Call for Papers: African Women in Media 2022 (#AWiM22) 

African Women in Media 2022 (#AWiM22)

Hybrid Conference 

Theme: United in Action

Fez, Morocco

8-9 December 2022

African Women in Media (AWiM) is pleased to bring you the sixth annual conference, which aims to bring together academia, media practitioners, civil society organisations and policymakers.

With the theme United in Action, African Women in Media 2022 (#AWiM22) will hold in Fez, Morocco, on 8-9 December 2022 as a hybrid conference.

AWIM invites proposals from academia, media practitioners, civil society organisations and policy actors critically engaging with three sub-themes that make up AWiM22.

These are:

1. Gender Equality in and through Media. This sub-theme asks; Is gender equality in and through the media a moral and ethical obligation for media organisations, or might it be argued to be a fundamental tenet of media’s role in society? What are the intersecting factors in achieving this? What are examples of best practices and knowledge production?
2. Collective Action and Representation. This sub-theme asks; What have been the outcome and opportunities for collective action towards an improved representation of African women? After years of misrepresentation, how are media industries responding to the call to change the narrative? For those (media, academia, for example) called to ‘decolonise’, how have/might they achieve this?
3. Media Business and Global Challenges. This sub-theme asks; How might media organisations build a different future that is self-evaluating, collaborative, and enabling?

In exploring these questions, AWiM22 United in Action welcomes paper, panel, workshop and round table proposals from academics, practitioners, CSOs, and policy professionals in the following, but not limited to, topic areas:

Gender Equality in and through Media

• Critical engagements with gender democracy in the African context

• Decolonising gender and media curriculum
• Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion
• Cultural intersection
• Narratives of equality
• Feminist studies
• Gender studies
• Violence Against Women and Girls

• Safety for women journalists
• Critical engagements with sextortion
• Gender policies and regulations
• Femineity formation
• Gendered governance
• Empowerment methodologies
• Media education
• Misogyny and anti-feminism
• the role of policymakers, policies and funding in gender & media development

Collective Action and Representation.

• Representation
• Politics of visibility
• Innovative digital methods for representation
• Data justice and safety
• Social media and digital ecologies
• Reporting the environment and global challenges
• Postcolonial studies
• Migration and Diaspora
• Mental health and the media
• Sub-cultures
• Women, Peace and Security
• Ethnicity, Race and Gender
• Children, Youth and Media
• Neo-colonialism
• Black studies
• Cultural studies
• Memory
• Curricular design and pedagogy for empowerment
• Suitability models for alternative media education for women journalists

Media Business and Global Challenges

• Business and Finance
• Media business models
• Economic empowerment
• Media entrepreneurship
• Digital and online safety
• Podcast studies
• Media practice research
• Global media management

• Health communication
• Peace communication
• Resilient and inclusive sustainability
• Development goals
• Audience
• Community media
• Radio
• Print media
• Television and Film
• Regulation
• Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Machine Learning
• Transmedia
• Ethics
• Innovation
• Media and religion

Proposed formats:  

• Individually submitted papers
• Panels (max. four individual papers per panel)
• Workshops
• Roundtable discussionsGuidelines for Submissions:   Abstracts should be 150-300 words in English, French or Arabic. It should detail the focus of your proposed paper, panel, workshop or roundtable. Please include a 50-word bio, detail your affiliations, and email addresses for all authors. All submissions should be made via this online form by noon WAT on 25 May 2022.As a hybrid event, we also welcome alternative contributions, including podcasts, vlogs and other innovative ideas. Please indicate if you intend to present in person or make a virtual contribution when submitting your abstract. Please note that in-person presentations will be prioritised, and speakers are responsible for their transportation to and accommodation in Morocco. Our partner hotel and tour operators will offer discounts for delegates. Your registration includes morning and afternoon refreshments and lunch on 8 and 9 December during the conference and dinner during the Gala Awards Dinner on 9 December.

  Registration for AWiM22 will open on 26 June 2022.

For more information contact yemisi@africanwomeninmedia.com

About African Women in Media

African Women in the Media (AWiM) is a network for African women working in media industries globally. We aim to positively impact the way media functions in relation to women. Our vision is that one-day African women and women working in media in Africa will have equal representation in media industries.  To stay up to date, follow us on Twitter @RealAWiM and subscribe to our newsletter http://africanwomeninmedia.com/subscription-page/

The AWiM22 conference is guided by an ethos of shared knowledge and best practices and contributes to agendas on the African continent and globally, namely:

1. The African Union Commission’s Agenda 2063 Aspiration 6 with the specific goal of “an Africa whose development is people-driven, relying on the potential of African people, especially its women and youth, and caring for children.”
2. The United Nations’ Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goal 5, particularly in the aspect of representation. SDG 5 reports a 1% global growth in the representation of women in managerial positions from 26% in 2015 to 27% in 2018. This increase is seen in “all regions except in least developed countries.”