Category Archives: Conferences

Abstracts of RSACS XLII International Conference “Creative Communication: American Culture as Communication System” December 7-10, 2016

 

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December 7, Wednesday

5 pm                           Opening Plenary session                                                       room 232

Keynote speaker:

Svetlana Sigida, Doctor of Art

Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory

Cooperative Creativity in the Art of Opera in the late 20-early 21-st Centures: the Minimalists Composers Ph.  Glass and J. Adams with Theater Directors R. Wilson and P.Sellars (exemplified in “Einstein on the Beach”,”Nixon in China” and “Doctor Atomic”)

 

6.30 pm – 8 pm          Tea and pirozhki                                                                   room 217

 

Section 1. Journalism

Coordinator Prof. Irina Arkhangelskaya (Nizhny Novgorod, aib@sandy.ru)

8 December 8, Thursday 6.30 pm – 8.00 pm  room 103

  1. Irina Arkhangelskaya,

Higher School of Economics -Nizhny Novgorod, Russia

Online Version of USA Today as a Communication platform with Electorate during the US 2016 Presidential Campaign

The dynamics of developing main themes and communication character of candidates with voters in the online version of USA Today (September – November 2016) during the US 2016 presidential campaign are considered in the report.

The analysis of politicians’ agendas (economic issues, taxes, migration problems, international relations) is based on 100 materials (news, analytical reviews, commentaries, interviews, sociological polls). Special attention is paid to the contexts in which names of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are mentioned.

One of the most popular US papers USA Today is «mainstream» mass medium. It forms opinions of average Americans and plays an important role in communications between political elites and electorate.

During the presidential campaign, the resource journalists did all their best to stay neutral. The elections results have been unexpected for the newspaper’s editorial board, as seen in commentaries and analytics.

  1. Nikolai Zykov

MSU Journalism Department, Lomonosov State University, Russia

American Culture in Multimedia Format in the Voice of America Coverage

 American culture has always been and remains one of the most important ones for a leading American international broadcaster. One of its main tasks is to promote American culture in the world. This is the same in the present transition from radio to Internet broadcasting. In recent years the emphasis is on video, as it allows, for example, to quickly cover news, Hollywood news, cultural events and more. Traditions were established in the Russian edition of radio era and continue today.

  1. Tatiana Biryukova

Journalism Department, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia

Origin of Hypertext Journalism: a case study of the FEED magazine)

 The 1990s was a time not only of dot.com boom, it was also a time of hypertext theory boom.  Branching nonlinear text with hyperlinks, which initially has been described by Ted Nelson, seemed to be more appropriate for the computer era then a linear text.  It is no wonder that hypertext theory had an impact on journalistic theory:  in the 1990s there were plenty of theoretical articles, which acclaimed a range of advantages of hypertext over print journalism.  The turning point for the development of hypertext journalism was the creation in New York in 1995 of one of the first online magazine – FEED.  The authors of FEED put into practice many Internet-specific features, which were described by hypertext theorists. Experiments with the interface, hyperlinks and forms of narrative have been here in the foreground.  But the results of these five-year experiments with nonlinear texts now allow to look very differently on the hypertext itself as well as on its possibilities for journalism.

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Program of the RSACS XLI International Сonference “Imagining and Building Peace in American Culture” December 4-11, 2015

постер (Мелкий)

December 4. Opening session 5 pm, room 233

 

Keynote speaker

Andrew Wiget.             ‘Make Love Not War'”: Imagining and Building Peace in American Culture

 

Professor Emeritus, New Mexico State University, Albuquerque, USA

Adjunct Professor, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia

 

 

Section 1. Journalism

Coordinator: Professor Irina Arkhangelskaya (Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod, Russia aib@sandy.ru)

 

  1. Bouchev Alexander

Tver State University, Russia

American Mass Media on Interreligious Communication across the Globe

 The report illustrates the global media discourse on religious issues after event in Paris in the early 2015. Of interest is the approach of critical discourse analysis which is connected with interpretation of stereotyped and axiological elements in the discourse under scrutiny. The author discusses the problem of interreligious communication in the multicultural society. The analyzed example considers characteristics of global mass media political discourse describing Egyptian politics in 2013. Special attention is paid to the need of elaborating cognitive techniques of comprehension of global mass media discourse, and the peculiarities of political discourse shedding light upon nominations and assessments are being analyzed. The author shows stereotyped expressions, axiological connotations of terms and as generic features of political discourse. The paradigm approaches to discourse interpretation in politics are also studied. Of interest are the conclusions about the rhetoric and linguistics characteristics of analyzed discourse. The report suggests changes in the sphere of cultural education.

