Toxic fandom - seriously, WTH?

[Joe Neglia]

A situation earlier on the WWE board has me flummoxed on this issue. I will note right here, right now that this is not the place to start that argument, or any similar argument again.

People, what happened? Why are all fandoms growing so toxic these days? It doesn't seem to matter if it's wrestling or comic books, Godzilla movies or MLP or video games...it seems like this has become the norm for virtually every form of fandom I encounter now. A comic writer comes up with a controversial story, people start threatening his family's lives or the building he works in. People aren't fond of a review of a video game, the reviewer gets doxxed.

Where did fandom as a whole go wrong? Is it the anonymous empowerment that things like Youtube comments have emboldened? Why are such extremes being taken over disagreements on the direction of a form of entertainment? This isn't normal, it's craziness through and through. Where are we as a society that this is a regular thing now?

How do we as a culture come back from this? Because at the rate we're going, I'm seeing a point of no return on its way.

I love MST3k, MOTU, so many different comics and comic characters, cartoons, movies, whatever, but I have come to absolutely dread dealing with the fandoms involved because things go so far beyond passionate now and into insanity and criminal behavior. Over a f***ing storyline or character design.

What happened to us?

[Deleted]

It's always been there. The internet just makes it more visible and allows every facet of every fandom to be at the forefront of the conversation.

Look at sports. Since as long as I can remember people have been getting violent over soccer or football or whatever. THAT's toxic fandom, it just didn't have a name at the time.

[Deleted]

I generally avoid anywhere online that can discuss stuff except for here, for this very reason.

There's discussing bad things about stuff then there's getting stupid over it.

[Deleted]

Maybe you can pull certain people within fandom and they're cool, but like as a thing?

As a Fandom Inc.?
...fandoms have always been a thing I try to avoid.

I mean EVERY fandom.
ESPECIALLY when you hit on the supposed "geeky" ones: video games, comics, pro wrestling...maybe anime...

Specifically as someone who tends to not shy away from being a black fan of something?
"I have seen shit that'll turn you white!"

Fandom has ALWAYS been a shit show.

[Crimson]

May 15, 2017 15:59:44 GMT -5 Joe Neglia said:

What happened to us?

I think the worst thing that has happened to any fandom is this growing sense of "fan ownership." This whole idea that only a segment of fans are the real, true, fans so the direction a series should take should only cater explicitly to them.

[agent817]

It's good to find some things to discuss with people who share common interests, but I absolutely don't understand why some people go a little too far with fandoms. For example, some people will even get on another person for not following the lore of something from day one or even having a different opinion about something. When talking about sports, people also overdo it on people wearing opposing team's gear. I have never really been a football fan, but I remember being a child and wearing Raiders gear just because my dad's a fan and people giving me shit for wearing it. I have also seen how Sherdog forums were towards MMA fans who also happen to like pro wrestling. It's crazy, man.

[Deleted]

A combination of always being connected, anonymous culture, people soaking in more multi media, tough economic times, and being way more into pop culture into adulthood. But it just seems like it's a combination of fandoms getting bigger and people more dependant on entertainment as a distraction of tough times.

So when something bad happens to something they love they lash out more. Which is sad because at the end of the day it's all entertainment

[Mister Pigwell]

I don't internet outside of FAN really so I'm shocked when I see the stuff happen, it's downright tame here compared to really anywhere else (shoutout to the mods and posters alike). But yeah, what others said. It's always been around.
To be honest I do see it here sometimes in the comic thread mostly but that's about it. Oh and gender and race issues at times, but I digress.

Our wrestling arguments are tame compared to well, everywhere else. Our Pony posters are a pleasant bunch. Most of our sports fans have a level head. Our video game discussions are mostly chill.

Really my point is communities just need to police themselves to fight this crap. Moderation maybe, maybe just people coming together and saying "dude, be better than that". I dunno. I feel spoiled sometimes here, it makes the rare flareups seem worse than they are.

People suck in general when it comes to things they're passionate about (either too brash in opinion or too defensive about criticism), but I don't think it's that bad on a whole, and I won't let some whackadoos be the face of different fandoms to me.

[Deleted]

The Internet happened.

It allowed the dregs to get on in a larger scope.

And, yeah, fan entitlement is horrific.

[Bo Rida]

Given that people post vile comments (or worse) under their real names since social media became a thing I think the anonymity argument has gone.

I think a post above hit on one of the big issues when it comes to self policing. If somebody starts to go a bit far IRL hopefully somebody they know that's removed from the situation might be able to talk sense into them. When it happens online they'll probably find others that share a similar mindset and that legitimises such behaviour in their minds.

[Eunös ✈]

The one downside to the Internet, anyone can play the tough guy, you know very well most of these people would not dare say or do half the shit they do or say on the web In person.

See I will always defend most fandoms and say it really is only the small vocal minority that gives the rest a bad name.

I have been to my fair share of conventions and the atmosphere is always great and I've yet to experience any drama at these things.

