DashCon Discourses: Through a Feminist Lens

July 16, 2014
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DashCon Discourses: Through a Feminist Lens

Beyond the negative discourse generated by the recent DashCon convention are the con's more neglected, productive aspects for female and queer youth.
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Communal Politics and the Tragic Love Narrative in Hindi Cinema

July 14, 2014
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Communal Politics and the Tragic Love Narrative in Hindi Cinema

As tragic romances, Ishaqzaade and Ram-Leela act as contemporary parables for India’s destabilized economic, political and cultural integrity.
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Category Agnostic: The 2014 Emmy Nominations

July 10, 2014
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Category Agnostic: The 2014 Emmy Nominations

As cases of so-called "category fraud" increase, the Emmy Awards' arbitrary points of distinction risk becoming the story.
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AT&T’s Branded Entertainment, Present and Past

July 7, 2014
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AT&T’s Branded Entertainment, Present and Past

Despite differences in style and content in AT&T’s branded entertainment, @summerbreak and The Bell Telephone Hour share promotional goals of consumer education and aspirational culture.
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She’s Just Being Riley: The Sexual Politics of Girl Meets World

July 3, 2014
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She’s Just Being Riley: The Sexual Politics of <i>Girl Meets World</i>

The transition from Boy Meets World to Girl Meets World reflects changes in both the children's television landscape and cultural attitudes toward sexual harassment and girls' sexual autonomy.
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Beyond the Nominations: The Emmys and Representation

July 1, 2014
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Beyond the Nominations: The Emmys and Representation

While we typically judge Emmy diversity through the nominees, campaigns and ballots offer other spaces to explore politics of representation.
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The Many Faces of Tatiana: The Orphan Black Finale

June 23, 2014
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The Many Faces of Tatiana: The Orphan Black Finale

The season 2 finale of Orphan Black effectively showcased Tatiana Maslany's acting abilities, especially in its impromptu dance scene that featured the four clones.
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Casey Kasem Signs Off (1932-2014)

June 17, 2014
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Casey Kasem Signs Off (1932-2014)

Casey Kasem helped put pop music in a context. In so doing, he provided a resource for listeners to recontextualize that music for themselves.
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On Radio: Live Music Festivals as Satellite Radio’s Premium Content?

June 10, 2014
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On Radio: Live Music Festivals as Satellite Radio’s Premium Content?

Sirius XM's recent live broadcast of the Governors Ball highlights the persistence of place, of musical “hotspots,” within the satellite radio universe.
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Popular Culture and Politics: The Hunger Games 3-Finger Salute in Thai Protests

June 4, 2014
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Popular Culture and Politics: The Hunger Games 3-Finger Salute in Thai Protests

Thai protesters' appropriation of the three-finger salute articulates the relationship between popular culture and politics and places the protests within a history of fan-based civic engagement.
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Gogglebox: A Crash Course on Personal Politics in the UK

June 2, 2014
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Gogglebox: A Crash Course on Personal Politics in the UK

For a foreigner in the UK, the most telling part of this observational documentary are British households’ responses to recent political events.
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There Are Worse Things Fox Could Do: Grease Live and TV’s Sad Affair with the Live Musical

May 29, 2014
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There Are Worse Things Fox Could Do: Grease Live and TV’s Sad Affair with the Live Musical

In the era of multiple platform viewing and increased time-shifting, television turns to the musical. But Fox's selection of Grease seems to ignore a string of warning signs.
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On Kale, Transmedia, and Winning GISHWHES

May 23, 2014
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On Kale, Transmedia, and Winning GISHWHES

On winning GISHWHES (Greatest Scavenger Hunt the World Has Ever Seen), which enacts the fannish/digital ethos of playful creativity, experimentation, and community awareness in the world.
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Why Kickstarter?: Corner Gas and Crowdfunding as Promotion

May 21, 2014
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Why Kickstarter?: Corner Gas and Crowdfunding as Promotion

When fans are asked to crowdfund the marketing of a film that will exist without their support, the meanings of Kickstarter shift considerably.
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I, Reboot (Part II)

May 20, 2014
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I, Reboot (Part II)

This second installment of "I, Reboot" dives into the origins of the reboot-as-narrative-analogy and distinguishes "reboot" from "ret-con."
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Exploding Trains! Coming to a city near you!

May 16, 2014
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Exploding Trains! Coming to a city near you!

The consolidation of radio ownership in the largely rural state of North Dakota is especially acute. In moments of disaster, do citizens have access to local and timely broadcasts of the Emergency Alert System?
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