March 26, 2025

CALL FOR PANELISTS: Panel on Jonathan Sterne

CALL FOR PANELISTS: Panel on Jonathan Sterne

This panel seeks to honor the work and intellectual legacy of Jonathan Sterne (1970-2025), a pioneering scholar whose contributions to sound studies, media theory, and communication studies have profoundly shaped our field. Following his recent passing, we invite scholars whose work engages with, extends, or reimagines Sterne's theoretical contributions in contemporary contexts.

Potential proposals include, but are not limited to:

• Applications of Sterne’s theories of mediation and format theory to contemporary digital media environments
• Extensions of his work on the cultural history of sound and listening practices
• Engagements with his contributions to disability studies, emphasizing intersections of power, agency, and impairment
• Reflections on his methodological approaches to media and technology studies
• Explorations of his critiques of technological determinism and digital utopianism
• Considerations of his work on academic labor and the politics of higher education
• The panel is currently imagined as a paper session, but respondents are open to a discussion panel upon feedback. If interested, please send your proposal as: a 250-word description or abstract detailing your proposed contribution, along with a working title, your name, affiliation, and a brief description of your research interests to Kory Riemensperger at KAR238@pitt.edu by March 27 midnight EST. Thanks!