All it takes is a few idiots to ruin it for everyone else.

and even online I post in a few Brony forums that are very civil and never cause drama.. Yes it does exist

It's true that every fandom has it's fairshare of Morons, I know ones I like do, but I still stand that behind them, most really aren't as bad they seem.

[SeVeN: #TheBadGuy.]

FALLOUT...Jeez.

It's a constant battle, every discussion turns into which one is better and what's f'n Canon.

I guess cause I'm an OG it doesn't matter to me but it really drives me away from any discussions.

That's the most common fandom I'm involved in and damn if it ain't blood thirsty at times.

[lionheart21]

As a fan of Overwatch, I have unfortunately seen quite a bit of toxicity within the community. I just wanna game, I don't wanna deal with drama like that.

[The Captain]

The internet, whether it's comments sections with lax moderation or social media, gives a megaphone to the scumbags of fandoms they otherwise didn't have. I will tell you that most fandoms are filled with good or at least decent people. But the jerkoffs with the megaphones make their presence feel larger than it really is.

You used to be able to blame it on anonymity, but it isn't that anymore. I think it's that people have this mindset, oftentimes justified, that they don't have to deal with any consequences for what they say on the internet versus offline.

[Deleted]

May 15, 2017 17:04:43 GMT -5 SeVeN: #TheBadGuy. said:

FALLOUT...Jeez.

It's a constant battle, every discussion turns into which one is better and what's f'n Canon.

I guess cause I'm an OG it doesn't matter to me but it really drives me away from any discussions.

That's the most common fandom I'm involved in and damn if it ain't blood thirsty at times.

I'm a New Vegas fan, but I understand.

The worst fandoms are MLP, Steven Universe, & the Walking Dead. While I consider Gundam a group in endless debate, there's so much stuff in it, it's no surprise. Plus, most fans of MLP can't acknowledge anything before FiM.

[Deleted]

May 15, 2017 17:07:10 GMT -5 lionheart21 said:

As a fan of Overwatch, I have unfortunately seen quite a bit of toxicity within the community. I just wanna game, I don't wanna deal with drama like that.

Online games are the worst.

If I can play by myself after downloading 20-40 GBs of data, I will take it!

[Nikki Heyman]

The internet in general is toxic. This is one of the few safe havens left.

OT, after seeing some of the arguments up and down my Facebook feed (and have been in a couple of "intense discussions" on other boards), I think the internet in general is an electronic battleground where people want to be "right" about certain things in their fandom and no one else's opinion counts. That's even in non-fandom stuff (ESPECIALLY politics).

I have my own "headcanon" about things that I like but I don't force them down someone's throat (DBZ/S and MLP) and I've walked away from football because the discussion gets heated and stupid over a game.

[Gerard Gerard]

It mirrors actual life in terms of people competing for identity positions. The most time-tested means of establishing oneself among a group is to police it for outsiders, and with tech advances bring the internet from relatively hobbyist venture to a big, mainstream everyday fact of life, we now have people competing for identity positions on a scale otherwise never-before-seen in human history. It's great for me in terms of being a social researcher (for a billion reasons), but it is disappointing when I want to share my fandom of something with like-minded individuals only to see it devolve into some pedantic pissing contest between, like, two people that serves to scorch all the conversation around it.

[Reflecto]

Fandoms have become toxic for the same reason that everything else has become toxic on the Internet: The Internet's been a big deal for a whole generation since AOL took it to the layperson, and that generation has built to a point that it has allowed us all to tribalize ourselves and surround ourselves with like-minded people.

Beforehand, you had to find a way to learn to get along with people who didn't think the same way you did, didn't like the same things you did, and find a way to actually befriend them. You may have even been forced to be best friends with the person next door, solely because they were the person next door to you. With the Internet, you could find a group of people who were just like you, and not be alone...but in the process bond together based on this mutual similarity and become close based on that.

When that happens, fan entitlement comes in, and toxic fandoms come in. There's a time where you're not fighting for your favorite thing anymore, you're fighting for YOUR FRIENDS, and when that happens you'll fight to the death for them.

It's even worse with fandoms than other groups the Internet brings together, since unlike other groups, there's always a sword of Damocles hanging on top of fandoms. If someone causes a problem to some groups, they'll still be alive and still be able to fight for it- but if a writer, say, were to make a bad video game in your favorite series? They might cancel the series, They might never make another game in the series, They might end the series entirely, and people will eventually forget it and leave the fandom! YOU'LL BE ALONE IN THE WORLD AGAIN!

[Milkman Norm]

I really dislike the term fandom because it's come to me mean it's not about people getting together to celebrate things they like. It's come to be about people who have to like things in the same way for the same length of time and a bunch of other rules. I like this band The Mountain Goats and for a while I was a member of some FB fan pages. But they were so condescending (You didn't see John play a solo show in 1995? You're not a fan) that I just quit. Still like the band but I have no desire to communicate with people like that.