Disciplines, Intersections, and the Future of Communication Research

Abstract

It is an honor to open this special issue of the Journal of Communication on ''intersections.'' Debates about the nature of our field have been extraordinarily productive, and to my mind, the navel-gazing we have reflexively undertaken over the years has been inspiring and stimulating. A bit self-absorbed, perhaps, but it underscores our sensitivities as a relatively new discipline. We certainly cannot claim infancy at this point, but our field is still in youthful adulthood, an opportune moment to scrutinize both our progress and chronic challenges.My argument is that the field of communication has a tremendous challenge ahead, now that we have grown in size and stature. We need to keep building the field, proving our ''value added'' on the scholarly scene but, at the same time, remain as broad and open to the offerings of other disciplines as possible. We need more coherence and more legitimacy if we are to strengthen the field, yet not at the cost of isolation, an enticing temptation for us as we build our own house. Navigating this complex terrain is exceedingly difficult, and so after a few forays into our various struggles, let me end with some practical solutions and questions we might ask ourselves moving forward.As preface, I should note that this article focuses primarily on communications as a field of inquiry in the United States. I focus on our intellectual lives, but primarily those pursued within the nuanced, idiosyncratic contexts of departments at North American colleges and universities. I regret any provincialism that results from this focus, but I am most familiar with communication studies in the United States, and always best to stay with what one knows. In the same vein, most of my examples, and view of the history of our field, are from the general perspective of media and audience studies. Foundations and institutional strugglesMuch has been written about the founding of communication, as a field or discipline, so I will not repeat these histories, anecdotes, and reviews. At this point, we have been treated to a plethora of volumes on the general intellectual history of the field (Rogers, 1994) as well as histories of particular ideas, technologies, industries, and practices (Nord, 2007;Peters, 1999). Among the more exciting projects have been those that bring together rigorous archival social history and the study of

The Past and Coming Communication Journey in Malaysia

“…We are reminded by the statement made by Tunstall (1983) that (U.S) communication research suffers because of its "fragmentation." (his reference that there was too much low quality work and very little of a really high quality output) or that there should be "more coherence" (Herbst, 2008). Another scholar, Thayer (1983) questioned the purpose of scholars conducting sponsored research, while others are free to promote their own academic interests.…”

“…"we need more coherence and more legitimacy if we are to strengthen our field." (Herbst, 2008 ;p. 603).…”

“…Scholars prefer quantitative research over qualitative but there is an appreciation of the value in both approaches. Murad Marican has also expressed his concern at the lack of theory building among communication scholars in Malaysia, although he sees the need for communication studies take a wider social science perspective, but hold in general agreement that communication field to be developed must be coherent (Coren, 2012;Herbst, 2008) not fragmented. The communication field has become prolific (Bryant & Pribanic-Smith, 2010) boasting at least 44 journals compared to only 13 journals in 1987.…”

Dimensions of diversity: Mapping the field of media and communication studies by combining cognitive and material dimensions

“…Recent meta-discussions in MCS gives a clear picture of the heterogeneity of the field (Corner 2013;Couldry 2013;Donsbach 2006;Gray and Lotz 2013;Herbst 2008;Koivisto and Thomas 2010). In Switzerland we get a similar picture (Bonfadelli and Bollinger 1987;cf.…”

“…Media and communication studies (MCS) is a relatively young and rapidly evolving field, characterized by high diversity in theories, methods, and research topics (Altmeppen, Weigel and Gebhard 2011;Donsbach 2006;Herbst 2008;Koivisto and Thomas 2010). From its very beginning, MCS has evolved beyond, and orthogonal to, more traditional disciplines such as sociology, eco-nomics, political science, or social psychology (Rogers 1994;Schramm 1959).…”