Sounds of Criminality/Criminality of Sound

Next year’s annual meeting of the American Studies Association will be held November 18-21, 2010 in San Antonio, TX. In keeping with the conference’s theme of “Crisis, Chains, and Change,” this call for papers seeks two or three panelists to join in an investigation of the intersections of sonic culture with issues of governmentality, criminality, surveillance, legality, and incarceration. This panel welcomes both papers that explore the contests and conflicts over certain types of sound and those examining how particular sounds denote a broader concern with norms of perception, regulating behaviors. Proposed papers may deal with any historical period. Please send a CV, an abstract of no more than 500 words, and any questions to hawkinsr@slu.edu by December 23rd, 2009.

Possible paper topics for this panel include but are not limited to:

Audio Surveillance and Security Monitoring
Music/Audio Copyright Infringement
Noise Abatement / Anti-Noise Ordinances
Pirate Radio/Illegal Broadcasting
Prison Soundscapes
Criminality and Speech/Language/Accents
English-Only Laws
Censorship of Music/Speech
Criminal Confessions and Rights of Silence (Miranda warnings)