Hello all,
The Society for East Asian Anthropology’s (SEAA) column in Anthropology News is excited to invite abstract submissions for this quarter’s theme, “Signal/Noise.” As a section of Anthropology News (the American Anthropological Association’s member magazine), we select pieces to be published on its online forum, corresponding to themes chosen by AN as well as critical concerns of East Asia studies.
General CfP by Anthropology News (Full description available here)
We are looking for stories about how communities, cultures, and individuals distinguish meaningful patterns from background noise, interpret disruptions, and find (dis)connection amid interference. What counts as signal versus noise, and who gets to decide? How are fuzzy boundaries clarified or precarious structures disrupted? What happens when communication is both necessary and fraught, or what makes messages shared or misconstrued?
At SEAA, we are particularly interested in soliciting a piece that uses “Signal/Noise” as a lens to examine social, cultural, economic, and political processes in East Asia. We invite submissions that explore questions such as:
What insights can the duality of signal/noise (with its original or metaphorical meanings) provide to think through (mis)communication and (dis)connection within soundscapes, communities, structures, and activities in East Asia?
How can the reality and representation of “signal/noise” in East Asia help us revitalize such longstanding anthropological concepts as voice, dialogue, boundary, intervention, rapport, and distinction, among others?
How can the lens of “signal/noise” inspire us to rethink ethnographic approaches in East Asia as a particular site?
Submissions, targeted toward a general audience, can take the form of a short essay (up to 1,600 words and 3 images) or a photo essay (up to 750 words and 8 images). We invite contributions from scholars who are involved with a broad range of ethnographic methods, from archival to digital, in-person, and remote fieldwork. We highly encourage you to visit the Anthropology News website to get a sense of its accessible, jargon-free, and storytelling-based pieces. If you are interested in working with us, please send your 250-word abstract to co-editors Alex Wolff (alex_wolff@brown.edu) and Yanping Ni (yn4683@princeton.edu) by March 12th, 2025. For a photo essay, please also include 2-3 sample images. Decisions will be made one week after the due date.
The selected piece will go through one or two rounds of edits with section editors, and will be published in Anthropology News in September 2025. Although we are only able to accept one piece per quarter, we cherish every submission and will keep excellent abstract proposals in mind for future themes to come.
Anthropology News boasts a readership of about 25,000 unique views per month, providing a significant platform for your work to reach a wide audience. We publish articles from members that address contemporary issues with original ethnographic research. Scholars of all stages currently possessing or anticipating SEAA membership are encouraged to participate. To learn more about what we publish, please check out previous articles here.
Sincerely,
Yanping & Alex
You are here: Home / Call for Papers / CFP “Signal/Noise” Anthropology News & Society for East Asian Anthropology (SEAA)