In this episode, we welcome Melanie Kohnen, an Associate Professor of Rhetoric and Media Studies for Lewis & Clark College, and Billy Austin Tringali, an Instruction Librarian at the Indiana University Indianapolis and the founder and Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Anime and Manga Studies (JAMS), to discuss the culture and function of pop-culture conventions (“cons”). Melanie shares her research on the encroaching influence of media companies on spaces such as San Diego Comic-Con, especially as they literally extend their promotions to outside of the convention center. Meanwhile, Billy speaks about his work running the annual JAMS@AX Symposium at Anime Expo and his own research regarding animanga content. This conversation examines the intersection of academia and non-academic spaces, like fan events, and how media businesses build relationships with their audiences. Melanie and Billy explore how both academics and con-goers can experience conventions as fans and build a sense of community at these pop-culture events. They offer various modes of experiencing conventions and ways of accessing fans as part of larger promotional content. From Japan to the US, Billy and Melanie show us that conventions are places of scholarly work, fun, and play!   Here are some of the references from this episode, for those who want to dig a little deeper:Academic Readings, Journals, and Resources:Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism“The experience economy of TV promotion at San Diego Comic-Con”“From Comic-Con to Amazon: Fan conventions and digital platforms”Journal of Anime and Manga Studies (JAMS)JAMS@AXMechademiaAnime and Manga StudiesSwarming SDCCManga in LibrariesAnime Con search website [link]Henry’s “Performing Our Collective Dreams: The Many Worlds of San Diego Comic-Con”Henry’s Frames of Fandom book seriesPeople and Places:Dr. Suzanne ScottJillian RudesMaria BonnFrenchy LunningMaria K. AlbertoEmilie WaggonerDr Zoe CrombieTheodore GournelosDr. Roman Gomez Physics of Anime lecture [video]Janine SunWerner HerzogBenedict AndersonRyan MurphyAnime ExpoSan Diego Comic-ConWonder ConDragon ConKingston Public LibraryComiku GirlsAnime BostonBoston Cosplay Human Death Match [link, video]Petco Park DashconRose City Comic ConGallifrey OneMagicConMedia:Abbott Elementary SDCC 2025 Abbott Elementary Block PartyPokémon [website, anime]Yu-Gi-Oh [card game, anime]Dragon BallTelevision Without PityHowl’s Moving CastleDemon SlayerWalking with DinosaursPeacemakerPeacefest SDCC 2025 [link, video]HBO MaxTubiPluto TVPsychGleeRocky Horror Picture ShowPlaystationMortal Kombat 1The Good PlaceSDCC Panel 2018 [video]SuperstoreSDCC Panel 2019 [video list]Magic the GatheringAvatar: The Last AirbenderCrunchyrollToho AnimationDelicious in DungeonDungeons and DragonsKimba the White LionYu Yu HakushoHouse of the DragonDr. Who
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––Share your thoughts via Twitter with Henry, Colin and the How Do You Like It So Far? account! You can also email us at [email protected]:“In Time” by Dylan Emmett and “Spaceship” by Lesion X.In Time (Instrumental) by Dylan Emmet  https://soundcloud.com/dylanemmetSpaceship by Lesion X https://soundcloud.com/lesionxbeatsCreative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/in-time-instrumentalFree Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/lesion-x-spaceshipMusic promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/AzYoVrMLa1Q––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

Ver todos los episodios