Editors: Prof Gilbert Motsaathebe and Prof Sarah Chiumbu
University of Johannesburg
Introduction
The television industry has evolved drastically over the past few years. However, at the present moment the medium of television appears to be experiencing a continual cataclysm precipitated by the onslaught of multiple media platforms and digitization of content. All these developments are taking place in a policy environment. In this new media eco-system, the availability of content on internet platforms, the rise of on-demand content, streaming and pay per view services continue to transform viewing habits of television audience, forcing many television stations into an adapt-or-perish mode. The other factor is that the younger generation of today are very different from the generation of the time when television was a household medium which dominated leisure time activities. In this scenario television worldwide has seen a marked increase in the fragmentation of its audience and what some classify as the shrinkage of television audience. This has complicated the television business with regard to content generation, programming and scheduling, as television stations have to find innovative ways to adapt to this changing environment in which the power has shifted to the audience who are very much in control of what they watch.
While some have expressed concern regarding the future of television others believe it will simply adapt and will continue to gain momentum and flourish again. What is clear, however, is that television as we know it will no longer be the same. As such, this edited anthology seeks to focus on embryonic issues in the study of television focusing on television in its current form, challenges and future trends, particularly with respect to countries in the Global South. We therefore invite chapters from scholars, researchers and television practitioners that interrogate the issues raised above. This book is not intended to be a be-it-all book in television but it hopes to address wide-ranging issues that students of television, practitioners and academics would find very relevant particularly in Africa and the Global South. We want to balance a range of factors to ensure that the anthology provides the best possible range of materials for modern day television scholars, students, practitioners and enthusiasts. We particularly welcome chapters that make a strong case for advancing theoretical or methodological understanding of television studies in its current form with strong focus on Africa and the Global South.
The book is intended to serve as a key reference text in television studies. Although there are some articles and sporadic book chapters touching on some of the issues raised here, there is no elaborate work that focuses on most of the issues that this book seeks to cover particularly in the context of the Global South.
The editors invite academics, researchers and practitioners to submit original chapters which are related, but not limited, to the following themes/aspects:
* Television and multimedia platforms
* Television and Digital Migration
* Television Journalism in the Digital Age
* Digitization and Television News
* Television and Popular Culture
* Community Television
* Telvision and Streaming Services
* Television and Social Media
* Second Screen Viewing
* Telvision and Audience Fragmentation
* Television Newsroom and Editorial Independence
* Television, Policy and Regulation in the Digital Age
Submission Guidelines & Deadline:
* Please submit chapter proposals/abstracts of 800 to 1000 words, clearly explaining the aims concerns of the proposed chapter.
* A minimum of five (5) keywords must be provided
* Chapter proposals should reach the editors before March 15, 2019
* Authors will be notified of the outcome of their proposals on April 15, 2019
* Full chapters which will be reviewed on a double-blind review basis are to be submitted by October 30, 2019.
Important Dates
Proposal Submission Deadline : 15 March 2019 Proposal Outcome : 15 April 2019 Full Chapter Submission : 30 October 2019 Review Process : November 2019 – March 2020 Revised Chapter from Authors : May 2020 Submission of Final Manuscript to the publisher: : July 2020
Send chapter proposals to: Gilbert Motsaathebe – motsaathebeg@uj.ac.za Sarah Chiumbu – sarahc@uj.ac.za