Media and Communication
Open Access Journal ISSN: 2183-2439

Abstracts Submission

The following issues are currently accepting abstract submissions:

The Role of AI for Counter Speech: Detection, Intervention, and Risks

Academic Editors: Lena Frischlich (University of Southern Denmark – Odense), Cathy Buerger (Dangerous Speech Project), and Magdalena Obermaier (LMU Munich)

  • Submission of Abstracts: 1-15 November 2025
  • Submission of Full Papers: 15-31 March 2026
  • Publication of the Issue: July/December 2026

Uncivil online communication, such as personal harassment, hate speech, or hateful misinformation, poses a pressing challenge in Western democracies and beyond. Most users regularly encounter such incidents, with marginalised groups and professional communicators like journalists being particularly affected. The consequences for individuals, digital discourse, and society at large are profound. Identifying these incidents and responding with counterspeech or reporting can help mitigate their impact. In addition to, or in support of, interventions by internet users, AI could have a crucial role in detecting and addressing uncivil online communication.

For example, journalists and fact-checkers can leverage AI tools to identify uncivil online comments, enabling them to manually moderate, verify, and debunk harmful content (Dierickx & Lindén, 2023; Stoll et al., 2019). Likewise, citizens who regularly engage in counterspeech can benefit from AI tools to receive factual support, maintain emotional detachment, and seek assistance when faced with harmful speech in response to their counterspeech efforts (Mun et al., 2024; Obermaier et al., 2023). However, counterspeakers themselves are concerned about the potentially negative effects of AI on people’s perceptions of the authenticity of counterspeech, their own agency, and the functionality of counterspeech (Mun et al., 2024). Similarly, users’ willingness to engage with innovative counterspeech technologies varies along the specific characteristics of the technology, such as its risk of depleting already limited resources even more (Frischlich et al., 2024).

This thematic issue aims to consolidate cutting-edge research on the use of AI for detecting and countering uncivil online communication, user perceptions of AI use in counterspeech, and the associated risks and opportunities of this AI application. Potential contributions can include, but are not limited to, articles that:

  • Develop, test, or employ AI to detect or respond to uncivil communication or counterspeech;
  • Study the perspectives of senders, targets, bystanders, moderators, etc., on the employment of AI;
  • Present or discuss theoretical frameworks for understanding human–AI relationships in the context of counterspeech;
  • Reflect on normative or regulatory frameworks around AI and counterspeech;
  • Employ qualitative, quantitative, or computational measures.

Authors interested in submitting a paper for this issue are asked to consult the journal's instructions for authors and submit their abstracts (maximum of 250 words, with a tentative title) through the abstracts system (here). When submitting their abstracts, authors are also asked to confirm that they are aware that Media and Communication is an open access journal with a publishing fee if the article is accepted for publication after peer-review (corresponding authors affiliated with our institutional members do not incur this fee).

Readers across the globe will be able to access, share, and download this issue entirely for free. Corresponding authors affiliated with any of our institutional members (over 90 institutions worldwide) publish free of charge. Otherwise, an article processing fee will be charged to the authors to cover editorial costs. We defend that authors should not have to personally pay this fee and encourage them to check with their institutions if funds are available to cover open access publication costs. Further information about the journal's open access charges can be found here.

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AI Use in Marginalized Media Markets

Academic Editors: Bruce Mutsvairo (Utrecht University) and Mathias-Felipe de-Lima-Santos (Macquarie University)

  • Submission of Abstracts: 1-15 November 2025
  • Submission of Full Papers: 15-31 March 2026
  • Publication of the Issue: July/December 2026

This thematic issue explores AI-inspired newsroom practices in non-WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic) nations, addressing an underexplored area in journalism studies. While extensive research exists on AI in WEIRD contexts (Broussard et. al, 2019; Milosavljević & Vobič, 2021; Thomson et al., 2024; Thurman et al., 2019), fewer studies focus on marginalized media settings or non-WEIRD societies. Limited research covers regions like Latin America (de-Lima-Santos et al., 2021; de-Lima-Santos & Salaverría, 2021; Mellado et al., 2024; Soto-Sanfiel et al., 2022), Asia (Jamil, 2021; Sharma & Bhardwa, 2024), Africa (Gondwe, 2024; Kothari & Cruikshank, 2021; Munoriyarwa et. al, 2023), and the Arab world (Abdulmajeed & Fahmy, 2023).

Considering Leiser’s (2022, p. 8) claim challenging AI’s existence, we examine the future of regions historically disadvantaged by or benefiting little from digital technology. This thematic issue aims to discuss how algorithmic or computational journalism (Anderson, 2012) is shaping newsroom cultures in the “Global South.” From perceptions to realities in AI use across “Southern newsrooms,” we seek papers that unlock the potential but also the challenges for the journalistic use of AI in marginalized societies. How are local journalists framing AI in these contexts? How are journalism training institutes integrating AI into their curricula? How is generative AI being used in spreading and countering misinformation? In what ways are “non-professional” actors such as social media influencers appropriating AI technology in gathering and spreading news? Accordingly, contributions are invited on a wide range of topics, including:

  • AI adoption and adaptation in Global South media organizations;
  • Perceptions and attitudes of journalists in non-WEIRD countries toward AI;
  • Challenges and opportunities of implementing AI technologies in resource-constrained media outlets;
  • The role of AI in addressing language barriers and promoting local language journalism in multilingual societies;
  • AI and data journalism bridging the data divide in the Global South;
  • Ethical considerations of AI use in journalism within culturally diverse contexts;
  • AI-powered fact-checking tools and their effectiveness in combating mis- and disinformation in weak or young democracies;
  • The impact of AI on journalistic roles and professional identity in non-Western contexts;
  • AI in journalism education: Curriculum development and implementation in Global South institutions;
  • Giving voice to marginalized societies using AI;
  • AI and niche media;
  • The role of AI in empowering community media and grassroots initiatives;
  • AI-driven personalization and its impact on news diversity in fragmented societies;
  • Regulatory frameworks and policy challenges for AI in media across different Global South regions;
  • AI for bridging information gaps for exile media;
  • The potential of AI in enhancing investigative journalism in countries with limited press freedom;
  • AI adoption in commercially-owned vs. independent media outlets in non-WEIRD countries;
  • AI’s role in improving access to news for people with disabilities in resource-limited settings;
  • The impact of AI on news ecosystems and media sustainability.
We seek original and creative contributions focusing on a broad range of thematic approaches, conceptual frameworks, and diverse methodologies investigating journalism practice in the age of machine learning and AI. While our focus is predominantly non-Western societies, Western studies, particularly those focused on diasporic or exiled media, are also welcome.

Authors interested in submitting a paper for this issue are asked to consult the journal's instructions for authors and submit their abstracts (maximum of 250 words, with a tentative title) through the abstracts system (here). When submitting their abstracts, authors are also asked to confirm that they are aware that Media and Communication is an open access journal with a publishing fee if the article is accepted for publication after peer-review (corresponding authors affiliated with our institutional members do not incur this fee).

Readers across the globe will be able to access, share, and download this issue entirely for free. Corresponding authors affiliated with any of our institutional members (over 90 institutions worldwide) publish free of charge. Otherwise, an article processing fee will be charged to the authors to cover editorial costs. We defend that authors should not have to personally pay this fee and encourage them to check with their institutions if funds are available to cover open access publication costs. Further information about the journal's open access charges can be found here.

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