Korean Communication on the Move

 

​The Korean American Communication Association (KACA) was founded in 1978 as North American Association of Korean Communication Scholars and officially changed its name to the Korean American Communication Association in 1979. As KACA celebrates its 48th anniversary in 2026, this year’s KACA-NCA session seeks to create spaces for scholars to engage in critical conversations about the convergence and divergence of “Koreanness” across various domains, from ethnic identifications to K-pop, while reflecting on the future directions of both Korean scholarly communities and the broader field of Korean communication studies. As an affiliate of the National Communication Association (NCA), KACA invites submissions that employ movement as a central analytic lens for understanding Korean and Korean diasporic communication in the twenty-first century. In alignment with the 2026 NCA convention theme “MOVE/MENTS in Communication,” KACA encourages scholarship that examines how Koreans, Korean media, and Korean communication studies are dynamically shaped by diverse forms of mobility across borders, platforms, histories, and identities.

 

SUBMISSION TOPICS

Topic Area 1 (Movement of Knowledge: Rethinking the “K” in Korean Communication)

As featured in the editorial messages of Korean Journal of Communication, KACA’s signature journal, (Vol. 1, No. 1, Spring 2024; Vol. 2, No. 1, Spring 2025), scholars have continually expanded the scope of what counts as “Korean communication.” Today, “K” encompasses not only studies set in Korea but also comparative, diasporic, global, transnational, digital, and intercultural contexts in which Korean experiences are significant (or are relevant). We invite submissions that explore/investigate/interrogate how Korean communication scholarship moves away from narrow definitions and into more inclusive, cosmopolitan, and pluriversal frameworks. Submissions are also welcome to investigate how Western-influenced K-content in the global market shapes, challenges, and/or obscures the diversity of Koreanness.

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Topic Area 2 (Movement of Culture and Media: Transnational Circulation and Digital Flows)

Korea is one of the few countries where popular culture and advanced digital technologies have grown simultaneously. From K-dramas and film industries to the global phenomenon of K-pop, digital gaming, webtoons, and platformized creative labor, Korean media systems produce cultural forms that move rapidly across borders. These movements generate new forms of fandom, cultural negotiation, media tourism, algorithmic circulation, and platform-driven global visibility. Studies that explore these multidirectional flows of culture, ideas, artifacts, and affect are particularly welcome.

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Topic Area 3 (Movement as Affect, Activism, and Politics)

Movement also evokes affective and political questions: What moves us emotionally? What mobilizes communities toward change? How do Korean social movements, democratization struggles, diasporic activism, digital protests, historical memory practices, or collective trauma shape the communicative conditions of movement? Work that addresses communication in activism, civic engagement, ethics, or public memory is encouraged. 

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Topic Area 4 (Movement of People: Migration, Diaspora, and Identifications)

Korean and Korean diasporic communities have long been defined by mobility. From early migrations to contemporary transnational flows involving immigrants, refugees, adoptees, naturalized Koreans of diverse ethnic backgrounds, Zainichi, Joseonjok, Goryeo-in, North Korean defectors, mixed race populations, and global students or workers, Korean identities are continually reconstructed across shifting social, cultural, and political contexts. We invite work that examines how communication practices, relational dynamics, identity negotiations, and media use emerge from these lived movements.

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Topic Area 5 (Movement as Method and Epistemology in Korean Communication Studies)

Finally, movement is not only an object of study but also a scholarly practice. We welcome methodological and epistemological reflections that consider how concepts, theories, archives, and analytic frameworks “move” across disciplinary, geographical, and linguistic boundaries beyond the Western-ideology infused academic paradigm in the context of communication, Korea, Korean people, and Korean culture and history. Scholars may explore how Korean communication research participates in or challenges dominant academic formations, including decolonizing, globalizing, and indigenizing approaches.

KACA embraces the 2026 convention theme by understanding movement as the connective tissue linking people, culture, media, and knowledge within Korean and Korean diasporic communication. We welcome submissions that illustrate, complicate, or expand the many ways Korean communication is constantly on the move.

 

SUBMISSION PROCESS AND TYPES

Given our interests this year, we especially welcome extended abstracts. However, KACA accepts many types of submissions: (1) panel discussions, (2) paper sessions, (3) individual papers, and (4) extended abstracts. All submissions must be made via NCA Convention Central and conform to submission expectations of NCA. Submissions received via email or other means will not be accepted. 

1. Individual Papers (Full papers): Submissions are limited to completed papers that are no longer than 30 double-spaced pages. Copies must be uploaded to NCA Convention Central and must be anonymized. Instructions on how to prepare an unidentifiable copy are provided in the Convention Resources (www.natcom.org/convention-resources). Please consider possible co-sponsorships when submitting your paper so that KACA can deepen its relationship with NCA interest groups. All methodologies and Korea(n)-related interests are welcome. 

   • Open Submission: This category is open to all faculty members, Ph.D. holders, and graduate students.

