I would like to inform you of an advertisement for a PhD studentship.A stipend is attached to the studentship. Please feel welcome to contact me directly in relation to this [preferably by email].

Please note that the deadline for applications is 27 July 2007, but the formal advertisement does not appear until Monday 9th July, so there will be no other information on the University website until then. However, application documents are available. Please also note that applications can be sent electronically.

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New Media at the Beijing Olympics School of Media, Language & Music, University of Paisley, Scotland, UK. Closing date: 27 July, 2007.

This project investigates the development of new media within China, in association with the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. In so doing, it responds to new agendas in media research in three areas: studies of the media in China, studies of new media, and the role of the media in the construction of the Olympic Games to an international audience. In combining these areas, the student will focus on media discourses surrounding the Beijing Olympic Games. The aim will be to consider the ‘external’ impression of the Beijing Olympics, by studying the cultural and political dimensions of the Games. This work will draw on key theoretical insights into international media events and digital culture. It will also theorize the transformation of journalism as a profession in the context of new media publishing and broadcasting.

Key concepts: citizen journalism, social software, media event, Olympics.

This research will draw on collaborative research projects undertaken by Dr Miah with the London School of Economics and the University of East London. Partner institutions also include various Beijing Universities, particularly the Communication University of China, a leading provider of broadcasting expertise in Beijing and China. Collaborations are also underway with the Annenberg School of Communication, various new media organisations and the student will be assisted to attend the Beijing Olympics in August 2008. The student will support the teaching of ‘Sport & Spectacle’, a course directed by Dr Miah focusing on the media, cultural and political aspects of the Olympic Movement. The project also benefits from an External Adviser Charlie Beckett, Director of POLIS at the London School of Economics. There will also be an opportunity to provide Editorial Assistance to the academic magazine ‘Culture at the Olympics’ http://www.culturalolympics.org.uk