Convention Spotlight | Submission Process
Seeking Panels or Panelists Boards | Panel Participation Policy

BEA invites media related panel and program proposals from academics, students and professionals for presentation during BEA2025 

 DEADLINE: September 15, 2024 

 BEA2025, co-located with NAB Show, is an academic media convention with over 250 sessions on media pedagogy, collaborative networking events, hands-on technology workshops, research and creative scholarship and the Festival of Media Arts.   

 Programming Opportunities (All sessions are one-hour in length) 

• Panel/Research Presentation Sessions: These are the standard interest division sponsored convention format sessions with a moderator, 3-4 presenters and, if desired, a respondent. 
• Workshops: Workshops should involve specialized training and professional development.  
• Technical Demonstrations: Equipment or software manufacturer/vendors are invited to bring in the latest communication technology to demonstrate. Faculty who have worked directly with the technology are encouraged to talk about their experiences with the equipment/software in the classroom or lab. 
• Showcases: These sessions highlight student work in which faculty have been involved. Showcases are to be more “show” than “tell.”  
• Other ideas?  Contact us if you have other alternative innovative ideas for program sessions, such as off-site tours or technical training at Help@beaweb.org and we would be happy to talk about them. 

Proposals & Programming 

BEA’s Interest Divisions significantly shape the convention program.  Interest Division leaders review, evaluate and rank the proposals and forward the recommendations to the Convention Program Chair, Rebecca Ann Lind.  Rebecca can be contacted at rebecca@uic.edu.  

Every effort will be made to give each division several invited panel sessions, a competitive paper session and a division social activity or event.  Interest Division business meetings will be held in February and March 2025, before the annual convention.  Program slots are competitive so if information is not provided in a complete and timely manner, those program slots may be assigned to other session proposals. Priority will be given to panels sponsored by more than one division. 

The BEA2025 Convention Spotlight is….. BEA at 70: Foundations and Futures 

As we celebrate BEA’s 70th anniversary, let’s take the opportunity to both look back and stride forward. The spotlight for BEA 2025 is BEA at 70: Foundations and Futures. Whether you’re a historian, a social scientist, a critical/cultural scholar, or a documentarian; whether your daily efforts focus on teaching, service, or research (in whatever combination); whether you identify primarily with media production or traditional academic research; whether this is your first BEA or your 50th, let’s celebrate all we have done and all we can become. This spotlight concludes the multi-year exploration and consideration of the past and the future. We welcome scholarship that helps us understand the historical foundations of media content, audiences, production, regulation, and more. We welcome scholarship outlining the actual and potential roles each of us play in creating our futures, as individuals, media creators, teachers, scholars, citizens, and more. Finally, we welcome scholarship that ponders the current and potential state of our rapidly evolving media ecosystem, including technological developments, algorithmic cultures, AI, and more. 

BEA at 70! Come celebrate our foundations, and our futures, in Las Vegas. 

BEA at 70: Foundations and Futures serves as a spotlight for the convention, but program proposals are not limited to this area of research and presentation.  All sessions must adhere to the goals and objectives of the interest division(s) to which they are submitted (descriptions are listed on the submission site).   

LOGIN or CREATE an Account to Submit Panels & Program Submissions Online (AVAILABLE IN LATE JULY) 

BEA Members can access the BEA2025 All Academic site with their BEA membership login and password.   If you know your BEA login information login to your All Academic account.  If you forgot your BEA membership password, click here to reset. If you ARE NOT a BEA member, create an account in BEA’s database BEFORE you visit All Academic by clicking here. After you create an account, login to All Academic and follow the directions below.  If you have trouble, please email help@BEAweb.org.  

Submission Process 

• Submit a proposal: Click on the link for “Submit or a Paper or Program Proposal.” 
• Select a Division: Read the division descriptions and select the primary division to which you will submit your program.  Programs can have up to one (1) interest division co-sponsor – please add a co-sponsor in the designated section. 
• Title/Abstract/Program Information: Follow the guidelines to submit the title & abstract and additional program information. 
• Review your information & submit: Don’t forget to review your information. If accepted, this is how it will appear in the program.  Please use proper title case for session names and spell check (PLEASE)!!! 
• Editing Abilities: You can edit and or re-submit the description and panelists until the system closes at 11:59 pm (local time) on September 15th. 

We want to make sure our panels represent the diversity of the industry, so please take some time to review your description and panelists and make sure that it does.  All panels must include diversity of gender, race, ethnicity, voices AND institutions. If your panel does not reflect diversity on several levels, we ask that you revisit the submission and include additional participants as moderators and/or respondents.   

Seeking Panels or Panelists Boards 

BEA members have a variety of research and professional interests and expertise – and don’t always have the contacts needed to fill a panel or know who to talk to offer themselves as a panelist.  We encourage members to reach out and make new contacts for each convention by using the “Panelist Seeking Panels” and “Panels Seeking Panelists” boards in Facebook.  Please join the “BEA2024 Seeking Panels & Panelists Board” and post your panel idea to entice panelists or offer your area of expertise to a panel organizer. 

BEA’s Panel Participation Policy 

In an effort to increase the diversity of content and representation at our convention, BEA asks that you limit the number of appearances you make during the convention.  

1. An individual may have TWO appearances as a panelist during the convention. 
2. A person may have ADDITIONAL appearances as a panel moderator or respondent. 
3. A person may have UNLIMITED appearances as a presenter of competitive papers, Research-in-Progress, creative productions or other competitive sessions. 

Please also consider inviting new speakers (faculty and industry professionals) to participate in BEA’s convention.  We welcome all new voices, research and insights. 

Division Chairs are to evaluate the eligibility of the participants in those proposals submitted to that division. The Program Chair shall determine participant eligibility across divisions once the proposals are submitted. 

Convention Attendance 

Panel/program participants MUST register for the convention.  If you are a session organizer and/or moderator, please encourage panelists to register.  BEA’s registration site opens in mid-November.  If you have questions regarding the submission process, please email the appropriate Interest Division chair. 

Note: The “discounted member rate” only applies to individual membership.  If you are a BEA institutional member you do not receive the discounted registration. 

Co-Sponsored Panels 

Co-sponsored proposals are encouraged. Co-sponsorship occurs when more than one division recommends a specific panel for inclusion in the program. No more than two (2) Interest Divisions will be listed for co-sponsorship on a particular session.  Panel producers must indicate each division being proposed as a co-sponsor on the “Review your submission information” page.  Go to the bottom of the page and click on the green link that says “Add a co-Sponsor.”   

Session Audio/Visual Capabilities 

Take note that session rooms have projectors, panel mics, screens and laptops ONLY.  If you have any other special AV requests (ie. handheld/lavalier mics, etc.) please let us know by January 31. The general Wifi in the LVCC West Hall is not consistent.  Please do not plan to stream videos or “Zoom” in panel participants. 

COMPLETED Program Proposal Submissions must be submitted online through BEA’s submission site by 11:59 pm (local time) on September 15, 2024. 

Questions?  Visit www.beaweb.org or email Help@BEAweb.org.