Research Topic Summary
This Research Topic investigates the multifaceted relationship between communication and culture within a rapidly evolving mediated landscape. The collection of articles illuminates how cultural values, media technologies, and communication practices intertwine to shape identities, social interactions, and global discourse. Through diverse methodological approaches and theoretical frameworks, the articles offer insights into both the challenges and opportunities arising from digital communication platforms and cross-cultural encounters.
One article explores the digital public sphere, analyzing the role of social media in shaping civic engagement and cultural expression. Another focuses on intercultural communication, highlighting how digital tools can both bridge and exacerbate cultural divides. A third contribution examines diaspora communities, providing an in-depth look at how media facilitate cultural retention and adaptation in new sociocultural contexts.
Further, the Research Topic includes articles that assess the impact of emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality, on cultural communication, and consider issues of representation, accessibility, and power dynamics. Other articles discuss how media narratives contribute to the construction of national and transnational identities, and how individuals navigate these complex narratives in their everyday communication.
Collectively, the articles published in this Research Topic offer a nuanced understanding of the interplay between communication and culture in the contemporary, digitally mediated world. The findings underscore the importance of interdisciplinary perspectives for addressing cultural complexities, advancing communication research, and informing practice across media, education, and policy.
Research Topic Description
The concept of mediatization of culture, emerged in response to the increasing mediation of culture by institutional mass media, has gained increasing popularity in media and communication research in recent times. While various traditions of mediatization research differ in how they understand media—the institutionalist tradition construing them as independent social institutions with their own set of rules, and the social-constructivist tradition emphasizing the key role that they play in the construction of social and cultural reality—they all share a common understanding of the mediatization of culture as a process of transformation that occurs when media become deeply intertwined with various aspects of social life, including the production, distribution, and consumption of culture.
One of the key aspects of mediatization is the transformation of cultural practices through an increased reliance on media technologies. This transformation has resulted in the blurring of boundaries between media and culture, and has led to the increasing significance of media as a means of cultural expression and exchange. Consequently, there has been a growing interest in understanding the impact of mediatization on cultural production, distribution, and consumption. Scholars have examined how media technologies have transformed cultural practices, creating new forms of cultural expression and redefining traditional ones. They have also explored the role of media technologies in shaping cultural values, norms, and identities.
Rapid advancements in media technologies have transformed the way we communicate, perceive and interact with each other, and understand cultures. As the world becomes more interconnected, communication and culture are inextricably linked, shaping and being shaped by one another. By adopting a cultural mediatization approach, we can view media as integral to the production and circulation of cultural meanings, rather than simply as a means of disseminating information.
Globalization has led to the intensification of media and cultural mediatization, creating a complex interplay between global and local cultural practices. The increasing dominance of global media conglomerates has raised concerns over cultural homogenization and the erasure of local cultural identities. As we continue to grapple with the effects of globalization and mediatization, it is essential that we center the perspectives and experiences of marginalized communities, including those who have historically been excluded from dominant cultural institutions. This requires a critical approach to media and cultural practices that recognizes the multiple and intersecting forms of power at play.
Against this background, the aim of this Research Topic is to explore the complex relationship between communication and culture in our mediated world from an interdisciplinary perspective.
Possible topics for submissions may include, but are not limited to, the following:
• the role of communication in shaping cultural identity
• the impact of media on intercultural communication
• communication and cultural globalization
• the cultural implications of social media use
• the role of language in communication and culture
• communication, culture, and power relations
• the role of communication in cultural diplomacy
• communication and cultural heritage preservation
• communication and cultural hybridity
• the impact of technology on communication and culture
• the intersection of gender, race, and communication in culture
• communication and cultural representation in media.
We welcome contributions from various disciplines, including, but not limited to, communication studies, cultural studies, sociology, anthropology, media studies, and linguistics. We also encourage authors to use diverse theoretical perspectives and methodological approaches to address the complex relationship between communication and culture in our mediated world.
