Proceedings of the 68th New York State Communication Association

October 22-24, 2010 • Honor's Haven, Ellenville, NY

The Call: Communication Matters

Planners for the 68th annual conference invite conference participants to consider the question of how, if at all, communication matters in interpersonal, digital/networked, organizational, intercultural and international communication contexts?

The word “matters” should be understood as having a dual meaning. One meaning (the more traditional one) of the proposed theme invites paper submissions, panels, demonstrations, roundtables and/or media screenings that deal with the topic of communication in its myriad conceptualizations and circumstances.

The second meaning invites the same kinds of participation in the conference as mentioned but with an eye to exploring how, when and why communication matters in a variety of communication situations.

For instance, Twitter. When people have the ability to tweet about the moment to moment activities of their lives…how, if at all, does this communication matter? When people are dealing with a health crisis/issue and talking with others about their situation (e.g., doctors, neighbors, friends and/or other people dealing with the same health issue/crisis)…how, if at all, does this communication matter? When “packaged” messages become the message…how, if at all, does this communication matter?

It is the hope that the theme of Communication Matters (?) will open theoretical and ideological lines of communication among conference participants to engage in discussions about how communication can effect change and is effected by it.

We have two outstanding keynote speakers planned for the conference. Our Friday night keynote is Dr. Donal Carbaugh from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Our Saturday night keynote is Dr. Lawrence (Larry) Frey from the University of Colorado at Boulder. In addition, Dr. Kathleen Lebesco from Marymount Manhattan College will speak at a special lunchtime plenary session on Saturday.