So, a little bit of a different post today! Fanhackers will always be about making Fan Studies scholarship more accessible, but Fan Studies encompasses a whole lot of other methodologies and disciplines. This post will be the first of a
How fan studies researchers center whiteness as normative
Because of their status as minorities within Western media fandoms, nonwhite fans are seen [by fan studies researchers] to interrupt normative operations of such structures only in specific contexts when they make themselves visible. What I mean by this assertion
Let’s Talk Fandom & Politics
With the state of the world being what it currently is, what better time to talk fandom and politics? The newest special issue of Transformative Works and Cultures does just that: The essays in this issue contribute not only to
On the academic study of fan communities…
While academics should have the freedom to engage critically with cultural texts, including online fan texts, I would also point out that, unlike authors of traditionally published works (that is, works published through academic or commercial presses), fan writers are
Queerbaiting: Context, Context, Context!
“Queerbaiting is a historical situated term, assuming that we live in a time and place where queer representation is possible yet constantly denied. The same people that accuse producers of TV shows from the 21st century of queerbaiting, defend TV
Congressional Fanfiction & Fic-As-Resistance
“… [S]ince the 2016 election, as American political engagement has boomed — the 2018 midterms had the highest voter turnout percentage for any midterm in 104 years — fan fiction scholars have noted a spike in stories featuring the U.S.
The above video clip shows my interaction with EVE performer Nina Samuels, who demands I approach the ring before chastising me for my lack of respect, reminding me that she is a media star. Yet my (auto)ethnographic research on fan
Well, as a NEW fan, people would ask me what I liked most about slash, why I had got involved in it, etc. And then would appear shocked when I said, “Oh, that’s easy. It’s the sex!” The standard answer