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aroceu · 7 years

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The Five Laws of (New) Fandom

Hey guys, what’s up, it’s me with capital letters and fresh discourse. I want to make this easy to read while getting my point across but within a very nuanced topic, so I’m going to break this down into key bulletpoints.

This post is about the recent discussion of “fandom rules,” especially when it comes to content policing, accessibility, and the responsibility that differs from adults (or people with more life experience) and kids (or people with less life experience.) Attribute whatever definition you want as you wish, but please note that I’m not separating adults based on a strict definition of adulthood as I’ve learned it, but in general subjective interaction with either other adults, or people that the adult would perceive to be children relative to themselves.

For ease, and quick sharing, here are the five main points. Click under the cut to read my explanation of each.

Fandom culture on Tumblr and Twitter is a completely new culture that did not comparably exist beforehand.

In order for people to look for a certain type of content, they have to know that this type of content exists.

Creators are responsible for their content - not just what they make, but where they post it and how accessible the content is.

If the site has no censorship rules, then censorship is not occurring - and neither is it the answer.

If you’re an advocate of social justice; if you’re a feminist; if you create LGBT content; if you care about POC representation - then be consistent. Don’t be a hypocrite.

1. Fandom culture on Tumblr and Twitter is a completely new culture that did not comparably exist beforehand.

As someone who entered fandom in, let’s say 2006, I started on sites that were specifically geared towards people my age. (I was a kid at the time.) Quizilla. Fanfiction.net. Neopets. GaiaOnline. These spaces specifically had kids as their target audience, and, well, as a kid, I was on them.

Many of you probably heard, and probably were even there when the Fanfiction.net purge happened. While it was upsetting, as it essentially removed material without much warning for the creators at first, it was because FFn was a site specifically geared towards children, and adult content was prohibited. There are a lot of general issues I have with FFn (the “no script” policy, the elitism about grammar and spelling directly in the uploading page...) but generally this act of censorship was to protect the kids that frequented the site as much as adults.

This can be said for the other sites I listed. But even with LJ fandom - yes, I was there too - though there were kids and adults alike, LJ fandom specifically centered around communities, where there could be hard no under 18 rules. Even then, in order for you to look for an LJ comm, you’d have to look for it. If you’re a kid who never heard of Harry Potter/Teddy Lupin as a ship, there is an extremely slim chance of you actually encountering it in the first place otherwise because that type of dynamic is not something kids typically consider. Additionally, LJ as it existed was a very user-focused platform, as in the space you interact with is yours and yours alone; if you traversed into other waters, you were now entering someone else’s space, or a space for a group that you could possibly be a part of. But there was still that space that was individually yours, that no one would ever accidentally find unless they were looking for or already knew you already.

Twitter and Tumblr are much different to this. With the culture of reblogging and retweeting and huge site-wide tags that are either dysfunctional (Tumblr) or just seeing everything someone microblogs about, everyone in general is much more prone to exposure. This includes kids. If shit isn’t under lock, kids can see stuff. But if stuff is locked, then people who post things to share it with the world, or at least people who share their similar interests, are limited in their audience. Both sites operate at a fast pace and center around condensed info - and not even just with how the sites work, but with how we as people interact with people on the site. Neither Twitter nor Tumblr are specifically geared toward an age group, unlike FFn/Quizilla/etc. If you post something on Twitter or Tumblr that is geared toward your community, it’s still not necessarily limited to just that community, unlike LJ or Yahoo! Groups.

We’ve said time and time and again that the internet is a cesspool. But Tumblr and Twitter just make it bigger - and in issues with this fannish discussion, worse.

2. In order for people to look for a certain type of content, they have to know that this type of content exists.

There is a post going around about the “rules of fandom” that discuss things like “your kink is not my kink and that’s okay”; “don’t like don’t read”; “shit and let ship.” And this would be fine if fandom still existed in a space where consuming content was just as passive as sharing content.

But with the nature of Twitter and Tumblr, this is no longer the case. People are not just limited in what they know they like and stay within a subcommunity while avoiding what they don’t like or avoiding criticism. Tumblr and Twitter puts things in your face whether you like it or not. Yes, blacklisting exists, xkit and whatever exist, Twitter now has a muting keyword function - but if you’re on a platform where you may see this type of content for you to blacklist it, you’d need to know that this content is a thing in the first place.