Research Topic Summary
This Research Topic investigates the multifaceted relationship between communication and culture within a rapidly evolving mediated landscape. The collection of articles illuminates how cultural values, media technologies, and communication practices intertwine to shape identities, social interactions, and global discourse. Through diverse methodological approaches and theoretical frameworks, the articles offer insights into both the challenges and opportunities arising from digital communication platforms and cross-cultural encounters.
One article explores the digital public sphere, analyzing the role of social media in shaping civic engagement and cultural expression. Another focuses on intercultural communication, highlighting how digital tools can both bridge and exacerbate cultural divides. A third contribution examines diaspora communities, providing an in-depth look at how media facilitate cultural retention and adaptation in new sociocultural contexts.
Further, the Research Topic includes articles that assess the impact of emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality, on cultural communication, and consider issues of representation, accessibility, and power dynamics. Other articles discuss how media narratives contribute to the construction of national and transnational identities, and how individuals navigate these complex narratives in their everyday communication.
Collectively, the articles published in this Research Topic offer a nuanced understanding of the interplay between communication and culture in the contemporary, digitally mediated world. The findings underscore the importance of interdisciplinary perspectives for addressing cultural complexities, advancing communication research, and informing practice across media, education, and policy.
Research Topic Description
The concept of mediatization of culture, emerged in response to the increasing mediation of culture by institutional mass media, has gained increasing popularity in media and communication research in recent times. While various traditions of mediatization research differ in how they understand media—the institutionalist tradition construing them as independent social institutions with their own set of rules, and the social-constructivist tradition emphasizing the key role that they play in the construction of social and cultural reality—they all share a common understanding of the mediatization of culture as a process of transformation that occurs when media become deeply intertwined with various aspects of social life, including the production, distribution, and consumption of culture.
One of the key aspects of mediatization is the transformation of cultural practices through an increased reliance on media technologies. This transformation has resulted in the blurring of boundaries between media and culture, and has led to the increasing significance of media as a means of cultural expression and exchange. Consequently, there has been a growing interest in understanding the impact of mediatization on cultural production, distribution, and consumption. Scholars have examined how media technologies have transformed cultural practices, creating new forms of cultural expression and redefining traditional ones. They have also explored the role of media technologies in shaping cultural values, norms, and identities.
Rapid advancements in media technologies have transformed the way we communicate, perceive and interact with each other, and understand cultures. As the world becomes more interconnected, communication and culture are inextricably linked, shaping and being shaped by one another. By adopting a cultural mediatization approach, we can view media as integral to the production and circulation of cultural meanings, rather than simply as a means of disseminating information.
Globalization has led to the intensification of media and cultural mediatization, creating a complex interplay between global and local cultural practices. The increasing dominance of global media conglomerates has raised concerns over cultural homogenization and the erasure of local cultural identities. As we continue to grapple with the effects of globalization and mediatization, it is essential that we center the perspectives and experiences of marginalized communities, including those who have historically been excluded from dominant cultural institutions. This requires a critical approach to media and cultural practices that recognizes the multiple and intersecting forms of power at play.
Against this background, the aim of this Research Topic is to explore the complex relationship between communication and culture in our mediated world from an interdisciplinary perspective.
Possible topics for submissions may include, but are not limited to, the following:
• the role of communication in shaping cultural identity
• the impact of media on intercultural communication
• communication and cultural globalization
• the cultural implications of social media use
• the role of language in communication and culture
• communication, culture, and power relations
• the role of communication in cultural diplomacy
• communication and cultural heritage preservation
• communication and cultural hybridity
• the impact of technology on communication and culture
• the intersection of gender, race, and communication in culture
• communication and cultural representation in media.
We welcome contributions from various disciplines, including, but not limited to, communication studies, cultural studies, sociology, anthropology, media studies, and linguistics. We also encourage authors to use diverse theoretical perspectives and methodological approaches to address the complex relationship between communication and culture in our mediated world.
