The 64th Annual Conference of the International Communication Association
Communication and the “Good Life”
Seattle Sheraton Hotel
22--26 May 2014
Throughout the five-day conference, an estimated 2,200 scholars from more than 40 countries will attend over 549 sessions representing the latest advances in the field of communication. The conference will be large, the topics diverse, and the papers and presentation of the highest quality. The conference theme, “Communication and the ‘Good Life’,” received a tremendous response. The new media environment raises a multitude of questions, and thus invites considered reflection, about what a “good life” might look like in a contemporary, digital, and networked society, and what new challenges we might face in attaining it. Such questions span the breadth of our field. The Seattle conference offers an opportunity to weave together these different threads of communication scholarship. Moreover, such a theme also engages us in the present moment, allowing us to connect the various traditions of our field with the changes in our media landscape and the ways we now live, or might desire to live, within it.
The opening plenary will begin at 18:00 Thursday evening 22 May. The conference will include three main plenaries and four miniplenaries. We will conclude with a closing plenary and end at 14:45 on Monday 26 May.
This year’s conference promises to be one of the largest in ICA history. While this is exciting, it also presents unique challenges. It is likely to cause congestion in between sessions and the possibility of crowded or full presentations. We ask for all attendees to be patient and understanding if you are unable to attend the session of your choice. As well, the conference host hotel may not be able to accommodate all attendees due to the large number of participants. We sincerely appreciate your understanding and cooperation.
This conference, ICA will continue “going green.” You will notice recyclable conference bags, name badges and lanyards. We also eliminated the conference bag “stuffers” and handouts. ICA has worked with the Sheraton Seattle to recycle conference materials and to eliminate much of the waste in food and beverage. To assist the “going green” effort of ICA, conference attendees will be given the option to select the conference program as an “app” for their mobile device rather than a printed program. We hope you will join us in our “green” efforts.
An outstanding lineup of 29 preconference workshops will address Engagement as Theory, Strategy, and Practice: Communication, Interaction, and Connection; Communicating Corporate Social Responsibility: How Businesses Promote Community, Diversity, Social Engagement, and the Environment; Communication Policy: From Local Ecology to National Agenda; Communication Science 2.0 – Evolution, Biology, and Brains: Innovation in Theory and Methods; Making Sense of Memory & History; Producing Truth to Power: Media Activism Pedagogy in the Digital Age; (RE)Defining and (RE)Negotiating the Meaning of Work, Success, Happiness, and the Good Life; Social and Semantic Networks in Communication Research; New Media and Citizenship in Asia: Values, Digital Politics, and Civic Well-Being; “Media and Religion”: Betwixt and Between; Visual Communication Studies Young Scholars Workshop; 5th Annual Doctoral Consortium of the Communication and Technology Division; Defining the Good Life: Strategic Communication Campaigns in a Contemporary, Digital and Networked Society; The Cultural Politics of Protest: Confronting Social Justice and Inequality in Communication Studies; Technologies of Sex and Gender: Queer Theories and Subjects; Liberating Structures: How to Unleash the Potential of Everyone and Transform the Communication Dynamics of Any Group; Sharing; 11th Annual ICA Mobile Preconference Workshop: Mobile Research for Building a Better World; Qualitative Political Communication Research; Beyond the Pixels: A Look at Digital Games; Public Scholarship Behind the Podium and On the Screen; Publishing for the Future; Successful Publication in Top-Ranked Communication Journals: A Guide for Non-Native English Speakers; Political Communication Graduate Student Workshop; PhD Workshop: Public Relations and Strategic Communication; Researching and Working in a Global/Transnational Context: Mentoring on Practical Considerations; Data & Discrimination: Converting Critical Concerns into Productive Inquiry; Communication and the “Good Life” Around the World After Two Decades of the Digital Divide; and Innovation in Higher Education.
This year, ICA is also taking new steps to support members who’d like to meet with colleagues for international research collaboration. Members are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity to connect with existing and future research partners at the conference, and to conduct meetings for the planning and management of existing or future international research projects. In addition, in order to promote a culture of active debating and productive exchange among all members, ICA is also introducing “Blue Sky Workshops”: open conversation meetings that session chairs dedicate to specific (future) research challenges. The session format is flexible and can be individualized by the chairs; the objective, however, is not to replicate the standard format of single presenters and a listening audience, but rather to facilitate active contribution by each attendant.
Other sessions of special interest to new and student members will include the annual New Member and Graduate Student Orientation. Our exhibit area will feature exhibit booths highlighting products, services and publishers important to communication research; special events, receptions, and book signings; and a message board. Free wireless internet will be offered though out the conference venue.
Look for all the registration options as you make your decisions about the Seattle conference! Our 2014 annual conference in Seattle promises to be one of ICA’s best ever. Don’t miss it!
