Bringing on the Blackout - Page 2
© Ellen Ross
http://www.spookweb.com/blackout/blackou...
Why the blackout? The fans hope to demonstrate how much the online fandom has helped to promote and support shows such as "The X-Files" and "Buffy," by illustrating what a drab Web it would be without the fan sites dedicated to their favorite shows.
Another, related fan campaign, "The Buffy Bringers," has already attracted considerable attention. The Bringers are protesting the cease-and-desist letters from Fox which demanded the shutdown of fan sites using sounds, images and/or transcripts from "Buffy" episodes. The Bringers campaign continues to grow and has partnered with the May 13 blackout in a letter-writing, e-mail and fax campaign to defend fan sites.
"Buffy saves the world.... we save the World Wide Web," proclaims one of the many banners for the Bringers.
As the Bringers point out, the enthusiastic fans who spend many unpaid hours building websites enhance the value of the "franchise" in many ways. "Star Trek" became the money-maker that it is today because of the determined fans in the 1970s. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and other cult TV shows have developed a worldwide following, even in areas where the shows are not being aired, in large part because of the efforts of the fans. Many of the fans who have built impressive sites are only in their early teens. Other fans range in age into their forties and fifties. They share a common vocabulary and a common passion for a fandom which is not just a hobby but a way of life.
While partisan politics now lacks the attraction that it once had for many, activism is far from dead among young people (and some not-so-young people) today. This is the next generation of protest. Bloodshed and battle have become metaphors for most today, not literal reality, thanks in large part to the generation that came before.
The forum and the issues are different, and lives are no longer at stake, but the determination to fight is still formidable.
Rachel Hyland's article at "The 11th Hour" calls it "the Campaign Craze." http://www.the11thhour.com/archives/0520...
Silly? Trivial? Maybe not. After all, the values of "Star Trek" helped to change the values of a generation that has since reshaped the world. Who knows what effect "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" will have on the leaders of tomorrow?
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