Here's a roundup of stories on fandom clout that might be of interest to fans:

• One of the clearest signs of fandom clout is that an increasing number of content producers consider fans and geek culture to be a draw. In Australia, iiNet’s TopGeek seeks to find "Australia’s most talented geek through a series of challenges that have been designed to test gaming, fandom, creativity and Internet skills."
• Fans are behind the reboot of soap operas in the United States. With only four traditional soap operas still airing on network television, producers have reached out to their fans. Greg Meng, executive producer of Days of our Lives, took cast members on a multi-city tour and met with fans to discuss the show. After hearing that their fans were disappointed that their favorite characters were no longer on the show, Meng says that, "We realized we needed to take the show back to where it was." Other productions have also decided to cater to their core fans rather than try to hook a mass audience. Bradley Bell, executive producer of The Bold and The Beautiful, notes, "The old theory says: Keep things moving slowly, because if people are only watching two or three times a week, they need to know what’s happening. Our new theory is: Something has to happen every day, and it’s more important to feel as though you’ve missed something by not watching."
• Fandom outcry over changes to their favorite works has also taken place when major movie projects altered the nature of the canon characters. One case was that of Gene Luen Yang, "a notable member of the Avatar fandom. He was brought to the attention of the creators of the series during his campaign against the whitewashed cast of M. Night Shyamalan’s The Last Airbender." In Yang's case, however, he was offered the chance to write a comic for the series, and it is pulling in a large audience from bookstore customers as well as comic shop visitors.
• Comics Beat recently promoted crowdsource funding for the documentary WONDER WOMEN! The Untold Story of American Superheroines, which "examines the evolution of Wonder Woman and other kick-ass heroines, with a look at "how popular representations of powerful women often reflect society’s anxieties about women’s liberation." They note, "With the rise of geek girl fandom, it couldn’t be more timely."

If you write comics or are a fan of soap operas or Avatar: The Last Airbender why not write about it in Fanlore? Additions are welcome from all fans.

We want your suggestions! If you know of an essay, video, article, event, or link you think we should know about, comment on the most recent Links Roundup — on transformativeworks.org, LJ, or DW — or give @OTW_News a shoutout on Twitter. Links are welcome in all languages!

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Here's a roundup of stories on sports fandom that might be of interest to fans:

• In the post Competitive Fandom in the Social Media Age blogger Carles notes how fannish values have changed to prioritize online networking. "Attending a live sporting event forces consumers to analyze a monetary and emotional break-even point. Is it really worth it for mass-market suburbanite families to make the trip all the way to the stadium in order to watch some meaningless, a la carte regular-season game from the upper level? After the team jogs through the motions, a bad basketball game can turn into an almost dehumanizing consumer experience." He observes that it is also an experience few people can have. "[W]hen you get older, you start to witness the typically inverse relationship between the proximity of your seat to the court versus the level of genuine rooting interest...Somehow we all turn into post-reverse-classists who assume that basically no one should be allowed to watch live sports from nice seats. We are the other 99 percent of sports fans."
• The Daily News Egypt also looks at sports in a larger political-economic context in "Football fans as revolution." "The Ultras’ unconditional support to their teams, whether they win or lose, reflects unrestricted faith in an idea and working relentlessly to support and improve it. Their motivation and organizational capacities in achieving that goal, using team work in an unmatched creativity, induces hope and inspiration. The dynamics of the process brings (positive) patriotism and freedom to the forefront, two critical values that have been subdued and suppressed by the ailing regime but are experiencing rebirth."
• From national politics to fandom politics, a Chicago sports blogger took it upon himself to lecture fellow fans on how fandom should be performed. "I’m a Cubs fan and root for them harder than anyone. I also understand that the Cubs play a game, and I respect myself too much to ask another grown man who plays a game for a living to write his name on something while I’m wearing a shirt with that man’s name on it. And I know you make fun of Trekkies and the weirdos who go to adult entertainment conventions and buy the rubber genitalia replicas of their favorite porn stars. But guess what? You’re no different." As one respondent points out, given the sorts of depths that sports fandom can sink to it's a bit much to declare conventions to be an over-the-line form of fannish expression. "I’ve never been to an adult entertainment convention or a Star Trek convention – or a Cubs convention for that matter. But I don’t mock anyone who does because it’s their hobby and their money and it in no way, shape or form concerns me how other folks entertain themselves as long as it does no harm to me."

If you are a sports fan or attend conventions, why not contribute to Fanlore? Additions are welcome from all fans.

We want your suggestions! If you know of an essay, video, article, event, or link you think we should know about, comment on the most recent Links Roundup — on transformativeworks.org, LJ, or DW — or give @OTW_News a shoutout on Twitter. Links are welcome in all languages!

