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Communication, Culture & Critique

@ccc-journal.bsky.social

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An International Communication Association journal publishing critical/cultural research and commentary on media, culture and technology. https://linktr.ee/cccjournalica

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Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Aug 28

Here's a link to the full call with submission instructions!

academic.oup.com/ccc/pages/jo...

academic.oup.com

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Aug 28

Critical journalism studies folks!

We're looking for contributors to a new special issue: "Journalism in Ruins: Interrogating norms of ‘independent’ journalism." Editors: Natalie Fenton and Srirupa Roy.

Abstracts due Dec. 15, 2025.

Call for Papers
Journalism in Ruins: Interrogating norms of ‘independent’ journalism

Thematic Issue for Communication, Culture & Critique (2026/27)

Abstract Deadline (500 words): December 15, 2025

Complete Manuscript Deadline (7,000-8,000 words): June 15, 2026

Co-editors: Natalie Fenton (Goldsmiths, University of London), Srirupa Roy (University of Göttingen)

Rationale

This thematic issue critically interrogates the normative ideal of an independent journalism that drives contemporary laments for a “journalism in ruins.” Normative liberal understandings of news have often declared independent news production as the holy grail of media freedom. A free media is in turn associated with a healthy democracy. Independence of news organizations from government pressure or interference in news production is considered vital to democracy’s well-being. Independence of journalism from wealthy sponsors or corporate pressures is seen as key to its integrity. In turn, independent news media are hailed as the ultimate democratic horizon (Fenton, 2025). An entrenched belief of Anglo/Western liberal media systems, the norm of ‘independent journalism’ also exerts a powerful influence across much of the postcolonial South (Mustvairo et al., 2021).

Yet, the mythology of a ‘free’ news media sustaining ‘liberal’ democracy has long since been exposed as exhausted at best, and as absolving of truths at worst. Corruption and compromise have come to the fore as political and commercial interests merge and expand. It is now beyond doubt that a media and tech system that may have many platforms and points of distribution but is dominated by a few, powerful voices and a news media increasingly run to secure financial reward or political influence is highly unlikely to foster greater democratic participation in political culture (Pickard, 2019). Indeed, journalism is arguably now more often subject to fear and favor than without it despite claims to the contrary. As liberal democracy flounders, as legal frameworks fail to deliver journalistic protections, as free expression becomes the preserve of the powerful, as good governance gives way to commercialism at all costs and mechanisms of accountability seek to preserve privilege rather than uphold standards, then the ideal of independent journalism flails too.

So why do many scholars and journalist…

These concerns are even more pertinent as mainstream news organizations around the world face multiple challenges from both state and commercial forces, resulting in their closure and constriction and as attacks on journalists increase. As calls of fake news, mis/disinformation abound, so public trust in journalism has plummeted in many places. Yet in the face of such existential challenges, the mainstream journalistic vanguard reaches once more for a return to ‘core values’ aligned with liberalism’s promises to expose the truth with little regard for the systemic forces (of commercialism, marketisation, elite capture, and political entanglement) that have evaded such truth-making claims from being realized. As journalism retreats to its safe default space of hegemonic values and claimed conformity of standards such as ‘objectivity’, ‘impartiality’ and ‘independence’ so it fails to acknowledge the structures and practices that ensure these spaces are too often distorted by money, power and privilege and hence are also heavily classed, gendered and racialized. How has this ‘high modernism’ (Hallin, 2006) of journalism managed to prevail and largely ignore critiques of power relations and geopolitical context and what does it mean for a journalism in ruins?

This Thematic Issue seeks to interrogate these concerns: Crucially, it asks, what if the pilgrimage for journalistic independence is treading the wrong path, directing us away from interrogating power relations that exist and blinkering our visions of what journalism could become? If news and journalism are always situated in relation to and interact with other organizations, institutions, professions and people, would we be better placed to interrogate the relations of power therein and establish the levels of interdependence that exist in order to determine how these interdependencies can be recognized, better understood and managed? How can journalism studies move beyond liberal conceptions of the public sphere…

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Jul 3

As part of our forum on Media & Fascism, @naomipaik.bsky.social explores the vital role of sanctuary movements in resisting Trump's authoritarianism. Check it out!

