What do you call the academic study of fandom? Comic book and cult TV fans are known for their inventive collective nouns, but what about the academics that are studying their behaviour? In this episode of Life Solved, Professor Lincoln Geraghty introduces us to the Aca-fans: the academics who are researching the (often positive) social impact of fandom on communities and individuals. This new breed of researcher builds a bridge between fan communities and academia. Professor Geragthy has been studying the subcultures that arise from forums, conventions, criticism and social networks around a subject. He says that far from the nerdy stereotype, the professional nature of some fan communities provides a nuanced contribution to society, through the formation of support networks, reflection upon modern history and contribution current cultural debates. Points of Interest  Professor Lincoln Geraghty - https://www.port.ac.uk/about-us/structure-and-governance/our-people/our-staff/lincoln-geraghty Pokemon Go and fandom - https://www.port.ac.uk/news-events-and-blogs/blogs/popular-culture/what-pokemon-go-and-its-online-community-during-the-coronavirus-lockdown-show-us-about-fandom https://www.forbes.com/sites/simonchandler/2020/06/02/coronavirus-boosts-pokmon-go-spending-by-70-as-gamers-play-inside/?sh=40ef14501994 Pokemon Go - https://pokemongolive.com/en/ What is an aca-fan? https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1469540515623608https://fanlore.org/wiki/Acafan  Solve Magazine- port.ac.uk/solve https://www.port.ac.uk/news-events-and-blogs/magazines/solve-magazine Portsmouth Social Media LinksFacebook - facebook.com/universityofportsmouthInstagram -instagram.com/portsmouthuni/Twitter - twitter.com/portsmouthuniLinkedIn - linkedin.com/school/university-of-portsmouth/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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