Henry Jenkins- extension

Henry Jenkins: degree-level reading

Read the final chapter of ‘Fandom’ – written by Henry Jenkins. This will give you an excellent introduction to the level of reading required for seminars and essays at university as well as degree-level insight into our current work on fandom and participatory culture. Answer the following questions:

1) There is an important quote on the first page: “It’s not an audience, it’s a community”. What does this mean?

 This means that audiences of franchise and genres are more than just that because in the 21st century, they are interacting with each other online.

2) Jenkins quotes Clay Shirky in the second page of the chapter. Pick out a single sentence of the extended quote that you think is particularly relevant to our work on participatory culture and the ‘end of audience’ (clue – look towards the end!)

 "In the age of the internet, no one is a passive consumer anymore because everyone is a media outlet."

3) What are the different names Jenkins discusses for these active consumers that are replacing the traditional audience?

 Some of the names Jenkins uses are: Connectors, influencers, and prosumers 

4) On the third page of the chapter, what does Wired editor Chris Anderson suggest regarding the economic argument in favour of fan communities?

 He suggests that investing in such groups of people may be advantageous due to the fact that the developers of said games would be able to connect with the fans more, although this can be seen as taking advantage of them fore more sales.

5) What examples does Jenkins provide to argue that fan culture has gone mainstream?

 The example Jenkins uses is Harry Potter fans/ PotterHeads.

6) Look at the quote from Andrew Blau in which he discusses the importance of grassroots creativity. Pick out a sentence from the longer quote and decide whether you agree that audiences will ‘reshape the media landscape from the bottom up’.

 I agree with this idea due to the fact that it has been seen online that people are making their own media products based around that of the initial media product. Some examples being that of fan fictions and fan trailers. These being made by amateurs, i.e. people who aren't professionals in their work.

7) What does Jenkins suggest the new ideal consumer is?

 Traditional: watched TV, bought products and didn't talk back.

New: Talks up the program, spreads word about the brand.

8) Why is fandom 'the future'?

 This is because the idea of a fandom focuses on being a collective, rather than a standalone person.

9) What does it mean when Jenkins says we shouldn’t celebrate ‘a process that commodifies fan cultural production’?

 The word commodification means to make something buyable. Jenkins suggests that we shouldn't celebrate this as it takes advantage of the fans that are so passionate about something and exploit it for money. Examples of this may be with things like The Avengers recently.

10) Read through to the end of the chapter. What do you think the future of fandom is? Are we all fans now? Is fandom mainstream or are real fan communities still an example of a niche media audience?

 I think the future of fandom is online and that to an extent fandom is mainstream, although this depends on the type of fans as well as the genre/sector the product is in, e.g. comic book fans are becoming more and more mainstream, whereas things like anime are perhaps more niche.

Extension: EU copyright law - is a meme ban coming?

Read this Wired feature on the upcoming EU copyright law (Article 13 and Article 11) and discuss the potential implications for participatory culture and fandom. How might this impact on fans' 'textual poaching'?