International Communication Association
Communication History Division Preconference
Communications and the State: Towards a New International History
May 21, 2015, 8:30 – 17:00, US$85
Condado Hilton Hotel, San Juan, Puerto Rico
This preconference puts a historical spotlight on the constitutive role of the state in the making of communications and the constitutive role of communications in the making and unmaking of states and empires. Twenty-four papers, ranging widely in time period, geographical region, and methodology, and addressing different problematics, consider the historical relationship between the state and communication under four main themes: the state as communicator, the state as a regulator of communication, the state as a creator and/or subsidizer of structures of communication, and the state as an object of critique by citizens and subjects.
The aim of the preconference is to bring together scholars studying diverse time periods and geographic areas with the goal of offering new interpretations about the state as an active element in the making of communications in general rather than in one particular nation or another. We are also interested in what happens when communication systems reach across state boundaries and in historical formations that have important commonalities with states, such as alliances, kingdoms, juntas, and more. A closing plenary with three highly respected scholars working in this area will provide an opportunity for wide-ranging discussion about themes raised in the sessions and the consideration of new research possibilities.
Schedule:
Communications and the state in the early modern era
*“The Cotswold Olimpick Games: Sport, Politics and Faith in early modern England,” Mark Brewin (The University of Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States)
*“Three thirteenth-century travel accounts of missions to the Far East,” Kathryn Montalbano (Columbia University, New York, United States)
*“A Republic Run as a Chamber of Commerce: The Role of the State in Structuring Communications in Renaissance Venice,” Juraj Kittler (St. Lawrence University, New York, United States)
*“The Post Office and State Formation in World Historical Time,” Lane Harris (Furman University, South Carolina, United States)
Communication networks – mail, telegraph, telephone
*“Communications and the States: The Swiss Influence on the origins of ITU, 1855-1876,” Gabriele Balbi (Università della Svizzera italiana, Lugano, Switzerland), Simone Fari, Giuseppe Richeri.
*“Mail Order Fraud, Postal Inspectors, and the Remaking of Consumer Capitalism in the United States, 1850-1900,” Rick Popp (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, United States)
*“Media of Resistance: Organizing the Anti-Colonial Movements in the Dutch East Indies, 1920-1927,” Rianne Subijanto (University of Colorado Boulder, United States)
*“International Copyright and Access to Education: A History,” Sara Bannerman, (McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada)
International Dimensions of Broadcasting and the State
*“News and Propaganda in the Cold War: Associated Press and the Voice of America, 1945-1952,” Gene Allen (Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada)
*“Colonization through Broadcasting: Rádio Clube de Moçambique and the Promotion of Portuguese Colonial Policy,” Nelson Ribeiro (Catholic University of Portugal, Lisbon, Portugal)
*“A House Divided: The SABC during World War Two,” Ruth Teer-Tomaselli (University KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa)
*“Subsidizing Content and Conduit: Global Wireless Communications and the State,” Heidi Tworek (Harvard University, Massachusetts, United States)
Communications and the State: The Case of Germany
*“A Story of Transition and Failure? The State and the East German Media Reform 1989-1991,” Mandy Tröger (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States)
*“Presence and Absence: The Berlin Wall as a Strategic Platform,” Samantha Oliver (University of Pennsylvania, United States)
*“Heads of State as Communicators – A Comparative Analysis of State of the Union Addresses of American Presidents and “Regierungserklärungen” of German Chancellors since 1945/49,” Thomas Birkner (Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Münster, Germany)
*“The Necessary Restraints of National Security”: Cold War U.S. Government-Journalism Negotiations and the Communist Reaction,” Mike Conway (Indiana University, United States) and Kevin Grieves (Ohio University, United States)
The State and Infrastructure
*“How the French State did not Construct Nicholas Schöffer’s Tour Lumière Cybernétique?”, Dominuque Trudel, New York University, United States)
*“The phantom of the phone booth: Toward a material and cultural history of the telephone in Israel,” Rivka Ribak, Michele Rosenthal and Sharon Ringel (University of Haifa, Israel)
*“Minitel and the State,” Julien Mailland (Indiana University, United States) and Kevin Driscoll (Microsoft Research, United States)
*”Connected and Divided: Satellite Networks as Infrastructures of Live Television” Christine Evans (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, United States) and Lars Lundgren (Södertörn University, Sweden)
The State and Communication Across Borders
*“Media, Communications and the State in the Nordic Region: The History of the Media Welfare State” Trine Syvertsen and Gunn Enli (University of Oslo, Norway), Ole J. Mjøs and Hallvard Moe (University of Bergen, Norway)
*“‘Home Is Where Your Heart Is’: Mediated Longing for the State,” Ekaterina Kalinina (Södertörn University, Sweden) and Manuel Menke (Augsburg University, Germany)
*“Theorizing Political Communication Policies,” Tim Vos (University of Missouri, United States)
*“Commercial cross-border radio: Popular culture, advertising, and the erosion of state communication power in comparative perspective: Britain, India and America” John Jenks(Dominican University, United States)
Closing plenary: The State of the Field
Daniel Hallin (University of California, San Diego)
Richard John (Columbia University)
Adrian Johns (University of Chicago)
