RMeS News

November-December 2024 | Leiden University
In this course students examine media theoretical dimensions of practices at the intersection of art, science and technology. Materiality has always been of particular importance for the arts as its qualities contribute actively to perception and hence the ‘work’ of art. Today’s technologies make possible activation of latent capacities of matter in numerous novel and thought-provoking ways. Soft robotics, genetic modification, bio-based materials, and ‘internet of forest’ are among the many examples of hybridity between living and nonliving matter and the realm of information.

February – March 2025 | Utrecht University
Each spring, the Research School for Media Studies offers a Trending Topics course where faculty members from ten participating universities (UvA, UU, VU, EUR, UL, UM, RUG, RUN, TU, OU) present the latest research in their fields of interest through a series of lectures and workshops. The course invites RMA students to participate in an international, cutting edge research environment, while earning credits towards their degree. It presents a unique opportunity to get to know other students and leading academics from all over The Netherlands, in an open setting of engaging and ambitious exchange that would prove particularly fruitful for students who are aspiring to pursue a future career in academic research or teaching.

When: 11 October 2024 | Utrecht University
Guest speakers: Dr Çiğdem Bozdağ (RUG) and Dr Bregt Lameris (OU)
Join us as we kick off the new academic year with an engaging roundtable discussion on Inclusivity in Media Research. This event will bring together experts to explore the challenges and opportunities in promoting inclusivity within the media research landscape. Through open dialogue, participants will have the chance to exchange ideas, share insights, and collaborate on fostering a more inclusive research environment.

2 October 2024 | University of Amsterdam
We welcome you to a special master class dedicated to exploring research into nuanced creator content and its connected communities. Tom Divon and Dr. Carolina Are will be unpacking the contested digital lives of their ongoing study participants – Palestinian, Jewish, and sex-positive content creators on digital platforms. In this master class, Tom and Carolina aim to uncover the opportunities and challenges these communities face on digital media as researchers deeply embedded within the landscapes and scenarios these participants inhabit. The masterclass will highlight how participants are able to connect under the watchful governance of Instagram and TikTok, which provide them with novel bonding opportunities and workstreams after having faced offline discrimination due to their work, background or style of expression while also rendering their earnings and activism remarkably precarious for the nuances of that same content they produce.