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Abolitionist sanctuary under Trump 2.0

Abstract. This article examines the importance of sanctuary movements under rising fascism in the US under the second presidential administration of Donald

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Jul 2

Awesome! You may also be interested in this piece too, from the same forum (and open access): doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Kamala is for they/them: liberalism, fascism, and nonsense

Abstract. The slogan that the Trump campaign used in the 2024 US presidential election to tie rival Kamala Harris to trans activists in its television ads—

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Jul 2

As part of our forum on Media & Fascism, @lorelemaster.bsky.social and @marykathinks.bsky.social unpack Trump's moral crusade against trans people. Check it out!

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Transing Trump’s moral crusade against transgender people

Abstract. The beginning of Trump’s second presidency finds us immersed in a moral crusade with the expressed intent of complete annihilation of transness f

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Jul 1

As part of our forum on Media & Fascism, Gil Hochberg argues for greater critical focus on the global rise of Christian Zionism. Check it out!

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

“With friends like this, who needs enemies?”: on the global rise of Christian Zionism

Abstract. This article argues for greater media and critical emphasis on Christian Zionism, a deeply antisemitic and Islamophobic ideology, whose supporter

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Jun 30

As part of this month's forum on Media & Fascism, @jfarkas.bsky.social and @aurelmondon.bsky.social explore the rise of reactionary tech oligarchy and why liberalism, journalism, and the Internet aren't the bulwarks they might seem. Check it out!

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

The roots of reactionary tech oligarchy and the need for radical democratic alternatives

Abstract. The aim for this commentary is two-fold: first, we seek to outline how decades of liberal “post-democratic” hegemony—prevalent across liberal dem

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Jun 26

As part of this month's forum on Media & Fascism, @reecepeck.bsky.social explores Trump's alt-media strategy and shows why we need more historically engaged analyses of political communication strategy and tactics. Check it out!

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

More than money and algorithms: the cultural roots of Trump’s alt-media strategy

Abstract. This article examines Trump’s masculinist “alt-media strategy” in the 2024 election to explore the right’s dominance in the online media landscap

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Jun 26

As part of this month's forum on Media & Fascism, @ajescoffery.bsky.social explores how experimental, community-based media practices can help us revitalize and reconstruct democracy. Check it out!

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Media reconstruction and reparative media

Abstract. Drawing from the work of scholar-activist W.E.B. Du Bois and insights from co-creating a community-based media platform, this article demonstrate

Reposted by Communication, Culture & Critique

A.J. Bauer @ajbauer.bsky.social · Jun 5

Mis/Disinformation Studies folks!

This is an excellent meditation on the political limitations of debunking and on how we might respond otherwise. Even if you're not a queer/trans studies person, this piece is well worth the read!

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Jun 5

🚨OPEN ACCESS🚨

As part of our new forum on "Media and Fascism," @cassiusa.bsky.social writes about how trans cultural production might best answer the ascendant fascist aesthetics of nonsense and sensation.

There's no paywall, check it out!

academic.oup.com/ccc/article/...

Kamala is for they/them: liberalism, fascism, and nonsense

Abstract. The slogan that the Trump campaign used in the 2024 US presidential election to tie rival Kamala Harris to trans activists in its television ads—

academic.oup.com

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Jun 5

🚨OPEN ACCESS🚨

As part of our new forum on "Media and Fascism," @cassiusa.bsky.social writes about how trans cultural production might best answer the ascendant fascist aesthetics of nonsense and sensation.

There's no paywall, check it out!

academic.oup.com/ccc/article/...

Kamala is for they/them: liberalism, fascism, and nonsense

Abstract. The slogan that the Trump campaign used in the 2024 US presidential election to tie rival Kamala Harris to trans activists in its television ads—

academic.oup.com

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Jun 4

Our June issue is now live! It kicks off with a forum on Media and Fascism, featuring a star-studded list of contributors.

Get started with this introduction by forum editors @paulachak.bsky.social and @ajbauer.bsky.social!

academic.oup.com/ccc/article-...

