International Journal of Communication Publishes a Forum on Groundhog Day

The latest International Journal of Communication Forum collection Groundhog Day, guest edited by Crystal Abidin, is based on a one-day online-only open-access collection of roundtables recently hosted by the Influencer Ethnography Research Lab at Curtin University, Australia. Contributors focused on the cyclical nature of academic spotlights and hot topics in the field of Internet studies, and some of the frustrations related to the ahistoricity of the discussions and moral panics across some scholarship, the media, and public discourse. Over four panels, this event addressed the cycles, patterns, templates, and related fatigue on digital media discourse. Collectively, our articles draw on empirical research to address and challenge some popular and oft-regurgitated conceptions about uses of digital media: Are influencers just vain? Is digital media fake and does it teach young people the wrong things about sexuality? Does the Internet destroy and save our mental health? Are memes new? 

Contributors include Crystal Abidin (Curtin University), Srikanth Nayaka (GITAM & Indian Institute of Technology Tirupati), Earvin Charles B. Cabalquinto (Monash University), Jia Guo (Curtin University & University of Sydney), Kath Albury (Swinburne University of Technology), Samantha Mannix (Swinburne University of Technology), Barrie Shannon (University of South Australia), Hao Zheng (Curtin University), Natalie Ann Hendry (University of Melbourne), Natasha Zeng (Monash University), Tom Short (RMIT), Clare Southerton (La Trobe University), Gabriele de Seta (University of Bergen), Idil Galip (University of Amsterdam), Lucie Chateau (Tilburg University), and Günseli Yalcinkaya (Dazed).

We invite you to read these articles that published in the International Journal of Communication on January 6, 2025. Please log into ijoc.org to read the papers of interest. We look forward to your feedback! 

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Influencers Are Just Vain
Crystal Abidin, Srikanth Nayaka, Earvin Charles B. Cabalquinto, Jia Guo 

Digital Media Is Fake and Teaches Young People the Wrong Things About Sexuality
Kath Albury, Samantha Mannix, Barrie Shannon, Hao Zheng

The Internet Destroys and Saves Our Mental Health
Natalie Ann Hendry, Tom Short, Clare Southerton, Natasha Zeng

Memes Are New
Gabriele de Seta, Idil Galip, Lucie Chateau, Günseli Yalcinkaya

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Silvio Waisbord, Editor 
Kady Bell-Garcia, Managing Editor
Chi Zhang, Managing Editor, Special Sections
Crystal Abidin, Guest Editor

Please note that according to the latest Google Scholar statistics, IJoC ranks 7th among all Humanities journals and 9th among all Communications journals in the world — demonstrating the viability of open access scholarly publication at the highest level.