Snapshots of #ICA2024

Greetings from the Sunshine State: Connecting the Past and the Present

The International Communication Association (ICA) is a scholarly organization dedicated to the study of communication across various disciplines. Founded in 1950, it aims to advance the understanding, education, and practice of human and mediated communication by promoting high-quality research, teaching, and professional standards.

ICA hosts an annual conference, which brings together researchers, academics, and professionals from around the world to present their latest research, network, and discuss current trends and developments in the field of communication. This year, #ICA24 was hosted in Gold Coast, Australia.

CITAP and CITAP-affiliated researchers traveled to the Gold Coast for the opening day of ICA 2024 on June 20th. The theme for the 74th Annual ICA Conference was “Communication and Global Human Rights.”

The opening plenary began with a Welcome to Country provided by Uncle John Graham, a Traditional Custodian of the Gold Coast region and a Kombumerri man. Uncle John illuminated the rich history of Indigenous peoples in the area, emphasizing their culture and resilience despite their tragic history of violence and displacement.

Following the Welcome to Country, ICA presented a video featuring and introducing Jellurgal (also known as Burleigh Headland), a significant cultural and spiritual site for the Aboriginal peoples in the Gold Coast.

A beach with vegetation and some rocks by the shore with a city in the distance.
A scenic view with a group of tall trees and some boulders.
A concrete trail through dense vegetation with sunlight filtering through the leaves.

The land features are prominent in creation stories, the ecosystems and environment provide rich resources for those on the land, and it serves as a symbol of identity and continuity. Jellurgal has served as a sacred site for the Kombumerri people for 30,000 years.

The Queensland Art Gallery has work from Judy Watson, an Indigenous artist with Waanyi heritage, on display; the exhibit is titled “mudunama kundana wandaraba jarribirri”.

A vibrant multi-canvas artwork showcasing six canvases with similar styles.
An art installation featuring a wall with numerous black dots arranged in a pattern resembling a map of Australia. Below the dots, there are three bronze-colored hand sculptures emerging from a white, smooth surface.
An art exhibition featuring three black coats on display, each adorned with small white figures. The coats are mounted on white stands in the center of a gallery with various paintings and artworks hanging on the walls in the background.

As the Queensland Art Gallery notes, "the title ‘mudunama kundana wandaraba jarribirri’, translated as ‘tomorrow the tree grows stronger’, is taken from a poem in Waanyi language by the artist’s son Otis Carmichael. Just as a young tree grows in strength, the act of reclaiming and voicing Indigenous language encourages a regeneration of culture."

Visiting the Gold Coast and Brisbane allowed for a rich look into the history of the peoples who first inhabited the lands, their tragic and forced removal, and how that enduring legacy continues to shape and enrich the cultural landscape of Australia today.

A coastal city skyline with a river flowing through it featuring a mountain range in the horizon.
A wooden path leading through some vegetation onto a sandy beach.
A koala resting on a tree branch, with its eyes closed and leaning against tree trunk.
A city in the distance with skyscrapers separated by a calm body of water.
A coastal city skyline with various architectural styles and a river running through the city.

Conversations by the Coast

ICA2024 started out with the aforementioned plenary on the 20th, followed by 4 packed days of panels, papers, and presentations.

A number of CITAP researchers and affiliates were on panels or moderated panels, including Daniel Kreiss, Shannon McGregor, Daniel Johnson, Heesoo Jang, TJ Billard, Jo Lukito, Kara Ortiga, Rohan Grover, Cindy Ma, Waqas Ejaz, to name just a few.

On Friday the 21st, CITAP Principal Investigator Daniel Kreiss served as a discussant on a panel with Kate Wright, Cherian George, and Frances Lee discussing the question “What is the Relationship between Media Capture and Democratic Backsliding?”

A man with a beard and a brown coat speaking at a lectern, addressing an audience in a room. There is a notebook and a laptop on the lectern. The man is speaking into a microphone. Another man with a gray coat and a light blue button-down is seated at a table next to the lectern with a glass of water, listening attentively.

Later that day, Daniel was a discussant for a workshop titled “What is Media Influence in 2024?”

A group of scholars seated in a circle listening to one speak.

On Saturday the 22nd, CITAP Affiliate Kara Ortiga presented “Why do Audiences Watch Political Influencers? Examining Viewers’ Engagement with Pro-Marcos Channels.”

Later that day, CITAP Affiliate Waqas Ejaz presented “Understand Climate Policy Response: How Media, Trust, and Emotion Explain Public Support and Action Skepticism

A woman standing behind a podium, speaking into a microphone on a stage.
Man with glasses and black coat at lectern with laptop, gesturing to audience during presentation.
A man with glasses stands at a lectern while giving a presentation addressing an audience of people. He gestures to the screen while speaking.
A woman with curly hair and a black dress stands by a lectern with a laptop speaking into a microphone, addressing an audience.

