Ethical Issues in the Media on the Agenda at The Society for Phenomenology and Media’s 17th Annual International Conference at National University
San Diego, Calif. – March 23, 2015 – Issues related to media ethics and behavior take center stage when leading media scholars, philosophers and theorists from around the world convene for The Society for Phenomenology and Media’s (SPM) 17th Annual International Conference from March 25-28 at National University’s Sanford Education Center in La Jolla.
National University is the second-largest private, nonprofit institution of higher education in California, and the conference is being co-sponsored by the Center for Cultural and Ethnic Studies, housed in the University’s College of Letters and Sciences.
This year’s conference includes keynote speakers Kelly Gates, a UC San Diego professor, and Professor Carl Boggs of National University, both of whom have written extensively on questions about the media and media surveillance
“The purpose of SPM is to introduce international media theorists and philosophers and circulate their views, and that is once again well served at the upcoming conference,” said National University Professor Paul Majkut, SPM’s founder and chair of its board of directors. “The ongoing efforts of SPM now seem to be coalescing into a ‘school of thought’ on media. I am especially happy to see that ethical and political questions of media have become a major concern for international thinkers.”
Phenomenology is a way of thinking about ourselves based on our senses – what we see, touch, hear, taste, smell and feel – in essence, looking at the world as it appears to us. Often connected to existentialism, phenomenology’s most famous representative is the existential phenomenologist Jean-Paul Sartre.
“The Society for Phenomenology and Media (SPM) is a cutting-edge organization of young and established media theorists, scholars, and philosophers from around the world,” said Professor Melinda Campbell, conference host and lead faculty of National University’s undergraduate philosophy program. “This year, although keynoters will focus on questions of media surveillance, papers range over numerous philosophical and ethical issues connected to media.”
Majkut and Professor Luis Acebal and Paul Majkut, both members of the Department of Arts and Humanities/College of Letters and Sciences at National University, will serve as conference co-hosts. Acebal is the editor of Glimpse, the peer-reviewed publication of the Society.
“The diversity and inclusiveness shown at SPM conferences is astonishing – and this year is no exception,” said SPM President Yoni van den Eede of the Free University of Brussels, Belgium. “We are happy to turn 17 in San Diego.”
Annual conferences are rotated among Europe, Latin America, and North America. Last year, the Society for Phenomenology and Media met at the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg, Germany, home of the ‘father’ of modern phenomenology, Edmund Husserl.
Information on the Society for Phenomenology and Media can be found on its website: http://societyphenmedia.wix.com/socphenmedia
About National University
Founded in 1971, National University is the second-largest private, nonprofit institution of higher education in California. With 30,000 students and more than 240,000 alumni, National University is the flagship institution of the National University System. National University is dedicated to making lifelong learning opportunities accessible, challenging, and relevant to a diverse population of students. Five schools and one college – the College of Letters and Sciences; the School of Business and Management; the School of Education; the School of Engineering and Computing; the School of Health and Human Services; and the School of Professional Studies – offer more than 75 graduate and undergraduate degrees and 23 teacher credentials. Programs are offered at locations throughout California and across the nation, and are also available online. National University is headquartered in La Jolla, California.
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