Fans

“Emphasis has shifted from fan identities (who fans are), to fan activities (what fans do), to fan communities (where fans are).”

The most interesting part about looking at fans this week was the way fans of certain things interact with each other. If you discover someone is a fan of something, that can be enough for you to make a judgement on that person, whether to like or dislike them. This can be fans of particular movies, shows, people, or sports teams.

For my post this week I chose to highlight sports rivalries, because they often create rivalries between fans based solely on which team they support. I began my video with the on-the-field rivalry between the Yankees and Red Sox, showing the two teams getting into a fight because of the actions taking place on the field. Then, I shifted over to the fans. We see arguments and fights taking place in the stands, which are most likely alcohol fueled, especially the two men throwing beer at each other. Then, we have a man walking through the streets of Boston with a Yankees jersey on. While he antagonizes the group of people sitting at the restaurant, and they immediately “boo” him, the last guy confronts him first. The verbal altercation escalates quickly into a physical one, purely because of the jersey the victim was wearing.

I took the very upbeat rendition of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” frankly to comment on the fights between the fans as being silly. Again, the only reason these altercations begin in the first place is because of who they choose to support. This quote felt very applicable to this topic especially regarding the fan communities part. I know many Yankees and Red Sox fans who are friends, but they usually don’t meet through their fandom, that fact is found out later. The man walking through the streets of Boston was verbally and physically harassed, and told he shouldn’t be there. It is good to be a fan of something, but not to let that one facet of life determine your judgement of people who are fans of your rival on the field or the screen.