Ica pre conf 2010 tokyo caj flew

Communications Research in Australia and New Zealand

Professor Terry FlewQueensland University of Technology

President, Australian and New Zealand Communication Association

CAJ/ICA Presentation, June 20, 2010

Australian and New Zealand Communication Association (ANZCA)

• Australian Communication Association (ACA) founded in 1980 – inaugural conference in Sydney, 1981 – has held annual conferences ever since

• Communication and Media Studies recognised as a Field of Research category 1990

• Joint ICA/ANZCA conference held in Sydney, 1994• Becomes Australian and New Zealand Communication

Association, 1994• ANZCA becomes a founding member of Council for

Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (CHASS) in 2004• ANZCA currently has about 150 members

ANZCA conference streams

Early debates: professional communication or cultural studies?

• ACA supported both Australian Journal of Communication (founded 1982) and Australian Journal of Cultural Studies (founded 1983)

• ACA withdrew support for AJCS in 1986 – journal became Cultural Studies (now published by Routledge)

• ANZCA supported Media International Australia (then Media Information Australia) from 1986

• Founding of Cultural Studies Association of Australia in 1990

Media and Communications a “growth stock” in Australian universities

• Number of universities offering Media & Comm courses grew from 11 in 1989 to 34 by 2007 (38 Australian universities)

• Enrolments grew by 16% 2002-2007 (2% growth overall)• Cultural, media and communication studies identified by

Australian Research Council (ARC) as one of three Humanities and Creative Arts discipline groups in Australia with an international leadership profile (along with philosophy and Asian studies)

• Origins of programs in the newer universities (e.g. universities of technology, regional universities

• Major growth since 2000 has been in the elite (“Group of Eight”) universities

Recurring debates in Australian media and communications

• Mass communications (“North American”) versus critical humanities (“European”) approaches –core of ACA/CSAA split in 1980s

• Relationship of media and communication studies to professional communication fields (journalism, PR, advertising etc.)– Acrimonious “Media Wars” debate with journalism educators in late

1990s– Relationship between arts/humanities and business/commerce

schools and degree programs• Communication as a stand-alone academic discipline/communication as a

generic graduate capability• Impact of the Internet and digital media technologies

– End of the “mass communication paradigm”? – user-led media– Relationship to design and creative arts fields

Research leadership in Australian media and communications

• “Cultural policy moment” in 1990s – orientation to industry and policy debates in the field – Australian Key Centre for Cultural and Media Policy founded 1995

• Cultural Research Network founded 2005 – linking media, communication and cultural studies with cognate disciplines such as history, anthropology and geography

• ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation founded 2005 – promoting contribution of creative industries/arts and humanities to economic growth and innovation

Development of communication research in New Zealand

• NZ has comparable colonial history to Australia (“white settler” outposts of British Empire) but smaller population (4m compared to 22m in Australia)

• First degrees offered in 1990s by Massey U., U. of Waikato and Auckland U. of Technology

• Most NZ universities offer communication programs, with a strong professional/vocational orientation

• Cultural studies has tended to be a component of communication degrees more than a stand-alone field

Development of communication research in New Zealand

• Considerably less funding for research in NZ than Australia – no ARC equivalent

• Less tradition of inter-institutional collaboration in NZ – no CHASS equivalent

• Management communication is a strong field in NZ

• Strong tradition of biculturalism – active engagement with Maori perspectives

So are these countries Asian?

Context• Were British dominions defined by not being Asian –

“White Australia”, WWII• Major growth in economic ties to Asia since 1970s – Japan,

China (esp. Australia)• Significant Asian-background populations in Aust. and NZ• Growing numbers of Australian and New Zealanders live

and work in Asia• Uneven history of multiculturalism in both countries• Universities have high levels of Asian student enrolments

(esp. China)• Major cultural touchstones remain US and Britain, as seen

in domestic media content

Australia and New Zealand in Asia

• Intercultural communications• Comparative reporting of media events• Implications of East Asian economic growth• Global “power-shift”?• “Uncoupling” from Europe and US• Migration, diaspora and multiculturalism• Communication ethics• Comparative public policy

Sources

• History of ANZCAhttp://www.anzca.net/dossier.htm• Communications Research in Australia and

Aotearoa New ZealandMedia International Australia No. 136 (August

2010 –forthcoming)