 2. Nikolai Zykov

Journalism Department

Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia

Adaptation of immigrants into American society in the covering of the Voice of America

 One of the main tasks of the international broadcaster Voice of America is to inform the foreign audience about the social processes in the United States. Interethnic conflicts recently caused serious tensions in society. They were covered openly and frankly. But in in other areas, such as the adaption of immigrants, including the Russian-speaking, things were peaceful. There has been interesting trend.

3. Zagvozdkina Ekaterina

Journalism Department

Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia

The Times They Are A’Changing:

Collision of values in American society on the representation of

The Beat Generation in the US mainstream media of the 1950s – 1960s

 In the 1960s the American society underwent serious changes and became more liberal in its morals and values. The aim is to examine those changes through the representation of the Beat Generation subculture in the media: what Time and Life magazines wrote on the beats, including the most famous of them: poet Allen Ginsberg, writers Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs, at the end of the 50s, when the movement became famous (after the release of Kerouac’s On the Road in 1957 and the birth of the term «beatnik». We have chosen Time and Life as our empirical basis as in that period they had the largest and widest audience in the USA. That is why, we suppose, these magazines expressed the opinion of the average American reader – therefore through the changes in Time and Life we can trace not only changes in journalists’ opinions, but in America itself throughout the decade. Texts are analyzed both directly through the epithets and comparisons, and via context, stories concerning them and attitude towards their works.

  4. Ksenia Omelchenko

Saint-Petersburg State University, Russia

American Propaganda During the War in Iraq

 During military conflicts media becomes a traditional way to implement the foreign policy of any state. This announcement leads to the term «propaganda», and includes spread of views, news, arguments, facts, and ‘fakes’ to form public opinion or idea.

We reviewed the techniques of American propaganda during the war in Iraq in the early years of the war.

During the first week of the war, American networks and British BBC or Canadian CBS showed two different wars. The United States news ignored the Arab victims, anti-war and anti-American protests, the discontent of citizens and the negative aspects of the war, while these topics were covered in Canada and the UK, and in the Arab countries the conflict was broadcast as the invasion in Iraq and the coup attempt.

In 2003, the brutality of the Iraqi people against the Pentagon was shown in the documentary drama “Saving Private Lynch” on NBS with the main character – Jessica Lynch – was tortured as one of the first prisoners of the war.

Direct propaganda has been broadcast on the television station «Al-Hurra», «Radio Sawa» in the magazine «Hai», which were created in 2004 by producer of «Voice of America» in opposition to «Al Jazeera».

The role of mass media in boosting as well as solving the conflict is under consideration.

5. Tarasevich Sophia

Publishing House «Kommersant», Moscow, Russia

Conciliatory Rhetoric: Hide-and-seek or Search for a Compromise?

 Nowadays attention of American and Russian politicians is attracted to three main world conflicts: Syria, Ukraine and Iran. Talking about the military operation against ISIS in Syria, the process of arrangement in Ukraine and searching for a compromise on Iranian nuclear program, they often use conciliatory rhetoric and encourage solving contradictions peacefully. We are interested in analysis of not just contemporary American and Russian politicians’ rhetoric, but also in the forms of communication with public they use. Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs started to use actively the form of briefing, previously commonly used by the US State Department. Politicians, ambassadors, and diplomats in Moscow and Washington also do not forget about a powerful tool for promulgating their rhetoric in public – social networks, .Twitter being one of them. Conciliatory mood often recedes when politicians give a speech in front of the inner audience as candidates during election debates. The presentation is based on empirical data collected during April-October 2015: news messages from news agencies Reuters, AP, AFP, TASS, RIA Novosti, Interfax and other media. It also includes the results of social media monitoring (Facebook and Twitter) and official data of Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the US State Department.

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Invitation to RSACS Conference -2015 “Imagining and Building Peace in American Culture”

Dear Colleagues,
The XLIst International conference of the Russian Society of American Culture Studies will be held December 4-11, 2015 at Lomonosov Moscow State University Journalism Department. It’s theme – “Imagining and Building Peace in American Culture”.

Sections: Journalism, American Culture of the 17-19th Centuries, Contemporary Literature and Culture, Drama, Ethnic Contribution, Gender, Fantastic in the Arts, Canadian perspectives. Besides a traditional Round Table discussion: Imprints – Image of America and Image of Russia will be held and two more – Arthur Miller’s Centennial (coordinator Dr. Maya Koreneva) and Herman Melville’s Literary Legacy (coordinator Dr. Luisa Bashmakova 888lpb@gmail.com).

