Toxic fandom - seriously, WTH?

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May 16, 2017 15:15:54 GMT -5 abjordans said:

May 16, 2017 15:07:35 GMT -5 Joe Neglia said:

There's a balance that has to be kept, though - the person you're responding to was discussing how places like this don't always feel like safe spaces, while your side counters that places like this go too far in reigning in things that are offensive to others. They're diametrically opposed in that regard. If we go total safe space, we have to eliminate everything that offends; if we want to give more freedom to views that offend or upset others, we lose that safe space feeling that some appreciate.

There's no real one way to go about it. We at FAN do our best to find a balance. Sure, not everyone's going to like everything, not everyone's going to agree, but we strive - and we aren't always perfect - to take all views into account and make this place as accessible to everybody as we can.

I totally understand keeping the balance. And I like coming here, I think it was determined in one thread that I have actually been coming here longer than most. But, I actually think him and I were saying the same thing. That it can be so PC that it comes back around to where it is no longer a "safe space". That is what I took him to mean at least.

Absolutely agreed. And what tends to keep me off F.A.N. what's done to make it "safe" for others, in counter result, makes me feel restricted and gives it an absolute un-safe place to speak. But I too get why they do it.

Ironic thing is places like Reddit, or the extreme 4chan can be just as bad.

I've been going on the net since the damn AOL days and it's really growing infuriating. I want a happy medium between a website where free speech is allowed while it doesn't go off the rails. I've spit balled ideas as to how this might be do-able, but I keep searching.

[Deleted]

Unfortunately on the internet, the whole loudest voice in the room argument usually turns out to be true. I don't discuss any of my interests in any specialised place because of that reason. Plus kids etc. limits any spare time I do have so would rather not waste it arguing with people who refuse to see things any other way

I doubt it will get any better unfortunately

[Deleted]

It's a relationship that went sour someplace. Like a bride left at the altar when the groom no-shows. People feel "jilted", feel screwed over at some point.
"I gave everything in my heart...for THIS?!"

[HMARK Center]

Where this topic gets tough, for me at least, is that while "entitled/toxic fandom" has always been around, and while we can easily point to the rise of instant communications and social media as a major factor in growing the toxicity, I think it goes a bit further and gets into the concept of extended adolescence and the need for escape.

Quick note: I am not talking down people enjoying something as they get older. Like just about everybody here I'm a pro wrestling fan, love films and shows that are nostalgic for me, I have just about every MST3K DVD out there, etc. Heck, my sig and avatar have to do with a park at Disney World. I'm not shit-talking anybody on this front.

That said, it's notable that the adult pursuit of things ranging from cartoons to comic books has growing by quite a bit over the past couple of decades, for various reasons stemming from the rise of cable over network television, to the internet being a storehouse of nostalgia, etc.

But the ingredient that takes it into the toxic realm, I think, is the decreased sense of community many people have where they live, and often a decreased sense of purpose in pursuits outside of their fandoms. This doesn't apply to everybody, of course, lots of fans are incredibly well-adjusted, but the days of having your interests as a kid, then growing up and getting a steady, good paying job at the local factory, or attending whatever local civic groups you are a part of (social groups, churches, etc....no religious discussion, please) are not exactly what they used to be, for both better and for worse. Young folks are putting off starting families until later ages, or buying homes later, and while society has to adjust to this new reality, it leaves us with a generation or so that feels a bit adrift in some corners.

Again, this isn't to say "why can't it be like the good old days?", since the good old days had plenty that was awful about them, but it's important to note that the old structures sort of created purposes, for lack of a better term, or roles for people to fill. Things are more nebulous now, and without those other structures dominating the scene folks are likely a bit more inclined to anchor themselves with the familiar, in this case many of the fandoms they got into growing up.

This doesn't have to be a bad thing, and it can be a great way to meet people and be social over a shared interest, but if people lack a sense of purpose/direction/etc. and cling too tightly to their fandoms, the fandoms are what suddenly gain the most meaning for them, potentially leading to the toxic fandom mentioned here; stronger emotions are dumped into them, stronger senses of purpose, stronger resentment when things aren't good, louder anger at poor developments, all of it.

I don't meant to paint broadly on that, but I think it's worth a study.