Tune In, Log On: Soaps, Fandom, and Online Community

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SAGE Publications, Oct 15, 1999 - Language Arts & Disciplines - 264 pages

Nancy K. Baym′s Tune In, Log On is an ethnographic study of an Internet soap opera fan group. Bridging the fields of computer-mediated communication and audience studies, the book show how verbal and nonverbal communicative practices create collaborative interpretations and criticism, group humor, interpersonal relationships, group norms, and individual identity. While much has been written about problems and inequities women have encountered online, Baym′s analysis of a female-dominated group in which female communication styles prevail demonstrates that women can build successful online communities while still welcoming male participants. In addition, a longitudinal look at the development of the fan group allows an examination of the endurance of the group′s social structure in the face of the Internet′s tremendous growth. Lively and engaging, Tune In, Log On provides an entertaining introduction to issues of online and audience community.

 

Contents

Introduction Three Tales of One Community
1
TV for the Less Intelligent?
35
Chapter 2 Interpreting and Comparing Perspectives in the Audience Community
69
Criticism Creativity and Solidarity
96
Interpersonal Relationships in the Online Community
119
Chapter 5 The Development of Individual Identity
143
5 Years Later
175
Conclusion Tune in Tomorrow
197
Appendix A Surveys
219
Appendix B Genre Analysis
222
Appendix C Analysis of Agreements and Disagreements
225
References
231
Index
241
About the Author
249
Copyright

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About the author (1999)

Nancy Baym is an Associate Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Kansas. She has written many widely-cited articles about online fan community and social aspects of online interaction and is the author of the book Tune In, Log On: Soaps, Fandom, and Online Community (Sage Press, Inc.). She is a co-founder and Past-President of the Association of Internet Researchers. She is an award-winning teacher whose courses address the use of new communication technologies in creating identities, relationships and communities, interpersonal communication, and qualitative research methods. She serves on the editorial boards of the premiere journals in the field, including New Media & Society, The Journal of Communication, The Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, and The Information Society. Her blog about fan activity on the internet can be found at http://www.onlinefandom.com

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