The de/stabilization of identity in online fan communities

Whiteman, N. 2009. The de/stabilization of identity in online fan communities. Convergence: the international journal of research into new media technologies. 15 (4), pp. 379-488. https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565093423

TitleThe de/stabilization of identity in online fan communities
TypeJournal article
AuthorsWhiteman, N.
Abstract

This article explores the negotiation of fan identity within two internet-based fan communities (the television fan site City of Angel and videogame fan site Silent Hill Heaven) in responses to two destabilizing events (the ‘Save Angel’ campaign and the release of the Silent Hill film). The article explores three aspects of the posting activity relating to these events: the ways that members, at times, constitute what it is to be a fan through the reification of their own agency; the ways that posters conceptualize external threats to their own interests; and the ways that they respond to internal challenges to the stability of these settings. Developing a relational approach to the study of fan identity, the article examines how these moves are tied into ongoing struggles for legitimacy within these sites.

JournalConvergence: the international journal of research into new media technologies
Journal citation15 (4), pp. 379-488
ISSN1354-8565
1748-7382
Year2009
PublisherSage
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565093423
Publication dates
Published30 Oct 2009

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