Suggestions for additional sections and panel discussions are welcome with 300 words description and at least two other panelists’ names suggested until September 1st, 2015.

Official languages of the conference are English and Russian. All participants will understand papers given in English and will provide an English resume of their talk if given in Russian.

The deadline for abstracts – September 10, 2015 (half a page). Please send them to all to larmih@gmail.com
On the basis of delivered and discussed papers, an annual bilingual collection is published.
Conference fee $ 100 US, payable upon arrival, includes also an excursion to Kremlin and a farewell party.
Information about visa support: As it is a lengthy process – please send the needed materials [copy of two first pages of passport and info on place of birth (city and country), affiliation and position, office address, phone and fax numbers, place of visa application, dates of arrival and departure] to the address larmih@gmail.com no later than September 10, 2015.

See you at our conference!

Larisa Mikhaylova
RSACS Secretary

Anglo-American Studies Association’s joint Conference – June 12-13, 2015 Macedonia

The 1st SCARDUS International Conference on Education, Science, Technology, Innovation, Health & Environment (ESTIHE) 2015 is organized jointly by the Association ‘UNIVERSI’ www.universi.mk and the Association for Anglo-American Studies (AAAS) www.aassee.eu

The main aim of this conference is to promote multi- and inter-disciplinary researches on Education, Science, Technology, Innovation, Health and Environment.

Aim and Scope

The 1st SCARDUS International Conference on Education, Science, Technology, Innovation, Health & Environment (ESTIHE) 2015 is held to achieve the main goals:

To promote multi- and inter-disciplinary researches on Education, Science, Technology, Innovation, Health & Environment.

Promoting Linguistic Diversity and Intercultural Communication

Those who work in inter-disciplinary areas are strongly encouraged to contribute to this conference.  However, those who work in specialized fields could also contribute and is expected to broaden their perspective for cooperation with those from other fields.

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5th INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON AMERICAN THEATRE AND DRAMA MAY 25-27, 2016

“LAUGHING MATTERS?: HUMOR IN AMERICAN THEATRE AND DRAMA”
5th INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON AMERICAN THEATRE AND DRAMA
Málaga, Spain. May 25-27, 2016

Humor in its various forms, as well as the effort to contain it, has been present from the very first traces of a theatrical tradition in America, which opens with an attempt to perform a farce being promptly suppressed by the authorities. Entertainment has always been a key function of American theatre, and humor has been among the most recurrent mechanisms when it came to getting an audience to laugh heartily and send it home in a hopeful, light mood, sure of its values and world-view, and conveniently “humored.” Music, vaudeville routines, slapstick, and countless other manifestations of so-called lowbrow theatrical culture (whether mistakenly or not) were often thought to pose no threat whatsoever to the status quo and the deep-seated convictions of audiences. However, the repeated struggle to repress and control even supposedly innocent forms of entertainment suggests that, in spite of appearances, humor and comedy have been seen as no laughing matters, and have been used in potentially subversive ways to mirror, satirize and criticize the manners and foibles of society in the U.S.
The 5th International Conference on American Theatre and Drama, a collaborative venture between three Spanish universities (Málaga, Cádiz, Seville) and the ATDS, is the continuation of a series of conferences which have brought together hundreds of American drama and theatre scholars from all over the world, and will be held in Málaga in 2016.

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Conference Report, 2002

CONFERENCE “MASS CULTURE: AN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE”
December 6-13, 2002, Moscow
Supported by Grant No. S-RS500-03-GR-005

The conference took place at the Moscow State University, Department of Journalism. Over 120 participants from 86 Universities of 35 cities took part in the section and plenary meetings during the week. Young and distinguished scholars came from various parts of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus to present their papers and discuss problems dealing with Mass Culture of the USA and its influence upon the existing trends in World culture. Two participants arrived from the USA, though three more people (two from the USA and one from Italy) were not able to come due to a sudden change in a process of visa issuing.
In 2002 the grant gave the researchers from such distant cities as Chita and Kemerovo an opportunity to be present at the meetings in person.
70 papers were presented at the meetings of 7 sections:
1. Journalism.
2. The Nineteenth Century – to the Twenty First: Portent Problems.
3. Contemporary Prose and Culture.
4. American Drama.
5. Ethnic Literatures in the USA.
6. Women Studies.
7. Interaction of the American and World Culture.