On Monday the 24th, a CITAP affiliate and former CITAP research assistant, Daniel Johnson presented “Producer, Not Just Subsidizer: The U.S Military as a Cultural Industry.”

At the same time on Monday, CITAP Principal Investigator Shannon McGregor served as a discussant on the panel, "Representations of the Public in Media Coverage of Politics: Cross-National Approaches"

The interdisciplinary nature of CITAP and our network was on full display during ICA2024; from democratic backsliding to climate policy response to the cultural impact of the U.S. military, our researchers and affiliates covered a broad spectrum of critical issues within the communication field and beyond.

Their diverse contributions highlighted both the depth and breadth of CITAP's commitment to researching and informing a complex digital future rooted in equality and justice.

Brisbane Dialogues: Power, Propaganda, Polarisation

The 26th marked the first day of the CITAP co-hosted post-conference, “P3: Power, Propaganda, Polarisation,” hosted alongside the QUT Digital Media Research Centre and the AU DataLab – Center for Digital Social Research.

The first day began with an academic “match-making” session that allowed for participants to meet each other and learn about their research areas.

21 universities across 8 countries were represented by just the presenters at this post-conference, allowing for a rich and generative dialogue across academic and cultural contexts.

A man with glasses and a navy long-sleeve top conversing with a woman with straight hair and a black top, with two other women engaged in conversation in the background.
A woman with wavy hair and a patterned coat engaged in conversation with a bearded man, with other people in the background.
A woman with pink pants conversing with a man with his hands behind his back, with other people in the background.
A group of two men and one woman having a conversation: man one in a patterned shirt, man two in a coat, and the woman in a colorful top.
A woman in an orange cardigan conversing with a man with glasses holding a coffee cup, with other people in the background.
Scholars conversing in front of windows.
Two women conversing: one wearing a light blue coat and the other in a dark gray coat.
Two women, one with her hair down and one with half-up, half-down hair, conversing, with two other women in the background.
A woman with curly hair smiling directly at the camera, accompanied by another woman with straight hair slightly behind her.
Two men conversing: one with wavy hair and glasses, and the other wearing a blue coat and glasses.
Scholars conversing in front of windows.

Following this, Plenary Session 1 began, titled “Democracy in Crisis?”. Florian Primig, Research Associate at the Freie University of Berlin, Axel Bruns, Professor at Queensland University of Technology, and Daniel Kreiss, Edgar Thomas Cato Distinguished Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, presented on counter-knowledge orders, five symptoms of constructive agonism turning into destructive polarized discourse, and tech firms and global democracy (respectively), followed by a generative Q&A session.

A man with glasses holding a microphone.
A man with glasses, wearing a colorful shirt, holding a microphone.
A man with glasses, wearing a coat, holding a microphone and giving a presentation by a lectern to an audience.
A man with a beard and glasses standing at a lectern, looking attentive.
An audience with one member holding a microphone, asking a question.
A man with glasses holding a microphone and a tablet.
A woman wearing a colorfully patterned button-down shirt, holding a microphone.
A man wearing a colorful button-down shirt, holding a microphone and speaking.
A man with glasses, wearing a coat, holding a microphone.

Next up was the second plenary, "Understanding Propaganda, Populism, and Polarisation" featuring Christian Baden, Associate Professor at the Hebrew University's Department of Communication and Journalism; Sebastian Svegaard, Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Queensland University of Technology Digital Media Research Centre; Samantha Vilkins, Researcher at the Queensland University of Technology Digital Media Research Centre; and Laura Iannelli, Associate Professor of Sociology of Culture and Communication at the University of Sassari.

A man with glasses and a black button-down shirt speaking into a microphone by a lectern.
A man with a black cap and a black button-down shirt speaking into a microphone by a lectern.
A woman with glasses and a blue shirt speaking into a microphone at a lectern.
A woman with glasses and a patterned white button-down shirt speaking into a microphone by a lectern.
An audience listening attentively to a presentation, with some taking notes.
An audience with one member holding a microphone, asking a question.
A woman with glasses and a patterned white button-down shirt speaking into a microphone by a lectern.
A man with glasses and a black button-down shirt with a microphone in one hand and a pamphlet in the other.
An audience with one member holding a microphone, asking a question. Two members seen conversing in the background.

This plenary was followed by lunch and an afternoon of parallel sessions, including “Identity Movements and Contesting Power”, “Journalism and News Media”, “Platforms and Platform Logics”, and “Agonism and Antagonism”. Finally, the first day of the post-conferences ended with a networking hour.

