Annette Hill, professor in media and communication at Jönköping University, joins the Centre for Geomedia Studies at Karlstad University.
Annette, tell us about your background
– My background is in media audiences, with a focus on engagement and cultures of viewing. I started out in the late 1990s at the University of Westminster in media and communications, learning about theories and methods and doctoral supervision. I became a Research Director for the School of Media, Arts and Design which was an eye opener in terms of learning about arts and humanities and social sciences research. Moving to Sweden in 2010, I was Chair in Media and Communication at Lund University, and after a rewarding time managing an international master programme I moved to Jönköping University in 2024.
What expectations do you have about being a part of Geomedia at Karlstad University?
– I’m excited to collaborate with Karlstad. I know researchers in media and communications through various conferences, from their work on Geomedia to research on news, television and film. I think Geomedia is an interesting way of studying the relations between geography, media and mobility, resources, social justice and beyond. The work by colleagues in this area, one that is unique to Karlstad, is at the forefront of seeing media and culture in a wider environment.
Is there any current research you have conducted that relates to Geomedia?
– My own work connects to Geomedia in several ways. First, I’ve been interested for a while in passion, that is how emotion and motivation lead people to intensely engage with media in society and culture. More recently I have been exploring eco media footprinting research, the relations between infrastructures, media devices and our environment. That is a new line of enquiry which aligns with the work of scholars in Geomedia.
Inaugural talk by Annette Hill - Imagining Infrastructures
How do we imagine media infrastructures? The balance of research in media imaginaries weights more towards how media imagines us, prioritizing the visions of media industries, political actors and an imagined infrastructure-audience matrix. This talk focuses on the act of imagining streaming platforms as a creative and relational process.
There are three acts explored in the talk. There is the act of imagining, referring to visual and creative processes for streaming platforms like Netflix or YouTube. There is the act of layering, referring to the multilayered experience of platform infrastructures as technical, lifestyle and environmental elements. And there is the act of streaming, referring to audience orientations in commodified media infrastructures. Together, the three acts of imagining, layering and streaming suggest contra positions of actors, cultural forms and meanings for envisioning infrastructures.
By using visual methods, including drawing streaming platform maps and reflective interviews, the research explores how images enable audiences to show what is on their minds when imagining the current state of play for platform infrastructures now and in the near the future.
- Time: 16 April, 14:00-15:30
- Place: 11D121, Karlstad University
- Registration (Register no later than April 8)
