Annual Conference of the Search Engines and Society Network (SEASON 2026) Dear colleagues, On behalf of the Search Engines and Society Network (SEASON), we invite submissions for the 2026 edition of the Search Engines and Society Annual Conference (SEASON 2026), to be held at HAW Hamburg, Germany, from 15-17 September 2026. Following the success of SEASON 2025, which brought together an engaged and diverse international community of researchers, practitioners, and students, SEASON continues as a dedicated conference series for critical and interdisciplinary research on search engines and their societal implications. SEASON explores the multifaceted role of search engines in today’s culture and society. The conference fosters interdisciplinary dialogue and collaboration to deepen our understanding of search engines as cultural, societal, political, and technical artefacts, as well as their role in everyday practices. We invite submissions for: -Long presentations -Short presentations -Interactive sessions (e.g., panels and workshops) -Posters Topics of interest include, but are not limited to: -Social and cultural aspects of relevance -Epistemic implications of search-engine use -Search engines and Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) -Search engines and information disorders (e.g., disinformation, data voids) -AI and changing patterns of search engine use -Search engines and environmental crises -Political economy of search -Accountability and responsibility of search engine providers -Search engine bias and fair search -Ethical and affective dimensions of search -Media and information literacy -Search engines in everyday life and educational settings -Search engines and specific communities -Methods and data collection for search engine research -Comparative and historical studies of web search -Approaches to opening the “black box” of search engine rankings We welcome conceptual and empirical contributions from a wide range of disciplinary backgrounds, including the humanities, social sciences, and technical disciplines. Interdisciplinary approaches, work in progress, submissions from practitioners, and student contributions are especially encouraged. Submission categories and formats: -Long presentations: Extended abstracts, max. 1000 words (excluding references) -Short presentations: Abstracts, max. 500 words (excluding references) -Interactive sessions: Proposals (60–90 minutes), max. 1000 words (excluding references) -Posters: Abstracts, max. 500 words (excluding references) Submission guidelines: -Submissions must be in PDF format -APA referencing style Please submit via EasyChair: https://easychair.org/my/conference?conf=season2026<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://easychair.org/my/conference?conf=season2026__;!!CF15FET90Tp8!COHCijg3b8ae6mP2w2pTm7S7dbyE_gN1iLeNecDMLmeVzpCVWjWapCh-nEIt5ECoqRj9BgcWU1o_4yAWhEjjjhDTC3IJGbhA$> Submission deadline: 30 April 2026 Accepted contributions will be made available to conference participants ahead of the event. All accepted abstracts will be freely accessible after the conference. SEASON 2026 Website: https://searchenginesandsociety.net/season-2026/<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://searchenginesandsociety.net/season-2026/__;!!CF15FET90Tp8!COHCijg3b8ae6mP2w2pTm7S7dbyE_gN1iLeNecDMLmeVzpCVWjWapCh-nEIt5ECoqRj9BgcWU1o_4yAWhEjjjhDTC4PcNt5p$> We look forward to your contributions. With best regards, The SEASON 2026 Organizing Team