Politics of Popular Culture: How the Internet made Fan-Culture Cool

The fandom culture (or as many used to refer to it—geek culture) has been around since the introduction of comics and sci-fi fantasy within mainstream media. However, now what was once considered lame, or “geeky” has spread to popular culture. Now being a geek is cooler than ever before. From fandom websites, to convention centers, to everyday conversation—cult television and movies are more pervasive in mainstream media. Why? With the ever-changing landscape of the Internet, more people are watching media—and they are watching it more often. The term “binge-watching” used to be confined to that of the DVD box set it came in. Now with Netflix, Hulu Plus and HBOgo consumers can access more television and movies at any time. This, in turn, has changed the scope in how television and programming is made. Now Netflix is coming up with its own programming, and top television networks are creating programming specifically with the fandom communities in mind.

Fandom culture and geek culture have really culminated around the sci-fi and fantasy genre. This includes comic books, fantasy novels and television programming. It was once considered uncool if you spent your entire afternoon reading comic books or watching television—now it is a rite of passage into fandom culture. There are many different theories as to where fandom culture originated. Some might say the earliest comic book series are prime examples of fan culture. Some go as far back as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s “Sherlock Holmes”—insisting that the re-interpretation of his works through the modern age act as the first ever written fan fictions. The fantasy novel “Lord of the Rings” is also close to the origins of fandom culture—many believe that it is the popularity of this novel that help spur the fantasy genre into popularity. And an overwhelming amount of fans agree that it was Gene Roddenberry’s classic sci-fi series “Star Trek” that started it all. All of these classic examples, with the addition of the British series “Doctor Who” all help us understand the origins of fandom culture and how it relates to popular culture as well.

While I do not argue that these fandoms were not popular in their own time, there was a certain amount of backlash to the term “fan”. It seems that for a large part of the last 50 years, terms like “fan, geek, and fandom” where synonymous with lame and unpopular. It took the Internet to really create a space for fans to get together for the rest of the world to take notice. Myc Wiatrowski explains this phenomenon; “Studies of fan communities over the past twenty years have increasingly focused on the internet as a locus of communal activity for participants. Certainly this is not unexpected. Prior to the advent of the Internet, and its subsequent adoption by fan communities, being a fan was largely a proposition that required participants to engage in physical encounters. Fandoms were transmitted on a personal, often individual level. Geographical boundaries were an issue, to be sure, so fandoms were often local and specific with slight eccentricities that could vary regionally, often only learned through the process of enculturation. Conventions, newsletters and zines were employed by fandoms, and often helped in reducing the need for face-to-face interactions; however time and space were often prohibitive to constructing a thriving community.”(Wiatrowski,1).

A decade ago, Comic-Con was a nerd convention, now it is the “Superbowl of Pop Culture”. Comic books, and fandom media were on display—yet its popularity in mainstream media was not. Con goers were mocked for their attire—dressing up, as their favorite character was considered infantile and stupid. Today, ComicCon tickets sell out within minutes, live streaming is a major component and the media not only covers the convention—they treat it as a “hot ticket” event. Celebrities come out in the droves and fans couldn’t be more excited. So what’s the difference between then and now? The digital revolution and the fact that geeks were the one that created it. This change is explained by Andrew Harrison is his article “Rise of the New Geeks: How the Outsiders Won”;

“First the digital revolution elevated alpha nerds such as Steve Jobs and Bill Gates to unprecedented power and influence. Then Hollywood rediscovered a rich stream of intellectual property and coincident nostalgia in geek touchstones Star Wars, Marvel Comics and JRR Tolkien at the turn of the century. Coding nerd Shawn Fanning overturned the music industry with Napster, a geek project extraordinaire. Celebs got in on the act, with R&B producers The Neptune’s rebranding as N.E.R.D. and stars as unlikely as Justin Timberlake, David Beckham and Myleene Klass donning thick-rimmed specs in the mid-nineties. Sitcoms The IT Crowd and The Big Bang Theory set out to satirize a geek world that was becoming more visible and powerful – face it, can you fix your own PC? – but did so with a surprising measure of warmth, making unlikely heroes out of Reynham Industries' Moss and the poster boy for high-functioning OCD, Caltech theoretical physicist Sheldon Cooper PhD.”(Harrison).

Fandom culture is cool, because new technology and media is cool. Superhero comic books were transformed on the screen in new and exciting ways. The two major comic book producers Marvel and DC are making new material for their brand over every form of media. Marvel has two television shows lined up on ABC for this fall, has already had over eight successful blockbuster hits in the past ten years and is set up for it’s next one this weekend with “Guardians of the Galaxy”. Comic books fans are thrilled that their favorite comic book is finally coming to life and mainstream media is excited for another Marvel hit. Marvel and DC have plans to release at least one superhero/ comic book character film a year for the next five years. It just goes to show that something that was once considered “nerdy” can become a huge part of pop culture—and can cover several different forms of media at a time.

It was a show like “Star Trek” that really created the first introduction of fandom to popular culture—but it is new age technology and programming that has made fandom part of popular culture. Television shows like “Doctor Who”, “Sherlock”, “Lost”, “24”, “Supernatural”, “Game of Thrones”, “The Walking Dead”, “Orange is the New Black”, “House of Cards”, “True Blood”, and “House” all provide the same level of fandom interest, but can also show the intense amount of mainstream influence in it as well. Now with the introduction of Netflix, viewers can start and get caught up on a show with in days—forget going to work and other responsibilities—they have a show to watch. What is more and more prevalent—and ultimately what is most important is that this “binge-watching” craze is more widely accepted. This is something that is now a part of popular culture, and is considered the norm. Comparing how long it takes you to watch a series now determines how “hardcore” you are. Telling your friends and co-workers that you binge-watched all of “The Walking Dead” is met with enthusiasm and excitement rather than embarrassment. It is this new era of technology and media programming that has really created a space for viewers to become a part of fandom culture. Netflix and HBOgo are staples in people’s lives. This new “on-demand” viewing is a vehicle for older shows to become popular again and for newer shows to gain traction as the season progresses. It used to be that if you missed an episode, you were out of luck—now with streaming television viewers can get catch up whenever it fits there schedule. And ultimately it creates an environment for more consumption of popular media. Now people no longer need to feel ashamed for watching all of season 2 of “Orange is the New Black” in their pajamas while consuming nothing but pizza and chocolate…or so I’m told.