For the sixth time there was a traditional Round Table Discussion:
“Imprints: Image of America and Image of Russia” (coordinator Prof. Yassen Zassoursky) and for the first time there was a new one organized – “Fantastic in the Arts” (coordinator Ph. D Larisa Mihaylova) which was met with vivid interest and attracted 25 participants.
All the participants got the Program and the collection of Conference Materials with Abstracts and short variants of 62 papers printed in Russian and English.
This year there was a calamity – a fire at the printing office where we gave our materials to publish. It happened on the 29th of November, 2002, and we had only several days left before the beginning of the conference left. It entailed spending some extra resources to make the preprint copy again and urgently print the materials but the book was still produced in time and everybody was provided with it.
Some extra time went to mailing the reimbursements for the tickets which we received from the participants only by the end of March, 2003.

Larisa Mihaylova,
Conference Secretary

Conference Report, 2003

CONFERENCE “LITERATURE AND THE ARTS”
December 5-12, 2003, Moscow
Supported by Grant No. № S-RS500-04-GR-012

The conference took place at the Moscow State University, Department of Journalism.

Over 120 participants from 35 cities took part in section and plenary meetings during the week, with 89 papers delivered by people from 35 cities and 51 universities (a list of cities and Universities represented is attached).
Young and distinguished scholars came from various parts of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus to present their papers and discuss problems of interaction between Literature and the Arts in the USA and concerning interaction of American culture and World culture. Five American scholars took active part in discussions. Among them Professor Irwin Weil, who came to our conference for a twentieth (!) time, Professor Ronald Bosco who was a co-chair for Thoreau discussion, and a Fulbright lecturer Alan Lelchuk.
In 2003 the grant gave the researchers from such distant cities as Chita and Kemerovo an opportunity to be present at the meetings in person, but not all travel expenses have been reimbursed due to lack of funds (in order to pay at least a portion we had to reduce payments to 12 persons and still lacked the money to pay Olga Ushakova from Tymen altogether).
The Program was more varied this year, with the special stress on interaction of various media in 7 sections:
1. Multimedia Journalism.
2. The Nineteenth Century – to the Twenty First.
3. Contemporary Prose and Contemporary Culture.
4. American Drama.
5. Ethnic Literatures in the USA and Multiculturalism.
6. Women in American Culture.
7. Interaction of the American and World Culture.

But besides traditional sections this time there has been four Round table discussions: For the seventh time there was a traditional Round Table Discussion: “Imprints: Image of America and Image of Russia” (coordinator Prof. Yassen Zassoursky), for the second time – “Fantastic in the Arts” (coordinator Ph.D Larisa Mihaylova) which was considered important enough to announce for the next year too. Two new discussions also attracted a considerable attendance – “Author as Teacher: Democratic Experience. Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman, Hawthorne” (coordinated by Prof. Tatyana Venediktova and Prof. Ronald Bosco) and “Border/Hybrid Consciousness” (ccordinated by Prof. Tamara Denisova)
All the participants got the Program and the collection of Conference Materials with Abstracts and short variants of 43 papers printed in Russian and English. This year more people managed to prepare short articles and not just the abstracts, which helped to make the publication of the conference a more substantial resource for scholars in the field.
The collection of this year together with collections of three previous years has been donated to the Library of Congress in Washington DC.

As the previous year, some extra time went to mailing the reimbursements for the tickets which we received from the participants only by the end of March, 2004.

Larisa Mihaylova,
Conference Secretary

Invitation XL RSACS conference 2014

The XLth International conference of the Russian Society of American Culture Studies will be held December 5-12, 2014 at Lomonosov Moscow State University Journalism Department.
Its theme – “American Culture: From Making a Nation to Transnationalism”.

Sections:

  • Journalism
  • American Culture of the 18-19th Centuries
  • Contemporary culture
  • Poetry
  • Drama
  • Ethnic Contribution
  • Gender
  • Fantastic in the Arts
  • Canadian perspectives.

Besides a traditional Round Table discussion: Imprints – Image of America and Image of Russia will be held.

Suggestions for additional sections and panel discussions are welcome with 300 words description and at least two other panelists’ names suggested until September 1st, 2014.

Official languages of the conference are English and Russian. All participants will understand papers given in English and will provide an English resume of their talk, if given in Russian.

Deadline for the paper abstracts – September 10, 2014 (half a page). Please send them to larmih@gmail.com
On the basis of delivered and discussed papers an annual bilingual collection is published.

Conference fee $ 100 US, payable upon arrival, includes also an excursion to Kremlin and farewell party.

Information about visa support is on the RSACS site. As it is a lengthy process – please send the needed materials [copy of two first pages of passport and info on place of birth (city and country), affiliation and position, office address, phone and fax numbers, place of visa application, dates of arrival and departure] to the address larmih@gmail.com no later than September 15, 2014.

See you at our conference!

Larisa Mikhaylova
RSACS Secretary