Anti-fan

An anti-fan is someone who enjoys writing, discussing or in some cases making derivative works about a piece of media, but solely for the purpose of railing against or parodying it.

It can also be a person with hatred towards a celebrity or icon.[1]

Behaviours

Anti-fandoms appears in many forms from hate-watching to snark.[2]

It is common for large anti-fandoms to gather in groups, usually on forums and sites, to share their mutual aversion. These are coined anti-fan clubs and some are substantial enough to become anti-fan sites.[3]

Behaviours of anti-fans include doxing, spreading rumours, abuse or physical harassment.[4]

Examples

In 2006, an anti-fan of the K-pop group TVXQ poisoned member Yunho with a super glue-laced drink.[5][6]

Instead of pressing charges against the anti-fan, he chose to forgive her, since the girl was the same age as his younger sister.[7] Such occurrences have resulted in an increase of security for celebrities in South Korea.[8]

The long-running show Barney & Friends (featuring an anthropomorphic purple dinosaur as the title character) was criticized for its incessant cheerfulness and the lack of serious topics in the series.[9] It had also triggered a strong revulsion among people older than its target preschool demographic. The show has been the target of a barrage of often-vicious and dark anti-Barney humor since its debut. W. J. T. Mitchell, a University of Chicago professor who devoted a chapter of his book The Dinosaur Book to the anti-Barney phenomenon, noted: "Barney is on the receiving end of more hostility than just about any other popular cultural icon I can think of. Parents admit to a cordial dislike of the saccharine saurian, and no self-respecting second-grader will admit to liking Barney."[10]

Anti-fans of late pop artist Michael Jackson used condemnatory language on Twitter to emphasize their contempt and dislike for the wave of support for Jackson in light of the child abuse allegations that haunted his career.[11]

Studies

Anti-fan studies include a focus on specific communities of practice and their relationship to the media texts and fans actively marginalizing or discrediting other fans solely on basis of identity (sex, race, etc.).[12]

See also

References
  1. This modern life: the rise of the anti-fan|From The Observer|The Guardian
  2. Anti-Fandom-NYU Press
  3. The Ashgate Research Companion to Fan Cultures edited by Dr Stijn Reijnders, Dr Koos Zwaan, Dr Linda Duits – Google Books
  4. 10 chilling instances of anti-fans' attacks|allkpop
  5. "TVXQ Member Recovers from Poisoning". KBS Global (in Korean). October 16, 2006. Archived from the original on November 13, 2006. Retrieved February 16, 2007.
  6. "U-Know Yunho, Bond drinks case of questions of". Daum (in Korean). October 15, 2006. Archived from the original on November 13, 2006. Retrieved February 16, 2007.
  7. "告訴你這7位曾瀕死亡體驗的KPOP IDOL死亡事件經過".
  8. "'Anti-fans' force managers to increase stars' security". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
  9. Lyons Partnership v. Ted Giannoulas, 179 F.3d 384, 386 (5th Cir. 1999), citing Chava Willig Levy, "The Bad News About Barney", Parents, Feb. 1994, at 191–92 (136–39).
  10. Mitchell, W.J.T. (1998). "Chapter 37: Why Children Hate Dinosaurs". The Last Dinosaur Book: The Life and Times of a Cultural Icon. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-53204-6.
  11. Understanding Fandom: An Introduction to the Study of Media Fan Culture - Mark Duffett - Google Books
  12. Fake Geek Girls: Fandom, Gender, and the Convergence Culture Industry by Suzanne Scott – Google Books
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