Cruel capitalism: a forum on media and fascism

Abstract. This article introduces a forum on “Media and Fascism” by reading tech oligarch and right-wing political operative Elon Musk as a nexus of intern

academic.oup.com

Reposted by Communication, Culture & Critique

Paula C @paulachak.bsky.social · Jun 3

Check out CCC’s latest forum on “Cruel Capitalism: Media and Fascism” co-edited with @ajbauer.bsky.social in
@ccc-journal.bsky.social!
Essays on trans culture, the central role of Christian Zionism, masculinity and alt media, reparative and abolitionist futures, and more!

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Cruel capitalism: a forum on media and fascism

Abstract. This article introduces a forum on “Media and Fascism” by reading tech oligarch and right-wing political operative Elon Musk as a nexus of intern

Reposted by Communication, Culture & Critique

Lori Regattieri @followlori.bsky.social · Jun 3

Must read from colleagues in the latest issue of Communication, Culture and Critique.

A.J. Bauer @ajbauer.bsky.social · Jun 3

Check out my latest, with @paulachak.bsky.social, in @ccc-journal.bsky.social!

It introduces a forum we co-edited on "Media and Fascism," with a star-studded lineup! See the 🧵 below:

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Cruel Capitalism: a forum on media and fascism by AJ Bauer and Paula Chakravartty in Communication, Culture and Critique: This article introduces a forum on "media and fascism" by reading tech oligarch and right-wing political operative Elon Musk as a nexus of international fascist tendencies. It notes contradictions in the affective promises of capitalism vis a vis the elimination of racialized and gendered state regulatory and social welfare functions and describes the role of violent repression in sustaining right-authoritarian political formations in the US and around the globe.

Reposted by Communication, Culture & Critique

Aymar (AJ) @ajescoffery.blacksky.app · Jun 3

This was so fun to write! Using Du Bois and reconstruction to talk about how media could help us survive authoritarianism.

A.J. Bauer @ajbauer.bsky.social · Jun 3

@ajescoffery.bsky.social writes about reconstruction and reparative media.

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Media reconstruction and reparative media

Abstract. Drawing from the work of scholar-activist W.E.B. Du Bois and insights from co-creating a community-based media platform, this article demonstrate

Reposted by Communication, Culture & Critique

A.J. Bauer @ajbauer.bsky.social · Jun 3

Check out my latest, with @paulachak.bsky.social, in @ccc-journal.bsky.social!

It introduces a forum we co-edited on "Media and Fascism," with a star-studded lineup! See the 🧵 below:

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Cruel Capitalism: a forum on media and fascism by AJ Bauer and Paula Chakravartty in Communication, Culture and Critique: This article introduces a forum on "media and fascism" by reading tech oligarch and right-wing political operative Elon Musk as a nexus of international fascist tendencies. It notes contradictions in the affective promises of capitalism vis a vis the elimination of racialized and gendered state regulatory and social welfare functions and describes the role of violent repression in sustaining right-authoritarian political formations in the US and around the globe.

Reposted by Communication, Culture & Critique

Paula C @paulachak.bsky.social · May 23

Read our latest article by @chaficnajem.bsky.social'on smuggled digital technologies and how incarcerated people in Lebanon make their voices heard. With lessons for those interested in abolition media everywhere! Now available from @ccc-journal.bsky.social!

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Prison media mobilization: smuggled technologies and media practices in Lebanese carceral spaces

Reposted by Communication, Culture & Critique

Christian Strippel @strippel.bsky.social · Jun 3

In know that there have been a few exceptions in the international community, most importantly the “statement on the ongoing genocide in Gaza” by the Editorial Collective of Communication, Culture and Critique (@ccc-journal.bsky.social): academic.oup.com/ccc/article-...

A statement on the ongoing genocide in Gaza

Abstract. Communication, Culture and Critique has been the leading venue for critical approaches to communication and media studies. This issue marks the f

academic.oup.com

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · May 23

Check out @chaficnajem.bsky.social's latest on smuggled digital technologies used by incarcerated people in Lebanon, now available from @ccc-journal.bsky.social!

