- 13:00–13:15 Opening Remarks, Henri Vogt, Professor, Uni Turku, Chair of The 1st JMC Board
- 13:15–14:15 Panel 1: Which themes decided the election?
- Niko Heikkilä, Postdoctoral Fellow, JMC
- Benita Heiskanen, Professor, JMC
- Mikko Saikku, Professor, Uni Helsinki
- Oscar Winberg, Postdoctoral Fellow, JMC
- Moderator: Mila Seppälä, PhD Candidate, JMC
- 14:15-14:30 Break
- 14:30–15:30 Panel 2: What did the media do right and/or wrong?
- Sanna Keskinen, Editor-in-chief, Aamulehti
- Jussi Niemeläinen, Lead Writer for the Editorial Board, Helsingin Sanomat
- Anssi Rulamo, Foreign News Reporter, STT
- Paula Vilén, Producer and Foreign News Correspondent, YLE
- Moderator: Oscar Winberg, Postdoctoral Fellow, JMC
- 15:30-15:45 Break
- 15:45-16:45 Panel 3: How does the election result impact your field?
- Mika Akkanen, Manager of International Affairs, City of Turku
- Benita Heiskanen, Professor, JMC
- Johanna Ikävalko, Director, Arctic Center, Uni Lapland
- Hannu Salmi, Professor, Uni Turku
- Moderator: Juha A. Vuori, University Lecturer, Uni Turku
- 16:45-17:00 Closing Remarks, Hannu Salmi, Professor & Juha A. Vuori, University Lecturer
For further inquiries, please email jmc@utu.fi
American Voices Seminar
Program and Abstracts:
10:30–10:45 Opening Remarks, Prof. Benita Heiskanen, Prof. Martin Cloonan, and Dr. Niko Heikkilä
10:45–11:00 Dr. Jani Sinokki, "What Is Extremism?"
11:00–12:00 Prof. Joshua C. Wilson, "Playing with Fire: Managing Extremism in Building Modern American Conservatism"
Abstract: In her 1969 essay “Reflections on Violence,” Hannah Arendt refers to violence as “instrumental by nature,” and an “effective weapon of reformers,” but a tool that is highly volatile and risky. To this end, she writes that “the danger of the practice of violence…will always be that the means overwhelm the end,” and that “the most probable change is a more violent world.” While extremism and violence can, and should, be distinguished from one another, Arendt’s instrumental view of violence is a useful one for considering extremism in politics. Both have a strong allure, and those drawn to either often believe that they can wield and control a highly volatile tool. In this talk, I will consider cases of extremism’s instrumental allure in developing modern American conservatism and ask if it was managed effectively, or if it’s use is more accurately seen as producing a more extreme political world. While a larger context will be provided, specific attention will be given to abortion politics and the conservative legal movement.
Chair: Prof. Benita Heiskanen
12:00–12:15 Break
12:15–13:15 TIAS Panel: Dealing with Extremes:
How do academics deal with extreme political regimes, extreme views, and extreme organisations? This panel of researchers from Turku Institute for Advanced Studies (TIAS) examines the theoretical and practical implications of researching extremes. Panelists: Dr. Pekka Kolehmainen, Dr. Sasha Nenko, Dr. Timo Pankakoski, Dr. Raha Saverstany Sabet
Chair: Prof. Martin Cloonan
13:15–14:15 Lunch break
14:15–15:15 Dr. Gwenaëlle Bauvois, “Tracing the Historical Roots of Extremist Narratives in Finland and Beyond”
Abstract: Over the last two decades, the far right has become a major political force in Europe, considerably increasing its influence and winning over 20% of the seats in the 2024 European Parliamentary elections. Since 2010, far right parties have also gained power in several countries, either alone or in coalition with other parties, including in Finland. Have politics become "extreme"? To understand this current situation, we need to look back. The extremist narratives we are encountering today did not emerge in a vacuum. Identifying their origins and roots is essential for analysing their current spread in political and media spheres, as well as their impact on democracy. This talk explores the historical roots of extremist narratives in Europe and examine how they have evolved and transformed, especially around the themes of nation and gender. We will focus on Finland as a case study, linking it to the broader European context to highlight both the transnational spread of extremist narratives and their shared characteristics.
