Girls who like Boys who like Boys – Ethnography of ... - Yuuyami.com

2. Localities
The fandoms discussed are cyberfandoms, which are located online.
Many anthropological theories attempt to deal with the implications of the
Internet on Anthropological research. Many are brilliant, and should be
carefully examined. However, the purpose of these paragraphs is to outline the
primary issue of approach researchers will often face online, as well as to
introduce and emphasize the connections between locality, activity,
connections formed to others, and, ultimately, identity.
The Internet did not invent fan groups; they were thriving
long before computers existed. On the other hand, the
Internet has changed them, and for those with Internet
access, it has changed what it means to be a fan [emphasis
added]. (Baym 2000:215)
This passage from Nancy K. Baym’s Tune In, Log On: Soap,
Fandoms, and Online Communities illuminates the change fandom has gone
through with the advent of available Internet localities. Truthfully, in “classic”
fandom thirty years ago fans still managed to connect face-to-face at fandomspecific
conventions as well as across miles through textual correspondence.
In this sense, the methods to accomplish participation and/or connection have
not changed conceptually. However, the advent of the Internet as a tool
enabling faster email exchange, real-time conversation, and larger storage
space for not just fanfiction, but also for private thoughts published semipublicly
and for exchanges, affected the structures and social conventions by
which fandom had been governed. For a mode of identity that is heavily
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