital society?' in British Academy (ed) *What are the Possibilities of a Good Digital Society? * http://doi.org/10.5871/digital-society/9780856726934.001 <http://doi.org/10.5871/digital-society/9780856726934.001>

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CfP on "AI in Business and Strategic Communication"
by Yu Tian 03 Aug '26

03 Aug '26

Dear colleagues, This is a call for papers for a special issue of Communication and Change<https://link.springer.com/journal/44382> on AI in Business and Strategic Communication: Organizational Transformations, Stakeholder Relationships, and Emerging Communication Practices. Guest Editors: Dr. Hua Jiang, Syracuse University, USA Dr. Yi Luo, Montclair State University, USA Dr. Arunima Krishna, Boston University, USA Overview: Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping the landscape of business and strategic communication across industries, organizations, and global contexts. As AI becomes increasingly embedded in organizational communication processes, important questions emerge regarding transparency, trust, authenticity, ethics, creativity, labor, collaboration, and human–machine interaction. AI is not only influencing communication efficiency and personalization but also redefining professional roles, organizational cultures, and stakeholder expectations in business and strategic communication environments. This Special Issue invites original research that examines the evolving role of AI in business communication, strategic communication, and related fields. We welcome theoretically grounded, methodologically rigorous, and practically relevant scholarship that advances understanding of how AI is shaping organizational dynamics, stakeholder relationships, and other strategic communication practices. We encourage interdisciplinary perspectives while emphasizing clear contributions to communication scholarship and practice. Themes of Interest (including, but not limited to): Theme 1: AI and Organizational Transformation * AI and strategic communication management * AI-enabled internal communication * AI and leadership communication * AI and employee engagement * Human-AI collaboration in organizational communication * AI and data-driven decision-making * AI and predictive analytics * AI and communication intelligence * AI and future of communication professions Theme 2: AI and Stakeholder Relationships * Stakeholder engagement and relationship management * AI and dialogic management * AI, employee well-being, and organizational outcomes * Trust, credibility, and authenticity * Audience perceptions and user experiences Theme 3: Emerging Practices in AI-Mediated Business and Strategic Communication * AI and crisis communication * AI and corporate reputation management * AI and content creation * AI and social listening * AI and campaign evaluation * AI’s role in storytelling and branding * Impact of chatbots on business and strategic communication * Virtual influencers * AI and media relations * AI and social impact We welcome diverse methodological approaches, including quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods, computational, experimental, ethnographic, and critical approaches. Important Dates: * September 15, 2026: Please submit an abstract (600–1,200 words) to cac(a)fudan.edu.cn<mailto:cac@fudan.edu.cn>. * October 15, 2026: Authors of accepted abstracts will be notified. * March 15th, 2027: Full papers (6,000 – 10,000 words) will be submitted via the journal’s online submission system. * Early 2028: The special issue is expected to be published online. For more information, please see https://link.springer.com/journal/44382/updates/53007998. Submission Guidelines: Authors should follow the journal’s standard formatting and submission procedures. Please indicate that your manuscript is intended for the Special Issue on AI in Business and Strategic Communication in the email subject line. Contact: For any inquiries about the special issue, please contact the special issue editor, Dr. Hua Jiang (hjiang07(a)syr.edu<mailto:hjiang07@syr.edu>). About the Journal: Communication and Change<https://link.springer.com/journal/44382> (C&C) is a peer-reviewed, open-access international journal dedicated to advancing the understanding of communication in the context of rapid technological and societal transformation. With emerging technologies such as AI and big data reshaping communication practices, social structures, and media landscapes, Communication and Change seeks to foster innovative research and theory-building that explores the dynamic interplay between communication and change. C&C is published by Springer and is institutionally based at the School of Journalism, Fudan University. Professor James E. Katz at Boston University and Professor Baohua Zhou at Fudan are the journal’s co-Editors-in-Chief.

