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Ron is the new Ringo: Media fandom in American youth culture
Program Code:
500
Date:
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Time:
11:00 AM to 11:50 AM
EST
SPEAKER
:
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about each speaker.
Rebecca Herr Stephenson is a Ph.D. candidate in the Annenberg School for Communication and a graduate fellow at the Annenberg Center for Communication. Her current research interests include media literacy, youth media production, and youth culture. Previously, Becky worked as a production manager for companies producing original content for the web and multimedia museum exhibits. She holds a B.A. in video production from Emerson College (Boston, MA) and a M.A.T. (Master of Arts in Teaching) from the School of Education at Loyola Marymount University.
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Description
This round table discussion session seeks to unpack the cultural assumptions associated with young people's participation in media fandoms. The question of youth participation in fan communities is particularly salient to the Harry Potter fandom because of the large number of young fans and because of the importance of the series in defining children's media culture. The session will provide a historical overview of media fandom and will discuss the role of fandom in defining teenage culture. In addition, participants will be asked to reflect on their experiences as fans. Although the session topic focuses on young fans, the intention is to spur intergenerational conversation about the things that make fandom appealing as a mode of participation, the ways in which fans construct identity through participation, and the experiences, skills, dispositions, and relationships that begin within fandom and translate to other aspects of everyday life.