CFP | July 2027 · V10N2 | From data to connection: responsible advertising communication in the face of global challenges

10/29/2025

Scope:

In today's attention economy (Davenport & Beck, 2001; Citton, 2017), advertising communication is undergoing a profound transformation, driven by digitalisation, automation and a growing dependence on data. Brands now operate in an environment where algorithmic personalisation is redefining consumption patterns and interaction with audiences (Couldry & Mejías, 2019). However, this ‘datafication’ of communication (Van Dijck, 2014) also raises ethical and social dilemmas related to privacy, transparency and the dehumanisation of advertising discourse.

The contemporary challenge is not only to reach the public, but also to rebuild the link between brands, communities and collective values. Faced with automation and the widespread use of artificial intelligence, advertising is seeking new models of responsible and emotionally meaningful creativity (Mogaji et al., 2020), where technology serves the human narrative rather than the other way around.

In this context, artificial intelligence applied to communication redefines the processes of ideation, segmentation and production, but also challenges the authorship, authenticity and ethics of the message (Floridi, 2023; Lopezosa, 2023). The boundary between the human and the automated is blurring, generating a new horizon for reflection on algorithmic creativity and the social responsibility of brands (Huh et al., 2023).

At the same time, discourses are emerging that call for sustainable and socially just advertising, capable of representing diversity and contributing to cultural transformation. Advertising communication cannot be separated from global challenges—such as the climate crisis, misinformation, inequality, and polarisation—and must take an active role in building more inclusive and empathetic imaginaries (Piñuel & López, 2022).

As Banet-Weiser (2018) point out, brand activism and the ethics of representation are now central to the symbolic management of brands, which no longer sell just products, but worldviews. From data to connection, this monograph invites us to rethink advertising from the perspective of empathy, sustainability, responsible artificial intelligence, and co-creation with audiences.

Contributions are welcome that address these transformations from theoretical, methodological or empirical perspectives, focusing on the ethical, technological and social challenges of contemporary advertising communication.

Topics of interest:

  • Digital advertising and emerging platforms: TikTok, Twitch, Instagram, podcasts, metaverse, augmented and virtual reality.
  • Artificial intelligence and advertising creativity: automation, content personalisation, chatbots and AI-generated branded content.
  • Responsible and sustainable advertising: greenwashing, advertising ethics, corporate social responsibility and impactful communication.
  • Diversity, inclusion and social representation in advertising discourse (gender, ethnicity, disability, LGBTQIA+ groups, etc.).
  • Humanisation of advertising: co-creation with communities, situated narratives and participatory governance; ethical image/voice protocols and measurement of perceived social impact.
  • Neuromarketing, data-driven advertising and the attention economy.
  • Transmedia narratives and advertising storytelling: branded entertainment, gamification and immersive experiences.
  • Political and electoral advertising: strategies, disinformation, polarisation marketing and post-truth.
  • Social and cultural impact of advertising on the configuration of collective imaginaries.

Submissions instructions:

They will be regulated according to the journal's regulations.

 

References:

Banet-Weiser, S. (2018). Empowered: Popular Feminism and Popular Misogyny. Duke University Press.

Citton, Y. (2017). The Ecology of Attention. Polity Press.

Couldry, N., & Mejías, U. A. (2019). The Costs of Connection: How Data is Colonizing Human Life and Appropriating It for Capitalism. Stanford University Press.

Davenport, T. H., & Beck, J. C. (2001). The Attention Economy: Understanding the New Currency of Business. Harvard Business School Press.

Floridi, L. (2023). The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence. Oxford University Press.

Huh, J., Nelson, M. R., & Russell, C. A. (2023). ChatGPT, AI Advertising, and Advertising Research and Education. Journal of Advertising, 52(4), 477–482. https://doi.org/10.1080/00913367.2023.2227013

Lopezosa, C. (2023). ChatGPT and scientific communication: towards the use of Artificial Intelligence that is as useful as it is responsible. Hipertext.net, no. 26, pp. 17-21. https://doi.org/10.31009/hipertext.net.2023.i26.03

Mogaji, E., Olaleye, S., Ukpabi, D. (2020). Using AI to Personalise Emotionally Appealing Advertisement. In: Rana, N.P., et al. Digital and Social Media Marketing. Advances in Theory and Practice of Emerging Markets. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-24374-6_10

Piñuel Raigada J. L. & López Díez J. (2022). El discurso de TV en España sobre la crisis climática en 2021. Estudios sobre el Mensaje Periodístico, 28(3), 587-599. https://doi.org/10.5209/esmp.80562

Van Dijck, J. (2014). “Datafication, Dataism and Dataveillance: Big Data between Scientific Paradigm and Ideology”. Surveillance & Society, 12(2), 197–208. https://doi.org/10.24908/ss.v12i2.4776