Gendered Representations of Fandom

Abstract

Lost is a transgeneric, transmedia television drama that aired from 2004 to 2010, a period which coincided with the emergence of several participatory online Web 2.0 platforms including blogs, forums, YouTube, and Twitter. Thus, Lost audiences used various platforms to form communities and discuss the show. This chapter analyzes the discursive practices of audiences that compose the transgeneric audience discourse of Lost, and the tensions that arise when romance fans and science fiction/mystery fans are situated in conflicted positions regarding certain storylines. The analysis provides a critical discursive perspective that demonstrates that gender dynamics plays a role in interpreting the material related to fiction and the points of view of the other fan groups. The audience discourse that is shaped and negotiated by men and women who deliberate the so-called gendered interests in online mixed-gender platforms offer insights into how female audiences use online discussion platforms to empower themselves by constructing their identities as equal audience groups with legitimate interests.