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Race, Media and AI pre-constituted panel, Media Industries conference, Madrid, June 2027
by Nessa Keddo 03 Aug '26

03 Aug '26

Media Industries conference 14th-16th June 2027 Universidad Carlos III de Madrid Dr Nessa Keddo and Natasha D. Henry are seeking papers to join our panel titled ‘Race, Media and AI’. The scope of the panel is broad, but may include: * The relationship between race and AI in media industry work * Platforms, race and AI * Race and the impact of AI on media industry practitioners * Race, AI and human-computer interaction in the media industry If you are interested in joining the submission of this pre-constituted panel, please submit the following to nessa.keddo(a)kcl.ac.uk<mailto:nessa.keddo@kcl.ac.uk> by 7th August 2026: * Presenter name(s) and institutional affiliation(s) * 100 word biography * Paper title * Abstract (400 words max) * 3-5 keywords Best wishes, Nessa Dr Nessa Keddo (she/her) Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Media, Diversity and Technology Programme Director, MA Global Media Industries Co-Chair, Gender and Work in the Creative Industries (GWCI) Hub King’s Institute for Artificial Intelligence King’s College London Department of Culture, Media and Creative Industries Chesham Building, Strand Campus London WC2R 2LS

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Quant/computational postdoctoral scholar opportunity at the Quello Center, Michigan State University
by Bauer, Johannes 24 Jul '26

24 Jul '26

Dear all, The Quello Center for Media and Information Policy<https://quello.msu.edu/> at Michigan State University has an opening for a postdoctoral scholar. The position will apply quantitative and computational methods to modeling digital socio-technical systems and contribute to our broader research programs at the Quello Center. Current projects examine factors that shape the development of digital infrastructures with a particular interest in the role of policy, the information flows enabled by these systems, and their economic and social implications for individuals and communities. Our team comes from a variety of methodological backgrounds, which is reflected in the mixture of quantitative and qualitative research methods we are using for this project. One important goal of our research is to develop models and insights that inform decisionmakers from the local to the national scale. The candidate will employ appropriate theoretical perspectives and statistical methods, including economic and computational approaches. This research requires working with large datasets and the integration of information from multiple public and private sources. Moreover, our projects explore the spatial aspects of socio-technical systems. Data science skills and an interest in spatial modeling are highly desirable. Experience with multi-disciplinary teams deploying mixed methods in complementary ways is a plus and should be addressed directly in the application. The successful candidate will also contribute to research management, as related to the project. This is a 1-2-year opportunity (timing is flexible). Start date negotiable and can be as early as October 1, 2026. For more details and/or to apply, please visit the Michigan State University Employment opportunities website at https://careers.msu.edu, refer to posting #1147524. Or contact Johannes M. Bauer, bauerj(a)msu.edu<mailto:bauerj@msu.edu>. With best wishes, Johannes ----------------------- Johannes M. Bauer Professor, Department of Media and Information Director, James H. and Mary B. Quello Center Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 48824-1212 bauerj(a)msu.edu<mailto:bauerj@msu.edu> | +1.517.432.8005 | https://quello.msu.edu<https://quello.msu.edu/> ----------------------- Johannes M. Bauer Professor, Department of Media and Information Director, James H. and Mary B. Quello Center Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 48824-1212 bauerj(a)msu.edu<mailto:bauerj@msu.edu> | +1.517.432.8005 | https://quello.msu.edu<https://quello.msu.edu/>

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Misinformation, Disinformation and Authenticity - IJOC Special Issue
by Alberto Lusoli 21 Jul '26

21 Jul '26

Dear colleagues, I am pleased to share the publication of a new special issue in the International Journal of Communication titled "Beyond Verification: Misinformation, Disinformation, and the Artifices of Authenticity <https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/20-sec-beyond-verification>." The special issue is the result of a multi-year project led by the Digital Democracies Institute <https://digitaldemocracies.org/> at Simon Fraser University. This Special Issue explores the stakes of authenticity (and its artifices) in the post-truth era. The papers included in this Special Section show how authenticity is the result of the complex processes of technical infrastructures, intensities of engagement, user experiences, and cultural practices. It addresses the orchestration of mis/disinformation through techno-cultural and techno-affective flows that combine network trackers with emotional bursts, algorithmic recommendations with national fantasies, and collective wounds and trauma with a desire for belonging. It investigates the distinction between veracity and authenticity, revealing where fact-checking fails and how dis/misinformation spreads through data and its networked infrastructures, by deploying methodologies from digital methods to media theory, and from large-scale content analysis to speculative and participatory methods. The Special Section highlights how a diversity of approaches to affect and authenticity furthers the study of mis- and disinformation by highlighting the various intersections between perceptions, communities, and disclosures. It also stresses how different methods can approach these questions while existing in tension with each other, from quantitative and mixed-methods approaches to theoretical examinations. You can read it here (Open Access): https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/20-sec-beyond-verification Best, -- Alberto Lusoli (he/him) Assistant Professor Creative Industries <https://www.torontomu.ca/creativeindustries/> The Creative School <https://www.torontomu.ca/the-creative-school/> Toronto Metropolitan University

