10.08.2023Just published: Call for Papers "Science Communication in the Age of Artificial Intelligence"

When ChatGPT went public in November 2022, it changed the communication ecosystem. The chatbot, which provides original, human-like responses to user prompts based on extensive training data and human feedback, reached a million users within a week and 100 million users by January 2023 – arguably one of the fastest rollouts of any technology in history.

ChatGPT is only one example for the broader development of “generative AI” that produces novel outputs based on training data and, by now, translates text (like DeepL), creates imagery (like DALL.E, Midjourney or Stable Diffusion), generates textual responses (like ChatGPT), and more (Cao et al. 2023). And generative AI, again, is only one, albeit prominent, example of artificial intelligence that has become relevant in fields like economy, science or healthcare and will also change the practice of science communication. For example, it can support science communication practitioners in generating content or identifying new ideas and trends, translating and preparing scientific results and publications for different channels and audiences, and enabling interactive exchanges with various user groups (De Angelis et al. 2023).

AI is also highly relevant for science communication research (Schäfer 2023), which is why the Annual Conference of the “Science Communication” Division of the German Communication Association (DGPuK) aims to connect researchers from the German-speaking countries with international colleagues, and bring together cutting-edge research assessing the role of AI in science communication. The conference will be a forum for science communication research on all facets of AI while also providing an open panel for non-AI-related research.

Submissions may focus on – but are by no means limited to – the following themes and perspectives:

• Communication about AI and its production, intermediation, presentation, and consumption
• Communication with AI
• The impact of AI technologies on science communication ecosystems
• Theoretical and methodological approaches to studying AI in science communication
• Open Panel for science communication research not related to AI

More information can be found here.

Opening of submission site:              November 15, 2023
Deadline for submissions:                  December 5, 2023, 23:59 (Central European Time)
Information about acceptance:        until February 28, 2024