MONOGRAPHIC: RECONFIGURING THE MEDIA ECOSYSTEM: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, DATA POWER AND THE GOVERNANCE OF DIGITAL MEDIA
Title of the monographic:
Reconfiguring the Media Ecosystem: Artificial Intelligence, Data Power and
the Governance of Digital Media
Coordinators:
Elisha Ondieki Makori (University of Nairobi)
elishaondieki@uonbi.ac.ke
Sonia Blanco (University of Malaga)
sblanco@uma.es
Hellen Gesare (University of Nairobi)
helen.gesare@uonbi.ac.ke
Deadline for submission of articles: March 13, 2027
Publication date: June 2027
Call for Papers
The rapid integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into digital media environments is fundamentally reshaping the structures, practices, and epistemologies of contemporary communication. Beyond its instrumental applications, AI operates as a transformative force within a broader datafied ecosystem, where information production, distribution, and consumption are increasingly mediated by algorithmic systems and platform logics.
This transformation is closely linked to the consolidation of what has been described as data power (Couldry & Mejias, 2019), a form of asymmetrical control derived from the large-scale extraction, processing, and monetisation of data. In this context, digital media systems are being reconfigured through complex interactions between technological infrastructures, economic interests, regulatory frameworks, and user practices.
At the same time, the growing influence of AI raises pressing challenges related to the governance of digital media. Issues such as algorithmic transparency, accountability, ethical responsibility, and the regulation of automated systems have become central to both academic debate and policy agendas (Floridi et al., 2018; European Commission, 2020). These concerns are particularly salient in relation to the spread of disinformation, the erosion of trust in media, and the emergence of new forms of synthetic and AI-generated content.
This monograph aims to provide a critical and interdisciplinary exploration of how AI is reconfiguring the media ecosystem, with particular attention to the dynamics of data power and the governance of digital media. Contributions are invited from diverse methodological and theoretical perspectives within communication and media studies.
References
Couldry, N., & Mejias, U. A. (2019). The costs of connection: How data is colonizing human life and appropriating it for capitalism. Stanford University Press.
https://doi.org/10.1515/9781503609754
European Commission. (2020). White paper on artificial intelligence: A European approach to excellence and trust (COM(2020) 65 final). Publications Office of the European Union.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal- content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52020DC0065
Floridi, L., Cowls, J., Beltrametti, M., Chatila, R., Chazerand, P., Dignum, V., Luetge, C., Madelin, R., Pagallo, U., Rossi, F., Schafer, B., Valcke, P., & Vayena, E. (2018). AI4People—An ethical framework for a good AI society: Opportunities, risks, principles, and recommendations. Minds and Machines, 28(4), 689–707.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11023-018-9482-5
Thematic lines
Submissions may address (but are not limited to) the following topics:
AI and the transformation of journalistic practices
• Automation in news production (e.g., automated journalism, generative AI)
• Changes in professional roles, routines, and epistemologies
• Human–machine collaboration in media production
Data power, platformisation and media ecosystems
• Datafication processes and their impact on media structures
• Platform governance and algorithmic curation
• Political economy of data in digital media environments
Disinformation, AI and information disorder
• AI-generated content, deepfakes and synthetic media
• Algorithmic amplification of misinformation and disinformation
• Detection, verification and mitigation strategies
Ethics, accountability and algorithmic responsibility
• Ethical frameworks for AI in media and communication
• Bias, fairness and transparency in algorithmic systems
• Professional and institutional responsibility in AI-mediated communication
Governance, regulation and public policy
• Regulatory approaches to AI and digital media (e.g., EU AI Act)
• Platform regulation and content moderation policies
• Governance models for trustworthy AI
Audiences, literacy and social implications
• Audience reception of AI-generated content
• Media literacy and critical AI literacy
• Trust, credibility and user perceptions in AI-mediated environments
Short CV coordinators
Elisha Ondieki Makori (PhD) is Chair and Senior Lecturer, Department of Library and Information Science at the University of Nairobi, dedicated to education, training, research and mentorship, with solid collaborations at national, regional and international levels. Holds PhD in Information Science from Moi University and certified Advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) Modelling Specialist from Digital Regenesys. Research passion and interests encompass Artificial Intelligence, Data and Informatics, Management Information Systems, Information and Knowledge Management, ICT and Digital Innovations. With more than two decades of teaching and research experience across higher education institutions, including the University of Nairobi, Moi University, Kenyatta University, Egerton University, Technical University of Kenya, Laikipia University, Kisii University, Karatina University and the University of South Africa, he also contributes to sustainable development programmes in climate adaptation, agriculture, health, education and the digital economy. Participates in curriculum development and consultancy in addition to continuous professional development programmes.
Provides leadership in postgraduate research supervision, mentorship, guidance and examination of Master's and doctoral theses. Participates in collaborative research programmes with extensive publications in International Journals, Books and Conference Proceedings.
Email Address: elishaondieki@uonbi.ac.ke
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1966-3253
Sonia Blanco. Senior Lecturer at the University of Málaga, with a PhD in Audiovisual Communication and a degree in Journalism. Her research focuses on the use of artificial intelligence in journalism, as well as on disinformation. She is the author of more than 25 articles and several book chapters, and has been a visiting lecturer at University College Dublin (UCD, Ireland), Konkuk University (Seoul, South Korea), Monteávila University (Caracas, Venezuela) and the University of Antioquia (Medellín, Colombia). She is currently a researcher on the national project ‘DesinfoperIA: Journalistic applications of AI to reduce disinformation: trends, uses and perceptions of professionals and audiences’. She also currently leads the project ‘gen-IA: Library of artificial intelligence tools for the creation of multimedia content’. https://gen-ia.uma.es/.
Email Address: sblanco@uma.es
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1342-7455
Hellen Gesare Omangi is a Lecturer in the Department of Library and Information Science at the University of Nairobi, and PhD candidate in Communication Studies in Moi University. Her PhD research focuses on Leveraging Communication Technology for Peace in Conflict-Prone Regions by Local level Peace Actors. She has a degree in B.Ed. (English and Literature) and Master of Arts (MA) degree in General Linguistics. Her MA thesis is on the morphological typology of the Ekegusii Language. She also has post-graduate diploma in Human Resource Management from Kenya Institute of Management with focus on Management Information Systems and Practices. At present she is pursuing online courses on Data Science and Artificial Intelligence in Communication and Media Studies as well as in Information Systems and Management Studies. For many years she has taught Communication Skills and Studies at the University of Nairobi. She is currently in charge of course units like Information Marketing and Public Relations; Innovation and Creativity; Information for Development; Enterprise Information Systems as well as Principles and Practices of Management. In addition, she is the author of several articles in refereed journals.
Email Address: helen.gesare@uonbi.ac.ke
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-4189-1406