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[CFP:Survey] Survey on Knowledge Graph enrichment
by Oğuzhan MENEMENCİOĞLU 21 Jul '26

21 Jul '26

Apologies for cross-posting. Dear Colleague, We kindly invite you to share your experience on knowledge graph enrichment by completing this survey: <https://forms.gle/tyW9M42nQc8fciLV6> https://forms.gle/tyW9M42nQc8fciLV6 We are especially interested in the meaning and boundaries of the KG enrichment task, best practices and pitfalls, and suggested methods for KG enrichment. Form completion can take 5 to 10 minutes. Your insights will contribute to a public deliverable on best practices and practical guidelines for KG enrichment. We appreciate your time and input. Please feel free to forward this invitation to your colleagues. Best regards, the Chairs of <https://goblin-cost.eu/working-group-1-knowledge-graphs-engineering/> GOBLIN Task 1.4<https://goblin-cost.eu/working-group-1-knowledge-graphs-engineering/> Dr. Oğuzhan MENEMENCİOĞLU ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://oguzhan.menemencioglu.info<http://oguzhan.menemencioglu.info/> Assistant Professor Karabük University, Department of Computer Engineering, Office 159, Iron and Steel Campus, 78050, Karabük, Turkey.

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Internet Law: Cases and Problems (16th edition)
by James Grimmelmann 20 Jul '26

20 Jul '26

The latest edition of my "casebook" (the legal-academic term for a textbook. as it consists substantially of edited excerpts from judicial opinions) Internet Law: Cases and Problems is now available. It includes recent legal developments including U.S. v. Chatrie on geofence warrants, Section 230 and algorithmic recommendations, and social-media addiction lawsuits. Although the book is primarily used by law students, I have written it to be broadly accessible and it is used in a number of computer-science, public policy, and information courses. The teacher's manual, available upon request, includes sample syllabi and teaching suggestions for non-law courses. The book is sold as a DRM-free PDF on a pay-what-you-want basis; we suggest $30 but allow users to pay any amount, even nothing. It's also available as a print-on-demand paperback for $75.10. More information: http://internetcasebook.com/ Digital download: https://semaphorepress.com/InternetLaw_overview.html Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1943689245 best wishes, James

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Invitation to RAT Webinar on Thursday, August 13, 2026
by Lewandowski, Dirk 20 Jul '26

20 Jul '26

Dear colleagues, We would like to highlight the upcoming RAT Webinar in August 2026: What is RAT? The Result Assessment Tool (RAT) is the free open-source research toolbox for collecting, analyzing and evaluating search results, developed by the Search Studies research group at the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences. Join our next RAT Webinar and discover the various features and capabilities of RAT, and how to effectively utilize the tool for your use cases. In this webinar, you will learn the following topics: • Define: Identify relevant search queries and use them for the next steps. • Collect: Automatically gather search results that match your queries from various search systems. • Evaluate: Evaluate the search results with jurors – for relevance or usability, for example. • Analyze: Perform automatic analyses, including Result Overlap as well as SEO and Readability Scorings for various study types. Date: Thursday, August 13, 2026 | Time: 5 - 6 pm (CET) (Find your time here) For registration please visit: http://bit.ly/4oPrM2o We are looking forward to your participation! Best, Oliver Koop Research Associate T +49 40 219 04 3453 oliver.koop(a)haw-hamburg.de HAMBURG UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES Faculty of Computer Science and Digital Society / Search Studies research group Finkenau 35 / Room 270 / 22081 Hamburg / Germany www.haw-hamburg.de / www.searchstudies.org Privacy notice: Information on how we process personal data and your corresponding rights at: www.haw-hamburg.de/datenverarbeitung -- Prof. Dr. Dirk Lewandowski Professor (Information Research & Information Retrieval) Hamburg University of Applied Sciences T +49 40 219042197 dirk.lewandowski(a)haw-hamburg.de HOCHSCHULE FÜR ANGEWANDTE WISSENSCHAFTEN HAMBURG Faculty of Computer Science and Digital Society Finkenau 35 / 22081 Hamburg / Germany https://www.searchstudies.org/dirk Book a meeting: https://app.usemotion.com/meet/dirk-lewandowski/besprechung Search Engines and Society Network (SEASON): https://searchenginesandsociety.net

