Panel Description

As the number of Chinese using cell phones to access the Internet grow to 117 million—a growth rate of 113% in 2008 alone—more and more news and information are now channeled through the mobile phone. How are mobile phones becoming a platform for the delivery of news and information, particularly by established news organizations? In what ways can cell phones provide innovative mechanisms for news gathering and news diffusion by local and national newspapers? How can journalists, innovators, and media development implementers better contextualize mobile technology among past forms of new media?

Co-hosted by Annenberg School for Communication and the Communication University of China, the seminar will explore these questions by bringing together a group of scholars, technologists, and industry experts via live videoconference between Beijing and Philadelphia. It aims to encourage a greater understanding of how mobiles can strengthen journalistic practices and foster greater cooperation among researchers and practitioners on innovative uses of mobile telephony. The event will also serve as a pilot panel for an international series of online seminars focusing on emerging issues around mobile technology, media development and assistance, and civil society.

Official Participants:

• Aalto University, Media Factory
• The Center for Media and Communication Studies, Central European University
• The School of Journalism, Fudan University
• The Department of Communication, University of Helsinki
• The School of Journalism and Communication, Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK)
• The Institute of Communication Study and School of Journalism and Communication, Renmin University
• Shantou University
• School of Communication, International Studies and Languages, University of South Australia
• The US-China Center, Tsinghua University
• Xiamen University