Since there are kids in the internet, they are very limited in their experience and knowledge. I’m not going to discuss parent restrictions about kids being on the internet because that’s a completely different topic, so: given that let’s say a thirteen year old is already on the internet, what websites are they going to use? Who are they going to follow on the website? What may they be exposed to that they didn’t know existed at first?

I do believe that a creator who posts whatever content - Problematic or Otherwise - in a space that the creator is capable of controlling, allowing certain access or otherwise, a locked Twitter account, a Dreamwidth access list - has a perfect right to do so, and anyone who gets access to that space and then complains about content there when they knew what would be beyond the lock is rather naive, entitled, and in a generalized circumstance in the wrong. Because this person had the chance to go “I don’t want to see that so I’m not going to” but instead they opened a bag that said “character death” on the outside and then they opened the bag and the character death was on the inside. What else did they expect?

But see, Twitter and Tumblr don’t operate like this. (AO3 does, but I’ll be talking about this soon enough.) And beyond that, if someone doesn’t know what to blacklist in the first place, then they have a higher chance of seeing it. And they might not have an established opinion or view of that content - a ship, a trope, whatever - yet, so the exposure naturally normalizes that content for them. We are only as much as our experiences and our exposure, but people with less life experiences are naturally exposed to less, and their initial interactions with certain content shape their view of it as they continue to grow.

3. Creators are responsible for their content - not just what they make, but where they post it and how accessible the content is.

So, yeah, if you have enough experience to evaluate what you think is right and what you think is wrong, on a website that is a psychological cesspool for adults and kids alike, you do have a responsibility to monitor the content you share, who you’re exposing it to, and how you expose it. If you don’t want to share it at all in case of this, then don’t share it. If you want to share it but with people who will appreciate it instead of “calling you out,” then post it in a private/more locked space.

I’ve been hearing a lot that people shouldn’t put the onus on creators, since anyone with autonomy and self-agency is responsible for the sites they venture onto. But see, that would be more relevant for a site that is specifically catered to adults. If you post something that you know can get backlash - or even if you don’t know but the backlash comes from a position you can evaluate as justified - then don’t whine about your hurt feelings. If you share with an audience that is prone not to be appropriate for the content, then it’s not the fault of the inappropriate audience for existing and responding to your content. And especially if a place is filled with varying experiences, ages, and mindsets, and you post something that gets criticism and backlash, I don’t know what you expected. Again, the bag outside/inside analogy.

Kids have always been in fandom. And, really, kids have always been on the internet. The reason that it’s a matter of discussion now is because kids and adults are in the same fannish spaces (Tumblr/Twitter/AO3), so 16-year olds are now in the pool of people who can see the content of a ship between a 16-year old and a 26-year old as drawn/written/created by let’s say a 25-year old. And this is really the key difference, and where this becomes, yes, the 25-year old’s responsibility, not the 16-year old’s. If you know 16-year olds tread this website - you better get ready for responses from 16-year olds. This is not an LJ community specifically for your ship, especially with Tumblr’s broken tagging system. This is Tumblr. It’s a deep blue space of hell, and people are gonna interpret your art or your fic all they want, and they’re going to reblog it, and then someone’s going to see it whether they like it or not and get upset. This is how Tumblr works.

(I hate this site, can you tell.)

And this is also how kids work. And how people work. But telling kids they should “get off the internet” or “shouldn’t be in fandom” isn’t the fucking solution, because if you weren’t a kid in fandom you probably don’t realize the impact fandom has on your thinking when you’re under 18 (and I say this as someone who, yes, started fandom under 18); and if you were a kid in fandom you’ve been desensitized to the point where you think everyone is at the same level of maturity and development as you when they’re not. In the real world there’s a reason age-appropriate laws exist - online it’s much more of a personal judgment space - so use your personal judgment and evaluate the person that you want to be in a public space.

In the same way that we (should) hate bronies for how a kid can’t google “My Little Pony” without some fucked up fanart showing up - safesearch on or not, the fact that the content exists on a public forum is far more of an issue - we should also remain aware that we are completely at agency and thus the responsibility for the shit we share on the internet, in a public forum, on private Twitters or Tumblrs, where anyone can see. If a kid knows and is on an adults-only website, that’s one thing; but the internet is unfailingly not adults-only, and neither are Twitter or Tumblr. We’re responsible for what we say and the content we post. Is that such a difficult point to grasp?

