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<DIV align=justify><FONT face="Palatino Linotype"><STRONG>ANNOUNCEMENT AND CALL
FOR PROPOSALS<BR><BR>INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON FUNDAMENTALISM AND THE
MEDIA<BR></STRONG></DIV></FONT>
<DIV align=justify><FONT face="Palatino Linotype"><STRONG>The Center for Media,
Religion, and Culture<BR>University of Colorado at Boulder, USA<BR>October
10-12, 2006, Boulder, CO, USA<BR>(Proposals Due: July 1,
2006)</STRONG><BR><BR>Co-Sponsors:<BR>World Association for Christian
Communication/North American Region, and<BR>World Association for Christian
Communication (WACC), London<BR><BR>How do we achieve tolerance more than fifty
years after the signatories of the United Nations Charter resolved to "practice
tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbors," and
more than two hundred years after Voltaire led his fervent philosophical battle
against religious intolerance and the bigotry and injustice that it
legitimized?<BR><BR>The media today are the primary location of local, national,
and global discourse. Social, religious, cultural, and political symbols
and ideas are<BR>shaped and shared through media words and pictures. It
seems that the religion we see in media is increasingly polarized, with emerging
fronts of conflict and struggle represented there. It is often thought
that the religious impulse most responsible is the impulse to
"Fundamentalism." While there is great debate about the meaning and
applicability of this term, in popular and public discourse it remains the
commonplace way to think about these issues.<BR><BR>This conference will focus
on the central questions of Fundamentalism and the Media. It is intended
to be a starting point of a global conversation about how best to address
religious misunderstanding and conflict in the media sphere, and how the media
sphere itself might be used to more positive ends of peace and
understanding. The media clearly have the capacity to divide and to unite,
to feed ignorance and to feed understanding. This conference will open a
dialogue between academics, practitioners, and members of the religious
community on how to move forward.<BR><BR>Tentative Speakers:<BR>- Prof. Scott
Appleby, University of Notre Dame<BR>- Prof. Annabelle Sreberny, SOAS,
University of London<BR>- Prof. Pradip Thomas, University of Queensland<BR>-
Prof. Ogbu Kalu, McCormick Theological Seminary<BR>Invited speakers will address
the themes both generally and in specific regional contexts, and will consider
issues in relation to specific religious<BR>traditions, including Islam,
Christianity, and Hinduism.<BR><BR>Proposed themes include:<BR>- Fundamentalism
in Religious Culture and History<BR>- The US Experience<BR>- The African
Experience<BR>- The South Asian Experience<BR>- The Latin American
Experience<BR>- The Middle Eastern Experience<BR>These presentations will, in
addition to their regional foci, also reflect on political, social, cultural,
and institutional implications in their various<BR>contexts.<BR><BR>CALL FOR
PAPERS AND PROPOSALS<BR><BR>In addition to the plenary presentations, the
program is open to paper, panel, and program proposals. These can be
scholarly, practical, roundtable, or workshop proposals. Proposals might
consider such issues as:<BR>- Defining Fundamentalism and Media<BR>- Political
implications in various national, ethnic, and cultural contexts<BR>-
International experiences<BR>- Intercultural and inter-religious
implications<BR>- National/regional/group case studies<BR>- The evolution of
religion and media<BR>- What is on the horizon?<BR>- What best practice models
might be developed?<BR>- The role of journalists and journalism<BR>-
Implications for religious institutions and religious authority<BR>- The latest
research on religion and media<BR><BR>Proposals should include a narrative of
250 words and a description of the program proposed, including the names of
potential or confirmed presenters. Audio-visual needs, if any, should be
indicated. Electronic submissions are preferred and they should be sent to
</FONT><A href="mailto:FundMed@colorado.edu"><FONT
face="Palatino Linotype">FundMed@colorado.edu</FONT></A><FONT
face="Palatino Linotype">. The deadline for all submissions is JUNE 1,
2006.<BR><BR>Conference Secretariat<BR>The Center for Media, Religion, and
Culture<BR>School of Journalism and Mass Communication<BR>University of
Colorado<BR>1511 University Avenue<BR>Boulder, CO 80309-0478 USA<BR>Ph: (Int+1)
303-492-1357<BR>Fx: (Int+1) 303-492-0969<BR>Email: </FONT><A
href="mailto:FundMed@colorado.edu"><FONT
face="Palatino Linotype">FundMed@colorado.edu</FONT></A><BR><FONT
face="Palatino Linotype">Website: </FONT><A
href="http://www.colorado.edu/journalism/mcm/mrc/fundmed.htm"><FONT
face="Palatino Linotype">http://www.colorado.edu/journalism/mcm/mrc/fundmed.htm</FONT></A><BR><BR><FONT
face="Palatino Linotype">Conference Director: Professor Stewart M.
Hoover<BR>International Consultant: Professor Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu<BR>WACC
Staff Liaison: Philip Lee<BR>Conference Staff: Nadia
Kaneva</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>