South–north conversations

This special issue of Critical Arts consists of a selection of papers accepted into the Health Communication and Change and the Communication and HIV/AIDS Working Groups at the conference of the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) held in South Africa at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.The conference brought together academics and practitioners from around the world to Durban, from 15-20 July 2012.The two IAMCR working groups aim to create a space for dialogue, reflection and critical analysis facing the areas of health communication, HIV/AIDS communication and social change.Participants in the working group represent academics, practitioners and students from around the world, who are engaged in critical thinking to understand and improve the engagement between health and communication.The theme of the conference, 'South-North Conversations', is at the heart of the articles published in this issue.The contributions in this special issue represent a cross-section of conversations taking place within the working group.They are geographically, thematically, methodologically and theoretically diverse, reflecting the diversity of perspectives present at the conference in Durban, and in the field of health communication, HIV/AIDS communication and social change communication as a whole.This issue would not have been possible without the support of Johns Hopkins Health and Education South Africa (JHESSA).Their support is deeply appreciated.The theme of the conference, and of this issue, holds at its core the concept of dialogue across power and information asymmetries.The theme recognises that relationships between countries -'developed' versus 'underdeveloped' -are changing and need to be further problematised.Similarly, the notion of 'core-periphery' relationships needs interrogating.