4. If the site has no censorship rules, then censorship is not occurring - and neither is it the answer.

AO3 (and Dreamwidth) specifically has a rule about “no censorship” when it comes to creative content. This means that people who are in charge of the content on the website cannot take any works down by means of content creativity alone. Plagiarism, bots, and harassment (which is not to be confused with criticism) are one thing - but even if you post some racist bullshit that isn’t plagiarized and doesn’t encourage harm in anyway, then it can’t be removed.

That doesn’t mean it’s racist. That also doesn’t mean that people can’t tell you it’s racist. The “freedom of speech” rule has been discussed to hell and back; but in the same way that you can create and post whatever you want, people can say whatever they want about it. They can be like “hey, this is fucked up,” or “hey this is seriously Problematic material” or “hey what the fuck is wrong with you.” Although I’m not going to get into the difference between ad hominem criticism versus harassment (though, yes, they are different.)

You can tell people to stop criticizing you, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to stop criticizing you. I can tell people to stop creating content with underage age gaps, but that doesn’t mean people are going to stop doing that. It’s only censorship when you are silenced beyond your ability, in which case there’s usually a reason, like FFn’s purge (aside from the censoring of slash material, like on LJ, since slash material is not inherently “adult content” so it doesn’t have any justification on underage people.)

The whole point of discourse and criticism - why it exists, why people reblog shit, why people get upset at seeing something they like getting criticized - is just about the same as people posting stuff that warrant criticism in the first place. Because it’s expression. Because it’s trying to get you to think. Because it’s sharing a perspective. No, not everyone likes something because it aligns with their morals in some way - they like it because they like it. But then they get offended when they see it come under attack on the basis of morals, which then presumes that yes, they do think they have a “moral right” to enjoy something, rather than a general right.

A moral right is something you evaluate and that no one else can control. If you get offended at something you like being criticized, then maybe you should evaluate why you like it in the first place and self-analyze, instead of immediately jumping to the defense of “but I have the right to like it in the first place!!!” No one is trying to take away your right to like it, or create for it. That would be censorship. If you have an ethical issue with criticism, that’s really your problem - if you think you have a moral justification to create or enjoy something, you better be ready to defend it on that basis than a position of your “ability” to create or enjoy in the first place.

No one is forcing you to shut up or stop. By all means, continue doing whatever you want to do if the venue allows it. But if it’s in a space that allows as much free speech for you and for others, and it’s something that you know can get criticized - then if you throw a hissy fit over it, objectively, it’s on you.

5. If you’re an advocate of social justice; if you’re a feminist; if you create LGBT content; if you care about POC representation - then be consistent. Don’t be a hypocrite.

This post is getting so long, so I’m ending it at this point.

Okay, a lot of Twitter/Tumblr/AO3 fandom is also slash fandom. I don’t know everyone’s fannish history so I don’t know what everyone knows, but fandom outside of slash - which, really, boils down to being homophobic fandom in one way or another - has existed for just as long as slash fandom, possibly even longer. Within slash fandom, we also push for better LGBT representation, POC representation, and female representation. A lot of us identify as feminists, or even intersectional feminists. (If we can’t agree on this, then you can just skip this post honestly.)

And why? Because mainstream media is shit, and centered around straight white men. A lot of us absolve the “straightness” in slash fandom; a lot of us discuss wanting to center on characters of color, or female characters. This is because we know our reality is much more colorful, more interesting, less straight/cis, less male-focused. Because we know that straight people and white people and men are in positions of oppressive power in the real world, but they are far from being the only people in the world.

And lately, a recent hot take has been that “fiction isn’t reality,” when it comes to discussion of toxic and unhealthy relationships. But this argument holds no fucking water if you want better representation for real life marginalized groups in fictional media (including fanwork!), but when it comes to character dynamics, then suddenly the impact of fiction (including fanwork!) means nothing to reality. Yeah, real life shitty dynamics exist. But they’re shitty and result in real life instances of trauma. In the same way that you might want straight/white/men to be less glorified, less normalized by the media - you should also really want unhealthy/toxic character relationships to also be less glorified or normalized in fiction (including fanwork!)

