Lecturer to discuss the future of communication at a conference in Montreal, Canada
Joel McKim, Lecturer in Media and Cultural Studies, will be an invited keynote speaker at a conference on the 'Challenges and Futures in Communication' hosted by Concordia University.
Joel McKim, Lecturer in Media and Cultural Studies, will be an invited keynote speaker at a conference on the 'Challenges and Futures in Communication' hosted by Concordia University.
The Joint Doctorate in Communication Conference hosted by Concordia University, Université de Montréal and UQAM in Montreal, Canada takes place on April 5th and 6th.
Joel McKim's keynote address is entitled "Future Systems: New Communication Ecologies in the Built Environment." The talk will begin with the suggestion that considering the future of communication, studies might first require a return to the past and, more precisely, a reengagement with the post-war period in which the very notion of communication theory was being formulated, circulated and popularized.
The ecological principles, systems theory and cybernetic thought that emerged during this vibrant moment of cultural history seem more relevant than ever, particularly given that our contemporary systems of communication and organization appear to have fallen so far out of balance. With this assertion in mind, the talk will outline a few of Dr. McKim's own recent research projects that attempt to address various overlapping and often conflicting systems of communication within the urban built environment. These projects range from considerations of the competing claims of memory, city planning and international politics manifested in a post-9/11 New York to the interwoven cultural, economic and media ecologies shaping the development of contemporary Montréal and London.
Dr McKim teaches on the BA Journalism and Media.