{"id":6648,"date":"2026-06-29T13:09:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T17:09:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/?p=6648"},"modified":"2026-06-30T11:10:06","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T15:10:06","slug":"letter-from-the-director-june-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/2026\/06\/29\/letter-from-the-director-june-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Letter From The Director: June 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Communication and Inequalities in Context: Reflections from Cape Town<\/h2>\n

By Michelle Amazeen<\/p>\n

Boats in the foreground, bobbing in the harbor, against a backdrop of hotels lining the coast, a small mountain in the background beneath a crisp blue sky dotted with clouds.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On June 4-8, 2026, Boston University was well represented at the 76th Annual International Communication Association (ICA) Conference with over a dozen faculty and graduate students in attendance. Held in Cape Town, South Africa, this year\u2019s theme \u2013 Communication and Inequalities In Context \u2013 proved especially resonant given the location\u2019s rich and complex history.<\/p>\n

Group photo of Boston University scholars, who attended ICA.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As one of the biggest global gatherings for communication scholars, the conference offered abundant opportunities for community building, networking, and hearing cutting-edge research before publication. Several CRC faculty and graduate students were recognized with awards for their excellence in communication research:<\/p>\n

Dr. Michelle Amazeen, PhD students Naa Korkoi, and James Crissman smile for a selfie.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A paper led by PhD student James Crissman<\/b> along with Drs. Ayse Lokmanoglu<\/b> and Betsi Grabe<\/b> won the top paper award for \u201cTracing Visual Communication\u2019s Cross-Disciplinary Citation Footprint in a Network Analysis from 1975 to 2024\u201d in the Visual Communication Studies Division.<\/p>\n

Dr. Joshua Baldwin<\/b> was a collaborator on \u201cEase and Constraints on Enjoyment and Appreciation: The Role of Narrative Challenge\u201d which took top paper in the Communication Science and Biology Interest Group.<\/p>\n

Dr. Morgan Weiland<\/b> won the Best Dissertation Award in the Philosophy, Theory & Critique Division for \u201cMaking Internet Law: How Cyberspace was Socially Constructed as a First Amendment Speech System.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr. Xiaoya Jiang poses with her top faculty paper award.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Dr. Xiaoya Jiang<\/b> won two awards<\/i>: the top faculty paper award in the Global Communication & Social Change Division for a collaborative paper she led entitled \u201cPublic Expression about Presidential Debates in Latin America on Twitter (X): Social Network Features, Influential Nodes, and Top Messages in Six Countries,\u201d and a second top paper award for a paper on which she collaborated: \u201cInformation Dynamics in Political Debates: Multimodal Approach to Candidates’ Facial Expressions and Real-Time Public Reaction During the 2024 U.S. Presidential Debates.\u201d<\/p>\n

Understanding Communication and Inequality<\/h3>\n

Beyond the research presentations, the conference theme took on visceral meaning as we explored Cape Town’s landscape and history. We were treated to the traditional music and dance of the indigenous Khoisan<\/b> people at the opening ceremonies\u2014a moment that honored the voices often marginalized in dominant narratives.<\/p>\n

A group of Khoisan performers on stage.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

Yet the visit also confronted us with the weight of South Africa’s apartheid era. Standing before a “whites only” bench outside one of the buildings, or learning the stories of the brutal segregation that once defined the nation, the conference’s focus on Communication and Inequalities in Context moved from the theoretical to the deeply personal.<\/p>\n

A weathered bench emblazoned with ‘Whites Only’.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The courage and moral clarity of leaders like Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who refused to be silenced and worked to bridge divides through dialogue, reminded us why our work as communication scholars matters. How we tell stories, whose voices are amplified or suppressed, and how institutions communicate\u2014these are not neutral acts. They shape societies and perpetuate or challenge inequalities.<\/p>\n

A Scholar\u2019s Summer<\/h3>\n

Beyond learning and sharing research, there were opportunities to experience Cape Town and South Africa’s extraordinary natural beauty: Table Mountain and Cape of Good Hope, as well as wildlife including seals, penguins, ostriches, and baboons. We also toured the region’s magnificent wineries and tasted the fabulous wines of South Africa.<\/p>\n

Drs. Michelle Amazeen & Arunima Krishna pose behind the ‘Cape of Good Hope’ sign. Waves crash against the rock face in the background.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As I reflect on this experience, I feel genuinely fortunate to be a scholar who can engage with communication research while also experiencing the world\u2014to travel, learn, and wrestle with the ideas and places that shape our understanding of human connection and society. During the summer months when classes are out of session, friends often ask, “Don’t you have the summers off?”<\/p>\n

Boston University COM Faculty & PhD Students gather for a group photo in the hotel lobby.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This week in Cape Town was, in part, what we do with those summers. We attend conferences, deepen our expertise, build partnerships with scholars across the globe, and return to our teaching and mentoring enriched by these experiences. Scholarship is a privilege\u2014one we take seriously and use to contribute knowledge that strengthens our field and, ultimately, our society.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Communication and Inequalities in Context: Reflections from Cape Town By Michelle Amazeen On June 4-8, 2026, Boston University was well represented at the 76th Annual International Communication Association (ICA) Conference with over a dozen faculty and graduate students in attendance. Held in Cape Town, South Africa, this year\u2019s theme \u2013 Communication and Inequalities In Context […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22892,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10,72,1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6648"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/22892"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6648"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6648\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6658,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6648\/revisions\/6658"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/crc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}