The Memes of Production: A cultural studies weblog

Reports on the summer conference season—by those who were there!

As is traditional for the first MACS of the year, we will hear about some people’s experiences at a variety of conferences over summer. The discussion, as always, will continue at the UQ Staff and Graduates Club after 5:00pm. All welcome.

Speakers
Sal Humphreys: AoIR (Assoc of Internet Researchers) Vancouver; New York Law School conference; CSAA (Adelaide)
Jinna Tay: Asian Media Festival 2007 (Singapore)
Zala Volčič: New Zealand Discourse Conference (Auckland)
John Gunders: Sustaining Cultural Research (Adelaide)

Friday, March 14, 2008
3:30pm – 5:00pm
Centre for Critical and Cultural Studies, Seminar Room
Level 4 Forgan Smith Tower,
The University of Queensland

October MACS
12 October 2007, 2:30pm – 4:00pm

Seminar Room, Level Four, Centre for Critical and Cultural Studies, The University of Queensland

Special Guest: Prof John Quiggin

The final MACS for 2007 will take up the recent debates that have been occurring in various places—notably on the Cult-Stud and Fibreculture lists—about Facebook and other social networking sites, and address what has become almost a mini-moral panic about the values and pressures of maintaining an online presence through SNS, blogs, online publications, and so on, and how this helps or impacts on our ability to research, write, and develop professional contacts…

SILENCING DISSENT
Clive Hamilton

TUESDAY 13 FEBRUARY 2007
6pm for 6.30pm

The Brisbane Institute, in association with Brisbane’s Better bookshops, invite you to an evening with Clive Hamilton, author of Growth Fetish and Affluenza. Clive will be speaking about his new book, co-edited with Sarah Maddison, called Silencing Dissent: How the Australian government is controlling public opinion and stifling debate.

For over a decade, the Howard government has found ways to silence its critics, one by one. Like the proverbial frog in boiling water, Australians have become accustomed to repeated attacks on respected individuals and organisations. For a government which claims to support freedom of speech and freedom of choice, only certain kinds of speech and choices appear to be acceptable.

Silencing Dissent uncovers the tactics used by John Howard and his colleagues to undermine dissenting and independent opinion. Bullying, intimidation, public denigration, threats of withdrawal of funding, personal harassment, increased government red tape and manipulation of the rules are all tools of trade for a government that wants to keep a lid on public debate. The victims are charities, academics, researchers, journalists, judges, public sector organisations, even parliament itself.

Deeply disturbing, Silencing Dissent raises serious questions about the state of democracy in Australia.

Location:
The Irish Club, 171 Elizabeth Street, Brisbane

Cost:
Brisbane Institute Members/Sponsors free: RSVP to The Brisbane Institute
07 3220 2198
General Admission $16/$14 concession (incl GST): Tickets available through Brisbane’s Better Bookshops:
Avid Reader: 07 3846 3422
Coaldrake’s Milton: 07 3367 0559
American Bookstore: 07 3229 4677
Coaldrake’s Emporium: 07 3854 0188

Please note: Refreshments are not included

Proudly presented by The Brisbane Institute and Brisbane’s Better Bookshops