A Critical Dialogue on the Cosmopolitan Turn in Communication Studies

Interventions by Cherian George, Winston Mano, Michael Yao Wodui Serwornoo and Ylva Rodny-Gumede. A conversation convened by Melanie Radue, Carola Richter, and Anke Fiedler

Abstract

This discussion engages with the collective volume Cosmopolitan Communication Studies: Toward Deep Internationalization. The editors and contributors call for a cosmopolitan reorientation of communication studies that transcends enduring Eurocentric biases. The proposed cosmopolitan approach advocates for inclusivity, context sensitivity, and the recognition of non-Western knowledge production as intellectually generative rather than derivative. By foregrounding comparative and interdisciplinary perspectives, the volume seeks to make deep internationalization a practical and ethical academic endeavor. The dialogue with scholars from around the world underscores cosmopolitanism not merely as methodology but as a mindset—aiming to reduce epistemic violence, resist authoritarian instrumentalization, and foster genuine global interconnectedness in the production of communication scholarship.