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Call for Chapters Internet Studies: A Multidisciplinary Approach
by etalmud＠univ.haifa.ac.il 19 Jul '26

19 Jul '26

Call for Chapters Internet Studies: A Multidisciplinary Approach We invite chapter proposals for an edited volume to be published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This interdisciplinary collection will provide a timely synthesis of Internet Studies amid rapid technological and societal transformations, with a strong focus on the convergence of platforms and artificial intelligence. About the Book In the last decade, the digital landscape has been profoundly reshaped by dominant platforms, generative and agentic AI, intensifying geopolitical contests over digital sovereignty, widespread datafication, and new forms of algorithmic governance. This volume examines how these developments are reconfiguring power relations, economic structures, social inequalities, cultural practices, and global governance. The book adopts an explicitly interdisciplinary and pluralistic approach, drawing on sociology, science and technology studies (STS), political science, law, communication and media studies, political economy, anthropology, education, and computational social science. Comparative, global, and Global South perspectives are particularly welcome. It seeks to bridge classic Internet Studies concerns with the urgent realities of the post-2025 AI era, offering new theoretical frameworks, methodological innovations, and forward-looking visions. The volume is structured in five parts: - Part I: Foundations and Theorizing Internet Studies - Part II: Platforms, Data, and Economic Transformations - Part III: Society, Culture, Identities, and Inequalities - Part IV: Governance, Regulation, Ethics, and Rights - Part V: Methods and Future Directions A detailed table of contents with chapter abstracts is available upon request. We Welcome Contributions On (but not limited to): - Theorizing the shift from Web 2.0/network societies to agentic AI ecologies and sociotechnical systems - Materiality of internet infrastructures (cloud, cables, data centers) and contested global imaginaries - Platform capitalism, monopoly power, value extraction, and AI expansion - Datafication, algorithmic governance, and behavioral steering of everyday life - Global platform labor, gig economies, precarity, and emerging solidarities - Generative and agentic AI: impacts on creativity, attention economies, cultural production, authorship, and labor - Digital inequalities and the emerging AI divide (beyond access to capability gaps) - Intersectionality (race, gender, class, etc.) and identity performance in algorithmic environments - Fractured digital publics: communities, misinformation, polarization, and epistemic crises - Global internet governance, digital sovereignty, and geopolitical fragmentation - Comparative platform and AI regulation (e.g., EU DSA/AI Act, US, China, Global South) - Ethics, privacy, cybersecurity, surveillance, and human rights in the AI age - Hybrid and computational methodologies for studying fast-evolving digital phenomena - Sustainable digital futures: AI literacy, environmental costs, human-centered design, and speculative approaches Submission Guidelines Please submit to: Ilan Talmud, University of Haifa, talmud(a)soc.haifa.ac.il - A chapter abstract of 300–500 words (excluding references) - A provisional chapter title - Author name(s), affiliation(s), and a short bio (approx. 100 words per author) - Indication of which part of the book the proposed chapter best fits Deadline for abstracts: 30 September 2026 Final chapters should be approximately 8,000–10,000 words (including footnotes, references, and any tables/figures) and will undergo peer review. Timeline - Abstract submission deadline: 30 September 2026 - Notification of acceptance: Late October 2026 - Full chapter submission: May 2027 - Revised chapters due: September 2027 - Manuscript delivery to publisher: Spring 2028 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sSn46lDQNhIsMhtQPhI0TuXFeKgLsN6h/view?usp=… Prof. Ilan Talmud, Ph.D. ايلان تلمود Pronouns: He / Him / His Department of Sociology, University of Haifa https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8642-9582 https://sites.google.com/soc.haifa.ac.il/profilantalmud/home Office phone: 972-4-8240992 Secretaries: 972-4-8240995 04- 8249643/048249645 FAX: 972-4-8240819

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