You can’t pick and choose to what makes you feel like a good person and what makes you feel like a shitty person. If you really cared about fictional representations of oppressed groups, then you wouldn’t be spewing that “fiction isn’t reality” bullshit - if you really believed that, you wouldn’t care at all.

So reevaluate your priorities, because you’re responsible for all your actions, all your words, what you share on the internet - whether you like it or not. The impact, message, and your content that gets spread is all on you. People are allowed to make mistakes, but we have to own up to them, too.

#.talk #.fandom #ok to reblog by which i mean please reblog lol #i didn't mean to make this long SORRY #I ACTUALLY MEANT TO MAKE IT SHORT BUT THIS IS WHAT MY RAMBLY ASS DOES

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dullanyan · 3 years

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tagged by @motherfucker-unlimited !!! thank u <33

1. Why did you choose your url?

like u know. nya

(its after an old oc of mine!! a dullahan cat)

2. Any side blogs?

a few!! ive got @fairyoctopus which is a flight rising (dragon neopets) blog and @polteageistplush which was originally a splatoon blog but ive since changed it to an in-general vidya blog! ive also got @ghost-ttype which is just an aesthetic side blog. basically for me to scroll thru and not be anxious

3. How long have you been on tumblr?

Oof i think. since 2012-2013? i made my blog and then didnt know how to use tumblr and didnt start being active til late 2013

4. Do you have a queue tag?

i used to but now all i do is come on here, maybe reblog one or 2 things and then leave so theres not really a point! but i do have like 35 drafts which im too lazy to go thru and actually post them

5. Why did you start your blog in the first place?

to see what the hype for tumblr was. and then i got into some... anime that i no longer like. the remnants still exist on my blog sadly but im too lazy to delete it

6. Why did you choose your icon/pfp?

cuz that me -_-

its my vtuber sona!! you know, for my vtuber model and hobby ive yet to actually start. the icon is fitting tho <:3

7. Why did you choose your header?

i couldnt think of anything else and this gengar face was funny :3

8. What’s your post with the most notes?

apollo animal crossing birthday and sans

9. How many mutuals do you have?

oh man... so many?? i cant rly count. and i imagine like only half of them are still active on this site now

10. How many followers do you have?

793 but most of them, once again, are inactive!

11. How many people do you follow?

303, i try to clean out my following count sometimes for inactive blogs, but other times i keep following them just for nostalgia!

12. Have you ever made a shit post?

I Mean. I Guess

13. How often do you use tumblr a day?

too much </3

14. Did you ever have a fight/argument with another blog?

i mostly block people but uh.

to keep things brief, one time someone was... Weirdly Angry about art that i made of dragons on flight rising (the ice element dragon makes hot food, and the fire element makes cold food. you know, a cute little gimmick for ocs)

and when i talked to them about it, thwy came to an understanding that it was a very uncalled-for comment. thus making me have the most BIZARRE interaction ive ever had to date

genuinely this haunts me every day. theres MUCH more to the conversation but they legitimately sounded like an anime antagonist

15. How do you feel about the ‘you need to reblog’ posts?

i simply do not reblog them <3

16. Do you like tag games?

theyre rly fun!!!! i enjoy them

17. Do you like ask games?

those are also very fun!! i dont rb them much anymore but still :3

18. Which of your mutuals do you think is tumblr famous?

enecoo and lmaonade definitely. also motherfucker-unlimited i consider you tumblr famous! i see quite a few of your posts float around from time to time. and cornsnoot has a rly popular snake blog !!

19. Do you have a crush on a mutual?

a really long time ago i did. fun fact there was a period of time i had a VERY slight crush on like 3 different mutuals, all at different times ofc (none of them even use this site anymore) and like within 2 weeks of me being like ‘woah theyre cute’ they got into a relationship. 3 separate times

its just my power i guess nhjfkdnhjdfk

and now im gonna tag some ppl!! u dont have to if u dont want to!!

and @ other mutuals i didnt tag bc i wasnt sure if u would enjoy this or not, feel free to do it and say i tagged you!!

@minatheangel @illumeow @sheepytina @cornysnoot @mangotigerr

#thank u for tagging me!!!#tag game #mawcie.txt #i wanted to tag more ppl but i wasnt sure if they'd be interested in doing this :pensive:

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