Fan Message Board - Case Study Example

Fan Message Board: A Genre Analysis Message boards, a genre of communication that exists prior to the present-day Internet, were widely known and used among early adopters and nerds in the 1980s when dial-up message boards were currently in vogue (Tancer para 2). After a decade, message boards became a widespread medium for users to talk about financial matters. Until now message boards dedicated to specific issues are still flourishing, even in a period when majority of popular online participation mediums are blog reactions and user reviews. Message boards are widely used in fan pages until now. A message board remains popular to fans because its entries are stored. The stored entries or ‘archive’ becomes an important part of fan discussions, with numerous fans using, connecting, and citing archives. Moreover, anonymity, an important aspect of the message board genre, can dispute the truthfulness, reliability, and intention of the content or information posted on the board (Tancer para 3). The Internet provides fans numerous communication channels to pass on or share information. Message boards are still one of the more widespread communication channels on the World Wide Web, particularly for the fan community. Message boards give fans the chance to communicate conveniently and at will with one another through content posting or public forum. If a large number of fans take part or view these boards, the volume of content that can be communicated or exchanged is enormous. With a simple mouse click and strokes on the keyboard, message boards communicate one’s ideas, observations, and interests to other involved viewers or users anywhere and anytime. Message boards are a perfect medium for fans who want to communicate with others who have the same preferences or likings. Angelina Jolie fan pages, especially ‘Angelina Jolie Fan’, ‘Angelina Jolie Place’, and ‘Team Jolie’, extensively use message boards as communication channel for fans of the Hollywood actress all over the world. But how do message boards work as a fan genre? This paper analyzes how Angelina Jolie’s fan community makes use of message boards as a communication medium, focusing on the content, structure, and language. Before posting content on the message board that will be read across the globe, there are several essential aspects to remember and understand about the structure of message boards. Even though there are message boards that are restricted to public viewing, almost all message boards can be publicly accessed or viewed. Hence, when one posts content to the Internet, it will be published for all users to read. The one who posted the content does not have control who will view or read his/her post, or who could use parts of it for other purposes. Hence before posting content one should be certain that the message s/he is about to share to users across the globe only comprises information that s/he is prepared to be read by everybody. Furthermore, content posted to message boards is usually irrevocable. Although in certain cases editing can be carried out, after the user clicks the ‘submit’ icon in a message board, s/he will typically be unable to return and edit or alter his/her post. Hence, once should be certain that there are no errors in his/her content, and that it conveys what s/he really wants it to convey. One of the most noticeable structures of the message boards in Angelia Jolie fan pages is the ‘thread’. A thread comprises a title, further information that could sum up the desired topic, and an introduction or original post or poster (OP), which introduces whatever discussion or creates whatever declaration or revelation the poster wanted (AtHomeNet para 8). A thread is a set of posts, generally shown from earliest to newest, even though this is usually changeable: alternative for latest to earliest and for a topic-based option can be chosen (AtHomeNet para 5). This is how topics are arranged in Angelina Jolie Fan, Angelina Jolie Place, and Team Jolie. Most of the users post about the upcoming movie of real-life couple Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt entitled By the Sea. The posts about this topic generally talk about the technical aspects of the movie (e.g. filmmaker, cast of characters, cinematic effects, etc.) and the plot and setting of the story (Angelina Jolie Fan para 4-5). A particular thread about By the Sea is shown in ‘AwardsWatch’ wherein fans, as well as critics, of Angelina Jolie comment on how the actress handles her new movies and her new projects. Most of the discussions focus on the actress’ performance. Other threads about Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are in ‘Female First’ forum. This forum is a combination of positive and negative discussions about Angelina Jolie as an actress and as the wife of Brad Pitt. In these threads, the fans are usually defending the actress from hate posts and bashers. In the Angelina Jolie fan pages, a thread contains several posts, as well as a number of posts from a single fan. For instance, in Angelina Jolie Fan user ‘Annie’ has posted several messages. Readers can leave a comment for every post and the poster has the choice whether to reply or not to the comments. Another quite important structure of the message board is, obviously, the post. A post is a content submitted by a user comprising information about the user, usually the first name, and the time and date it was posted. In Angelina Jolie fan pages members are often permitted to change or remove their own posts. The clarity, credibility, and believability of the posts are vital in this genre. Credibility can be achieved by citing reliable sources, just like what Isla Brangelina did in her post Angelina Jolie Seen Future Work with Chris Martin. She cited a popular entertainment news channel, ‘Vulture’, to back up her report (Angelina Jolie Place para 1-2). The posters also include pictures of the actress that are relevant to their posts. In this way, readers are more convinced about the veracity of their content. The communication thus involves not only texts but also images. This form of communication is widely common in this genre today. Beforehand, message boards are simply textual but because of progress in technology it has evolved into a highly visual genre. The final structure of this genre is the user groups. In general, this genre organizes official members and guests into user groups. A user can eventually be categorized as privileged member depending on the standards established by the administrator. These privileged members are the primary user groups in the communication channel of this genre because they are the posters or sharers of information. The guests and ‘lurkers’, or those who only read the post without contributing to it (refusing to leave a comment, ignoring the registration invitation, etc.), are the recipients of the information shared by the primary communicators. Through this classification there emerges a clear division of roles and responsibility between the ‘sharers’ and the ‘readers’. It seems that guests of Angelina Jolie fan pages are not active in commenting or leaving feedback, perhaps due to the formality or somewhat refined appearance and content of the posts. The posters make sure that the languages they use are appropriate to the topic and they do not deviate from the rules of their fan community. For instance, Team Jolie talks about the humanitarian activities of Angelina Jolie, and the posters’ words are carefully chosen. For example, “In light of this, Jolie hopes that the international community and leaders, as well as ministers and ambassadors, will help to make a change” (Team Jolie para 18). Moreover, the posters choose the most appropriate statements from the actress and those involved in her activities. For instance, in the post “Angeline Jolie Pitt Visits Refugees in Turkey with Shiloh: We Cannot Ignore the ‘Worst Refugee Crisis Ever Recorded’” posted on June 21, 2015, Angelina Jolie said, “Our world has never been richer or healthier or more advanced; yet never before have so many people been dispossessed and stripped of their basic human rights” (Team Jolie para 4). These posters make sure that they are communicating to the Jolie’s fans all over the world the actress’ upcoming projects and charitable work in the most suitable language possible. Message boards are still for nerds and individuals who are interested in serious, intellectual discussions. The Angelina Jolie fan community attests to the fact that this genre has successfully upheld its original purpose—to transmit information in a formal, scholarly manner. This genre is most effective in terms of trustworthiness or credibility. Thus the message board will continue to exist to enlighten, educate, and inform people who are hungry for content. Works Cited Angelina Jolie Fan. The Ultimate Angelina Jolie Fansite, 2015. Web. 01 Jul 2015. Angelina Jolie Place. Ultimate Source of Angelina Jolie Since 2007, 2015. Web. 01 Jul 2015. AtHomeNet. Message Board, 2013. Web. 01 Jul 2015. AwardsWatch. Angelina Jolie’s By The Sea, 2015. Web. 07 Jul 2015. Female First Forum. Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt Section, 2015. Web. 07 Jul 2015. Tancer, Bill. Who Still Uses Message Boards? Time, Jul 2007. Web. 01 Jul 2015. Team Jolie. Fansites Network, 2015. Web. 01 Jul 2015. Read More