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Prison media mobilization: smuggled technologies and media practices in Lebanese carceral spaces by Chafic Tony Najem in Communication, Culture and Critique, published 15 May, 2025

This article explores the use of smuggled digital technologies by prisoners in Lebanese carceral spaces. Since 2012, prisoners have smuggled cellphones to document and share their experiences and protests, despite efforts by authorities to restrict this access. The study adopts Martín-Barbero’s mediaciones and Mattoni’s activist media practices, to propose “prison media mobilization”—the strategic and illicit reconfiguration of digital technologies by prisoners to subvert constraints and amplify dissent. The analysis focuses on four approaches: representation, production, circulation, and material practices. By examining recordings and contextual information from significant events in Lebanese prisons, the research shows how contraband digital technologies catalyze mobilizations. These technologies document, incite, propagate, and aid prisoners perform acts of defiance against prison conditions. The study highlights the complexity and innovation in prisoners' media practices, calling for a comprehensive framework to understand media mobilizations in carceral spaces.

Reposted by Communication, Culture & Critique

Paula C @paulachak.bsky.social · Apr 23

If you are trying to figure out how to make sense of authoritarian turn, read this thoughtful review by @jfarkas.bsky.social and @bilgeyesil.bsky.social new book on Turkish mediated authoritarianism and how to contest its hold..

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Apr 23

See Johan Farkas' review of Bilge Yesil's "Talking Back to the West: How Turkey Uses Counter-Hegemony to Reshape the Global Communication Order" (University of Illinois Press, 2024) here:

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Talking back to the West: How Turkey uses counter-hegemony to reshape the global communication order by Bilge Yesil

Digital media technologies were long heralded as tools of global deliberation, free speech, and democracy, marking the end of top-down control over public

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Apr 23

See Ather Zia's review of "Producing Palestine: The Creative Production of Palestine Through Contemporary Media," edited by Dina Mater and Helga Tawil Souri (Bloomsbury, 2024) here:

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

The urgency of producing Palestine

Palestine has long been in the global conscience, especially for many, a beacon of a decolonial struggle for liberation. Today, there is a new urgency to u

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Apr 23

See Johan Farkas' review of Bilge Yesil's "Talking Back to the West: How Turkey Uses Counter-Hegemony to Reshape the Global Communication Order" (University of Illinois Press, 2024) here:

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Talking back to the West: How Turkey uses counter-hegemony to reshape the global communication order by Bilge Yesil

Digital media technologies were long heralded as tools of global deliberation, free speech, and democracy, marking the end of top-down control over public

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Apr 23

The CCC Editorial Collective is excited to highlight our new and selective “Book Review” section, which features what we see as necessary and critical scholarship that we should all be reading.

The urgency of producing Palestine, Ather Zia's review of "Producing Palestine: The Creative Production of Palestine Through Contemporary Media" edited by Dina Mater and Helga Tawil Souri (Bloomsbury Press, 2024), published in Communication, Culture and Critique

Johan Farkas' review of "Talking back to the West: How Turkey uses counter-hegemony to reshape the global communication order" (University of Illinois Press, 2024) by Bilge Yesil, published in Communication, Culture and Critique

Reposted by Communication, Culture & Critique

Paula C @paulachak.bsky.social · Apr 16

🚨 JUNE ISSUE PREVIEW 🚨Read latest article on the limits of US and UK public media coverage of the on-going genocide in Gaza, published thanks to our Editorial Collective from @ccc-journal.bsky.social

Congrats Authors @sydneyforde.bsky.social and @desfreedman.bsky.social

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Arm’s length or joined at the hip? Public service media’s coverage of Gaza

Abstract. Critiquing normative articulations of a public versus commercial media binary, we explore the contradictory juxtaposition of democratic expectati

Communication, Culture & Critique @ccc-journal.bsky.social · Apr 16

They find that, while public service media in the US and UK are often seen as "liberal," their coverage of the genocide in Gaza largely serves the prevailing geopolitical interests of their home countries in Israel-Palestine.

doi.org/10.1093/ccc/...

Arm’s length or joined at the hip? Public service media’s coverage of Gaza

Abstract. Critiquing normative articulations of a public versus commercial media binary, we explore the contradictory juxtaposition of democratic expectati