Submitting a link doesn't guarantee that it will be included in a roundup post, and inclusion of a link doesn't mean that it is endorsed by the OTW.

Here's a roundup of stories on the meaning of fandom that might be of interest to fans:

• Indonesian filmmaker, Mouly Surya wants to explore the great influence from Japanese culture on Indonesia’s younger generation and is planning a movie titled Fandom Diary, which is itself inspired from Western "movies like ‘Almost Famous’ and also documentaries on The Beatles’ fans. There are so many things that we can explore about the differences between fandom in those days and now.” Her film will not be a documentary but "a dark comedy feature. It will highlight the different identities of many Indonesian teenagers, both online and offline" and will focus on involvement with "the J-Pop boy bands to comics and anime costume play."
• A post on Muppet Central asked about the likelihood of fandom growth with new projects and speculates on the pluses and minuses of being "the world and internet's most under the radar fandom." While enjoying the reactions of the general public to Muppet fare, the poster writes "I have a feeling the majority of Muppet fans are NOT online, or at least arent on here or TP. Im hoping Disney finally does a Muppet fan weekend celebration to bring out all the closested Muppet nerds:) Still, would be cool to see more Muppet geeks out there at conventions that I go to or out and about...tho in a way, its kind of nice to have it more underground and have it still be kind of a cool secret you kind of have to discover."
• While hardcore Muppet fans may be wanting some more company, at least one football fan celebrates the joys of being alone. "It used to be a given that my friends would meet up at someone’s house each week. And this year, only four out of 12 of us bothered to show up for our fantasy draft barbecue. The Bowling Alone effect isn’t just for participatory sports any more. In this age of fantasy football and DVR, rooting for your favorite team has become a pastime that’s best enjoyed by yourself, hunkered down in a fandom isolation chamber. We are now millions of audiences of one."

Whether you wish for a bigger fandom or more solitary pursuits, or wish your fandom was closer to home or farther away, why not contribute your fandom experience to Fanlore? Additions are welcome from all fans.

We want your suggestions! If you know of an essay, video, article, event, or link you think we should know about, comment on the most recent Links Roundup — on transformativeworks.org, LJ, or DW — or give @OTW_News a shoutout on Twitter. Links are welcome in all languages!

Submitting a link doesn't guarantee that it will be included in a roundup post, and inclusion of a link doesn't mean that it is endorsed by the OTW.

Here's a roundup of stories on fan behavior that might be of interest to fans:

• The upcoming release of Hunger Games has brought a new case of fan outrage over film casting. In a post at Blogher, one writer examines fan commentary "when the characters they had imagined in their minds did not look the same as the actors who will portray them in the film." After examining specific examples the blogger concludes, "the most telling issue about these comments is how people have envisioned these characters, not because of how they were described in the book but because of how they see the world."
• The world of sports has also had controversies regarding racial attitudes embedded in team names and fan practices. In this post about University of Kansas sports fandom, a Missouri Tigers fan focuses on the "slaver" taunt used by fans and examines its historical accuracy, concluding "Perhaps someday the classier and more enlightened segment of the KU fan base will evolve into a majority that relegates the “slaver” taunt to the trash can where it belongs."
• As this post by a sports journalist points out, however, some fans are more defined by their opposition to things than support. Discussing attendance at a football game while wearing a hockey jersey the writer found himself in an uncomfortable atmosphere. "When did we get so callous as a fan base? When did it become unacceptable to wear Denver sports gear to a Denver sports game? At the game, the crowd itself was divided. Fans in Terrell Davis jerseys yelling at fans in Tebow jerseys, fights breaking out in the stands only to be broken up by police officers."
• A different controversy broke out in Supernatural fandom over fictional fans. Various bloggers offered opinions on the portrayal of slash fandom through the character of Becky Rosen, a recurring character in the series. One blogger attempted to start a conversation among fans asking why Becky was so hated, venturing "While it’s difficult to see yourself in a TV character especially when it’s not the most flattering light, Becky (while a mockery) is just another playful jab at the fandom in its entirety. Why do I love Becky? She is devoted to her fandom. No one can say that Supernatural fans aren’t rabid and defensive of the show, their “ships”, or their characters...Becky personifies that, why not embrace her?"

If you are part of Supernatural fandom, are a football fan, or have stories about race and fandom, racebending, or anti-fandom why not post about them in Fanlore? Additions are welcome from all fans.

We want your suggestions! If you know of an essay, video, article, event, or link you think we should know about, comment on the most recent Links Roundup — on transformativeworks.org, LJ, or DW — or give @OTW_News a shoutout on Twitter. Links are welcome in all languages!

Submitting a link doesn't guarantee that it will be included in a roundup post, and inclusion of a link doesn't mean that it is endorsed by the OTW.