NipCA project fellow supervisor Associate Professor Leslie Tkach Kawasaki presented the results of her research “New Political Actors in the Electoral Process: Japan’s Election Management Boards Online” at the 8th Annual Conference of the International Journal of Press/Politics (IJPP).

Thursday, September 22 – Friday, September 23, 2022, NipCA project cooperating faculty member Associate Professor Leslie Tkach Kawasaki attended the 8^th Annual Conference of the International Journal of Press/Politics (IJPP) at the University of Loughborough, Loughborough, United Kingdom.  The IJPP is one of the foremost academic journals in the political-communications field, and their annual conference is highly regarded as a venue for presenting new and cutting-edge academic work. Over 50 researchers participated, presenting a broad array of papers covering multiple perspectives of current political communications research.

The conference started on Wednesday September 21 with a keynote speech by Maria Repnikova, an Associate Professor from Georgia State University and an expert on Chinese political communication, followed by the conference inaugural dinner at one of the conference hotels. Dr. Tkach-Kawasaki chaired a panel on media, pluralism, and democracy on the first full day of the conference on September 22nd.

On Friday, September 23, Dr. Tkach-Kawasaki presented her paper on “New Political Actors in the Electoral Process: Japan’s Election Management Boards Online.” This presentation was a unique opportunity to share her ongoing research concerning how public institutions such as election management boards utilize various media channels, including online media, to promote voting in election campaigns. This topic is particularly significant in Japan, as local election management boards traditionally have played key roles in disseminating election-related information through strictly controlled procedures, including precise instructions concerning election poster dissemination as well as broadsheets containing information about individual candidates.

The conference concluded in the evening of September 23 with concluding remarks followed by a farewell drinks reception at the University of Loughborough’s Holywell Park Conference Center.

Dr. Tkach-Kawasaki is very grateful for the encouragement and financial support from the NipCA Project to attend this prestigious event and have the opportunity to participate in meaningful academic exchanges about political communications with researchers from all over the world.