Call for papers: Celebrity Philanthropy, edited book
06:55, 19 February 2010
.. Posted in Volunteerism and Volunteer Management.. Link
Celebrity Philanthropy will be an edited book of research articles that explores "celebrity politics, celebrity philanthropy, celebrity activism, and the individual motivations of celebrities and their fans for philanthropic engagement... This edited volume on celebrity philanthropy seeks to move beyond blanket dismissals of celebrity philanthrophy by approaching celebrity, philanthropy and international humanitarianism as related historical products of capitalism and the mass media."
"Celebrity philanthropy is alternatively praised and criticized. It is lauded for popularizing humanitarian values and global citizenship, or condemned for affirming global capitalism and undermining philanthropy's potentially transformative emphasis on the need for social change. While praise for celebrity philanthropy often overstates its capacity to transform society, much criticism of celebrity philanthropy dismisses celebrity as the epitome of all that is superficial and deplorable about contemporary life."
The editors welcome case studies and typologies of celebrity philanthropy from across the world today that explore such issues as the links or tensions between celebrity philanthropy and activism, the theorization of celebrity politics and of celebrity philanthropy as a mode of cultural citizenship, and the role of fans in the operations of celebrity philanthropy. Studies of celebrity philanthropy in developing countries will be particularly welcomed, both to provide a comparative framework for assessing the perceived benefits or otherwise of celebrity engagement in philanthropic activities, and to balance the western and Anglophone bias of existing studies.
Potential contributors should send an abstract, maximum 200 words, with full contact details, to editors Paul Allatson and Elaine Jeffreys, both of the University of Technology, Sydney by 1 May 2010.
Chapter deadline: 15 November 2010, maximum 8,000 words plus references.
Back in 1999, I published my own research on celebrity fan-based online groups using the internet to make a difference, as part of my work with the Virtual Volunteering Project. More than 10 years ago, there were already thousands of online communities for people who wanted to to share information and excitement about a particular television show, movie, sports team, celebrity, hobby or literary genre. And just as offline communities and groups will often "pass the hat" at their gatherings for a good cause, these Internet-based fan groups came together online or in-person to improve their communities, promote a cause or generate funds for a nonprofit organization. Often, these fans engaged in philanthropy with no prompting from any charity or formal organization. I profiled three of these groups -- for fans of the X-Files, fans of Xena: Warrior Princess, and fans of Barry Manilow -- and these groups' philanthropy efforts, and also linked to a dozen other fan-based groups engaging in such activities.
Unfortunately, without funding, I cannot take the time to revisit my earlier research and update it for this book. If any researcher wants to use my information to build on for his or her own submission to Celebrity Philanthropy, please contact me and I'll be happy to work with you as much as I can.