Day 2 began with two parallel sessions. "Data for Platform Research," featured Jessica Walter, Researcher at Aarhus University's DATALAB, presenting on YouTube data donation and its challenges and prospects, and Andrew Fitzgerald, Researcher at Queensland University of Technology, discussing mediatized political culture and mobilization using longitudinal mobile screenshot data. Concurrently, "Critical Methodologies," included Bernadette Hyland-Wood, Senior Lecturer at the University of Queensland, presenting on teaching social media analytics during the 2023 Australian Voice Referendum, and Elena Maydell, Associate Professor at Massey University, discussing how fears of looming crises fuel propaganda and power games.

A woman wearing an orange coat gesturing while giving a presentation.
A woman wearing a patterned coat gesturing while giving a presentation.
A man with glasses and a light beige coat gesturing towards a projection screen while speaking into a microphone and giving a presentation.
A man with glasses and a light beige coat, and a woman with straight hair and a black coat standing at a lectern, with the woman speaking into a microphone she is holding.
A woman wearing an orange coat looking at a computer screen while giving a presentation.
An audience member wearing a green sweater speaking, other audience members seen in the background.
An audience with one member wearing a blue button-down shirt and straight hair, holding a microphone and speaking, while other audience members look at them.
An audience with one member holding a microphone, another standing and looking towards the speaker, and others sitting in the background.
A man with glasses and a light beige coat holding a microphone and gesturing with his hands while speaking.
A woman in an orange coat sitting on a chair, holding her hands together while engaged in conversation with someone off-screen.

Following this first parallel session, Annie Waldherr presented the Keynote “Exploring Structural and Affective Polarization in Climate Activism”.

A woman with glasses and a light gray coat standing by a lectern holding a microphone and gesturing with her hands while speaking.
An audience with one member wearing a black shirt, holding a microphone and speaking, other audience members listening attentively.
An audience with one member holding a microphone and speaking into it, while the rest of the audience looks forward.
An audience looking attentively at one member holding a microphone and speaking into it.

Following the keynote, the parallel sessions resumed. "Researching Conspiracist Thinking," featured Dr. Emma L. Briant, Associate Professor at Bard College, presenting on organizational factors in the production of conspiracy theories; Philipp Kessling, Researcher at the University of Leipzig, discussing the cross-platform activity of a conspiracy music collective during the COVID pandemic; and Moshe Karabelnik, Researcher at the University of Haifa, exploring visual practices of online activism and disinformation sharing in the COVID-19 vaccination mandate debate. Concurrently. "Working with Topic Models and LLMs," included Tariq Choucair, Researcher at the University of Sydney, presenting on measuring political leaders' polarizing discourses using an integrated approach combining manual and computational methods; Heesoo Jang discussed potential biases in LLMs for election information and civic engagement; and Alexandra Pavliuc, Researcher at the University of Zurich, examining how gender impacts strategic narrative use in digital diplomatic communications between Ukraine and the West during Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine using structural topic modelling.

A man with curly hair and glasses, holding a microphone in one hand and resting his other hand on a table, addressing an audience.
A woman with wavy hair and a green coat standing by a table with a monitor and a laptop, holding a microphone and speaking into it while addressing an audience.
A man with glasses and a green patterned button-down standing by a lectern with a laptop, speaking into a microphone addressing an audience
A woman with wavy hair and a green coat standing by a table with a monitor and a laptop, holding a microphone and speaking into it while addressing an audience.
A presentation in progress at the front of a room, with audience members looking attentively at the screen.

The post-conference fostered a vibrant exchange of ideas and underscored the importance of interdisciplinary approaches in addressing pressing issues of power, propaganda, and polarization.

The sessions were marked by insightful discussions, collaborative opportunities, and a shared commitment to advancing research in these critical areas.

Looking Ahead

The academic discourse at ICA 2024 showcased CITAP’s extensive expertise, with researchers highlighting critical issues from media capture and democratic backsliding to climate policy response and the cultural impacts of the U.S. military, underscoring our commitment to addressing complex global challenges through the lens of power.

In Brisbane, the post-conference facilitated dialogues and collaborative opportunities with presenters from 21 universities across 8 countries. The plenary sessions and parallel discussions, covering topics from digital propaganda to identity movements, were marked by engagement and collaboration.

The diversity of perspectives and depth of research emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary approaches and international collaboration in learning how to best approach questions of power, digital inequities, and more. As we move forward, the insights and connections made during these events will enrich CITAP’s continuous work to understand and address the dynamics of power, propaganda, and polarization in our digital world.

 

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