Assignment #1 -- TV Web Sites Analysis

The purpose of this assignment is to get students to investigate the world of the TV fan on the world wide web. To complete the assignment, choose one of the TV shows currently playing on cable or network TV and find our way to the official fan web site. If you haven't done a lot of web surfing, just click on www.google.com and enter the name of the show in the search box. Official web sites are maintained by the network or production company that broadcasts or produces the show. Explore that site thoroughly, then, using your favorite web search engine, dive into the world of fan created (rather than production company created) web sites. This will generate a list of sites that fans have created. Choose at least two of those sites and investigate them thoroughly. Once you have completed your searches, write a three-four page paper in which you discuss the following questions:

1. How do "official" sites differ from fan-created web sites? Be specific and give examples. Are there specific features found in fan sites that don't occur in the "official" web sites? What are they?

2. Why would fans invest the enormous amount of time and resources to create these sites? What purposes do they serve for the fans? How do you think the creation of these sites changes the television viewing experience for the fans who use them?

3. How do you think the kind of experiences fans get on the internet compares with the kind of experiences they might have had in earlier times had they been active members of fan clubs?

Ultimately this is a reaction paper. If you find something particularly striking on a site and want to comment on it, feel free. Remember however, this is a critical paper. Mere description is only the first step in a critical essay. I am looking for interpretation and evaluation and only those essays which venture into that difficult terrain will get top grades. Graduate student papers will be in the six to seven page range and might involve either more than one show or a more extensive sampling of fan-created web sites. Finally, be sure to use appropriate MLA or APA format in citing your web sites. For help, find the web page developed by Library Bill Budge called Electronography.

This assignment is due February 13th at the beginning of class.