*CFP* "MUSIC IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE: PUBLIC RADIO AND MUSIC IN THE STREAMING ERA", SPECIAL ISSUE JOURNAL OF RADIO & AUDIO MEDIA

The current moment is a particularly interesting time to examine public radio and media due to the sheer scale of change affecting the sector: technological, socio-cultural, economic, and generational, as well as dramatic transformations in production, distribution, and reception. The shift in terminology from “public service broadcasting” to “public service media” and “public service communicators” (Bardoel and Lowe 2007) gestures towards myriad opportunities and challenges associated with the emergence of networked digital media. The music industries are experiencing a similar period of flux with the emergence of streaming and the switch from a commodity-based ownership approach to music engagement to an experience-based service approach (Wikstrom 2013).

Public radio and its music programming have played important roles in the constitution of national and cultural identity (Berland 2009) and in broadcast radio’s convergence with, and/or transition to, the internet era, scholars have charted issues of regulating national music (or content) (O’Neill and Murphy 2012), examined connections between online public media and youth through music programming (Bélanger 2005), and considered the political economy of Internet music radio (Wall 2004) as well as issues of diversity of music and the public good (Hendy 2000). Recent scholarly work by this symposium’s editors has devoted consideration to notable developments in the public radio and popular music sectors at a time when streaming music has become a dominant mode of music listening. 

Examples include studies of: public media’s relationships to independent music, podcasting, and taste cultures (Cwynar 2015a, 2015b, 2017); international public radio partnerships through music programming (Fauteux 2016, 2017a); and, the place of public radio and music within the context of budget cuts and precarious cultural labour (Fauteux 2017b).

In light of these ongoing scholarly discussions, this special symposium intends to highlight the place and role of popular music within the context of public radio broadcasting and audio media, asking: what does a public service mandate or mission (“to serve the public”) mean for the circulation of popular music, particularly in an age of streaming music and digital public media? We welcome papers that engage with this overarching question and are particularly interested in the following themes:

• Public radio, music, and networked digital media (the web, apps, and mobile media) 
• Public radio/media and its relationship to music genres. 
• Cultures of taste and distinction with respect to shifts in music programming and genres (from classical to jazz/adult contemporary to indie/alternative) 
• Public radio/media, music, and indie/independent culture/ethos/values/ideologies 
• Public radio, music, and curation (radio hosts, algorithms, social/digital media work) 
• Public radio/media and local or regional music scenes 
• Public radio and music in the context of institutional collaborations 
• Public radio and popular music in the Global South 
• The shift from public radio to public media and a reconsideration of ideas about national identity and/or borders with respect to popular music 
• The branding of public media institutions through the use of popular music 
• Historical studies of public radio and music

While the above topics are of particular interest, we welcome submissions on any aspect of the broader public radio and music topic.

Submissions for this symposium are due by March 1, 2019. Submitted manuscripts undergo a blind peer review. Manuscripts should be submitted through Manuscript Central. Documents prepared in Microsoft Word are preferred and should conform to the stylistic guidelines of the American Psychological Association. Manuscripts should not exceed 6500 words (about 25 pages) and should include an abstract of no more than 100 words. In addition to the manuscript the author(s) should include a separate attachment with contact information.

More information on the Journal of Radio & Audio Media.

Please direct any questions in advance of your submission to the symposium editors: Brian Fauteux (fauteux@ualberta.ca) and/or Christopher Cwynar (ccwynar@defiance.edu).