Fear, panic and the media

Topics as wide ranging as fears about war, disease, teenagers and sex and the way the media has dealt with them from the very early newspapers to the days of digital media will be discussed at the 23rd Biennial Conference of the International Association for Media and History being hosted by Aberystwyth University from 8th – 11th July.

• Leading media historians from around the globe will meet with prominent figures from the media industry to consider how our world has been shaped by the way the media has dealt with our fears, anxieties and panics over the centuries.

• Keynote speakers include Sir Quentin Thomas, the President of the British Board of Film Classification, the body which puts certificates on films.

• Laurence Rees, Award winning historian and producer, whose credits include, ‘The Nazis a Warning From History'.

• Edward Mirzoeff - award winning BBC Television Producer and documentary film maker, whose credits include Metro-land, 40 Minutes and Elizabeth R. 
• Will Wyatt - former Managing Director of BBC Television and Chief Executive of BBC Broadcast. 

The organisers Dr Sian Nicholas and Professor Tom O'Malley comment:
“We are pleased to host this international event on a topic that is of such wide interest

“Aberystwyth is a centre for the study of the history of the media, and as such we are looking forward to hosting this major event.

“Understanding how the press, radio and TV have dealt with topics such as attitudes to disease, war and invasion, is vital if we are to grasp how we have arrived at where we are today.”