   • Graduate Student Paper: Graduate students who wish to have their work evaluated specifically as a student paper may submit to the Graduate Student Paper category. When submitting to this category, students must clearly indicate “STUDENT PAPER” at the top of their document. All submissions must be completed papers and must not exceed 40 double-spaced pages, including the main text and references. Tables, figures, and the abstract are not counted toward this page limit.

2. Extended abstracts: Submissions must be between 1,000-1,500 words and represent work-in-progress. The proposal should include a purpose, a rationale, a brief review of relevant literature, guiding research questions, proposed methodology, and desired outcomes. Please note that acceptance will be contingent upon receiving a sufficient number of extended abstracts to constitute a research-in-progress session. The full papers must be submitted to the Unit Planner (Seokhoon Ahn, ahnseokhoon@gmail.com) by September 1, 2026, failing to do so will result in the cancellation and the removal of the presentation from the public program. 

3. Panel Discussions: Submissions must include a title, a rationale (400-500 words), session description (75 words), and a chair (respondent is optional). Submissions must include a list of each presenter and their institutional affiliations. Please provide a clear rationale for the importance of the panel with respect to the mission of KACA and/or the NCA Convention Theme. There will be a strong preference for sessions that reflect the heterogeneity of our field and its members.

4. Paper Sessions: Submissions must include a title, panel rationale (400-500 words), description (75 words max), and a chair (respondent is optional). For each paper on the panel, include the title, description (abstract of 150 words or less), and authors with contact information. Please provide a clear rationale for the importance of the panel with respect to the mission of KACA and/or the NCA Convention Theme. There will be a strong preference for sessions that reflect the heterogeneity of our field and its members. 

 

PRESENTATION REQUIREMENTS

You do not need to be a member of the NCA or the KACA to submit your paper. However, if accepted, the presenter will need to (a) register for the NCA convention, (b) join or be an existing member of KACA, and (c) attend the convention to present the work (otherwise, the presentation will be removed from the program). Helpful resources, including live and recorded step-by-step instructions on how to submit, are available in the Convention Central. All submitters are encouraged to review the Convention Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and the NCA Professional Standards for Convention Participants prior to submission. For additional inquiries, please contact the KACA-NCA Planner: Seokhoon Ahn (ahnseokhoon@gmail.com) 

 

TOP PAPER AWARDS

KACA-NCA will recognize outstanding work with two awards:

(1) Top Paper: This award is open to all submitters (faculty, independent scholars, and graduate students). Full papers are only considered for the top paper award. Graduate students competing for this award must ensure their submission is fully anonymized. If a graduate student wishes to be considered for this award without being simultaneously considered for the Top Student Paper award, they must NOT include the “STUDENT PAPER” designation.

(2) Top Student Paper: This award is open only to graduate student papers. To be considered for this award, all authors listed must be graduate students, and the submitter must select the appropriate student category in the electronic submission form. Full papers are only considered for the top paper award. Students who wish to be considered for both the Top Paper and the Top Student Paper awards MUST clearly indicate “STUDENT PAPER” on top of the manuscript.

 

TOP PAPER AWARDEE BENEFITS

Your name and work will be recognized to the KACA scholarly community. First, your award will be conferred during our business meeting. Second, your name, paper title, and abstract will be announced before and after the NCA convention on the KACA website and all social media platforms. Check our website and social media: 

- KACA website: www.koreancommunication.org 

- Linked-in: www.linkedin.com/company/the-kaca 

- Facebook (page): www.facebook.com/thekacaorg 

- Facebook (group): www.facebook.com/groups/thekaca 

- Instagram: www.instagram.com/thekaca_association 

 

CALL FOR REVIEWERS

Reviewers play an essential role in advancing our scholarly community by offering constructive feedback on the research shared with our association. This invitation is open to all, regardless of whether you submitted your work to KACA this year, and we warmly encourage presentation submitters and KACA members with diverse areas of expertise to volunteer as reviewers. Post the review process, reviewers will receive a thank-you letter that can be used for their annual/mid-term tenure probation/tenure/post-tenure review portfolios. 

Reviewer Sign-Up Instructions: KACA-NCA follows the NCA reviewer solicitation and invites scholars to support a prompt and fair peer feedback process. Please select your preferred review areas in the Convention Central by March 25, 2026. If you are interested in this service opportunity, fill out the reviewer application form available through the submission system. We welcome volunteers from a wide range of backgrounds and specialties to ensure a comprehensive and inclusive review process. The Unit Planner of the year will try their best to assign reviewers based on their areas of expertise. For reference, please visit the NCA Call for Reviewers: www.natcom.org/call-for-reviewers/ 

 

KACA-NCA Submission Deadline: Monday, March 25, 2026, 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time

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Submit Here: https://www.xcdsystem.com/nca/member/index.cfm

For more information about this year's NCA convention, please visit https://www.natcom.org/nca-112th-annual-convention/