Play the Game invites journalists from all over the world to join us at Play the Game 2024 and present their investigations. Photo: Thomas Søndergaard/Play the Game
Special call for journalists to present their work and investigations at Play the Game 2024
For its 13th conference, Play the Game invites journalists to share their journalistic work and engage in open, fact-based and constructive debates on themes that are essential to the future of sport.
It is difficult to overestimate the import role of journalism and hard core investigative reporters in exposing problems and affecting change in national and international sport. A number of journalists have reshaped the global sports political agenda through groundbreaking investigations and journalistic work, and many of them have exchanged stories and formed networks at previous Play the Game conferences over the past 25 years.
For Play the Game it is important to continue to be a meeting place for journalists and provide them with an opportunity to present their own work and get fresh perspectives on current debates in sport as well as an opportunity to network with other journalists, sports officials, and academic experts from a wide range of fields in the area of sport and politics.
Therefore, we invite journalists from all over the world to join us at Play the Game 2024 in Trondheim, Norway, and present their own work or investigations at the conference.
No topic is excluded in advance, but we especially welcome presentations that can contribute to the key themes for the conference:
- Autocracy vs. democracy: Which side is sport playing for?
- Clearing sport: Countering crime, protecting integrity
- Can sport be sustainable? The impact on climate and the environment
- Sports journalism: A watchdog for society or a pet for showbiz?
- Abuse and agony: How can sports organisations effectively safeguard athletes?
- Pursuing diversity: How to make up for power imbalances in sport?
- In the wake of scandal: What is the future of anti-doping?
Other benefits from attending Play the Game 2024 as a journalist
Play the Game 2024 will bring together experts from a variety of disciplines, including media studies, sports journalism, communication, and sociology, to share their research and insights. Through keynote speeches, panel discussions, and interactive workshops, attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities presented by the intersection of sports and media.
We plan to facilitate a number of workshops where journalists can share their inspiration and experiences, and we will explore ways to strengthen and fund in-depth sports journalism, recognising its crucial role in holding power to account.
We will also discuss the role of the media in the most debated sporting event in history: The FIFA World Cup in Qatar 2022. How was the media’s framing? Is the critical journalism on Middle East investments in sport just an expression of Western prejudice? Can we expect journalists to be equally critical when mega-events over the next decade will be held in Western countries?
Submit your idea
If you would like to be part of Play the Game 2024, we need you to submit a description of your presentation through our application system. The system is used for both academic abstracts and presentations by journalists and uses academic terms that may not always be directly relevant for journalistic presentations.
However, for journalistic presentations we require a title, a short abstract of your presentation, and a longer outline of the story to be presented. Please add keywords that characterise the contents.
Later in the form, you will be asked if your presentation fits under a specific conference them. If not, please choose 'Open Forum'.
Upon approval of your presentation, you will be offered either a 10 minutes’ speaking slot or relevant spots in alternative session formats (e.g. workshops, round tables). Please note that we are currently developing new formats for the sessions in order to ensure a more vivid and interactive conference experience. You will be informed about the format of your session in due time before the conference.
The original deadline for submitting abstracts/storylines is now behind us. The abstracts will be reviewed in the order they arrive as soon as time allows.
Your idea for a presentation will be reviewed by representatives from 2024 conference programme committee with emphasis on this being journalistic work.
If you are unsure whether your area of expertise matches the conference programme, do not hesitate to contact us (details below).
Questions and contact
Abstract submission or programme issues: Head of conference Stanis Elsborg, stanis@playthegame.org, or +45 61 77 49 15
Logistics: Conference manager Maria Suurballe, maria@playthegame.org or +45 20 20 68 38.
We thank you in advance for any help in distributing this call for papers to friends, colleagues and others who share the goals of Play the Game: To promote democracy, transparency and freedom of expression in world sport.