Chair: Dr. Oscar Winberg
15:15–15:30 Break
15:30–17:30 Film, Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple (2006), followed by discussion
Chair: Doctoral Researcher Mila Seppälä
"Controversies in US Literature and Film"
Date: Tuesday, June 11, 2024
Place: University of Turku, Arcanum, ARC112
Abstract:
Dr. Heike Raphael-Hernandez is Professor of American Studies at the University of Würzburg, Germany. Together with Cheryl Finley (Cornell U) and Leigh Raiford (UC Berkeley), she was awarded an American Council of Learned Societies Collaborative Research Fellowship for 2015-2017 for their joined research project “Visualizing Travel, Gendering the African Diaspora."
Students may collect a lecture pass entry from each session.
JMC Guest Lecture:
"Media and Politics in an Age of Declining Trust"
Date: Tuesday, May 7, 2024
Time: 12:15–13:45
Place: University of Turku, Publicum, Room 269
Speaker: Dr. Graham Griffith, Senior Fellow & Fulbright Scholar, Center for the Study of Democracy
Abstract: 2024 has been dubbed a "year of elections" as voters in more than 60 countries head to the polls this year. The media plays a crucial role in communicating the stakes of the political campaigns to citizens around the world. How might they do a better job? We'll discuss the impact of eroding trust in media and news on civic society, and the responsibility of journalists to change how they cover elections.
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JMC Film Festival in collaboration with the U.S. Embassy in Finland and American Film Showcase
Time: Untold: Breaking Point: 10:00-12:00
Untold: Caitlyn Jenner: 14:00-16:00
We'll screen three films from the documentary series "Untold."
Synopses:
The first documentary is titled Untold: Breaking Point: "Under pressure to continue a winning tradition in American tennis, Mardy Fish faced mental health challenges that changed his life on and off the court. Directed by Chaplan Way and Maclain Way."
Click here to watch the trailer for "Untold: Breaking Point"
Each documentary runs about 1 h 45 min, with a Q & A after each screening.
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JMC Guest Lecture:
"Sport and the Construction of Racial Difference"
Date: Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Time: 16:15–17:45
Place: University of Turku, Publicum, Pub5
Speaker: Dr. Lucia Trimbur is the Fulbright Bicentennial Chair of American Studies at the University of Helsinki and an Associate Professor of Sociology and American Studies at the City University of New York.
"The 2024 Presidential Election - Unraveling Complexities"
Date: Wednesday, March 27, 2024
Time: 16:00-17:15
Place: Zoom
Introduction: Dr. Benita Heiskanen
Panelists:
Panel 2: Dr. Sinikka Grant, Mila Seppälä, and Nadia Nava Contreras
Moderators: Jaakko Dickman and Julia Niinistö
Students may collect a lecture pass entry by taking a screenshot of the Zoom-session to demonstrate their attendance.
Sign up here: https://konsta.utu.fi/Default.aspx?tabid=88&tap=18228
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JMC Guest Lecture:
“Taking Notes on the Fastest Game: Hockey, Sport, Globalization, and Contemporary Life in the U.S.”
Date: Monday, February 12, 2024
Time: 15:15–16:45
Place: University of Turku, Publicum, Room 269
Speaker: Dr. Bruce Berglund, Visiting Professor, University of Hradec Králové, Czech Republic, Fulbright Global Scholar
Abstract: In 2018, historian Bruce Berglund set off as Fulbright Global Scholar to research the game he had played growing up in Minnesota: hockey. After doing research in eight countries, including Finland, his book The Fastest Game in the World was shortlisted as best sports history book in the U.S. Six years later, what are the findings about hockey––and world sport––that still hold up, and what would have to be changed for a second edition? In this talk, Berglund gives his book a critical reading, to point out what it still has to say about hockey, sport, globalization, and contemporary life in the U.S.
A three-time Fulbright scholar, Bruce Berglund taught history for two decades in the U.S. at Calvin University and the University of Kansas. He is the author of The Fastest Game in the World: Hockey and the Globalization of Sports (University of California Press, 2021) and has been interviewed by media in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Australia about world sports and politics. Currently, he is a Visiting Professor at the University of Hradec Králové in the Czech Republic.
Students may collect a lecture pass entry.
