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Way-Too-Early Ramblings: The Rifts Within Fandoms
13 years ago
General
'Sup, y'all? I've been busying myself with college and independent living, but sometimes I can't help but lurk about FurAffinity for my daily fix. And as I was wandering about, I couldn't help but stop on a certain art piece.
Y'know
The brony banner
Ah, the unfairly infamous piece by
dotrook sure sent our website into quite the tizzy, no? The rabid bronies and anti-bronies came out in full force. The few intelligent and coherent members from either side were drowned out. Not a single member was neutral that day. The trolls had a field day. And the admins (well, maybe just one specific admin) sat up high on Mount Olympiad and chuckled at us silly losers.
I'll get this out of the way now, but I was one of the people who absolutely detested the banner. This was WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY before
antipony, however. My main gripe was with how shitty the art style and how purposely drama-inducing the banner was at the time. As of now, that's still my main gripe.
But...as I read the comments, and delved a wee bit deeper...I came to learn this isn't the first time a banner raised such an atrocious stink. Apparently, there was a smaller yet still over-dramatic fiasco involving a "Fat Bunny Week" banner. And if I know the furry fandom...I'm sure there are more similar incidents regarding other banners.
So then, the question is: What the hell is up with people and specialty banners? And quite frankly, the answer is deeper than "furry drama being furry drama." After all, if there are going to be multiple incidents revolved around similar subjects of contention (read: FA banner), there is a more complex answer to the question.
And I think I know the answer. Well, the specific answer for the "FA banner" question, at least. That answer being: NO ONE LIKES WHEN ONE ASPECT/INTEREST/SUBCULTURE IS ELEVATED ABOVE THE OTHERS
Let's face it. With these "X Week" banners, one part of the fandom becomes overinflated in terms of ego, while the rest (or, at the very least, a good portion) of the fandom becomes angered and/or upset that they do not get such special treatment. Both reactions are totally out of the park, but they are practically guaranteed in a polarizing fandom such as ours.
And as always, it most certainly isn't just furries that overreact, or just website banners that cause drama. ANY special treatment for ANY one specific part of ANY fandom will cause massive drama overload. The best any fandom can hope for is that these things never happen. But that is like expecting pigs to one day spontaneously sprout wings and fly (read: IMPOSSIBLE). The reality is, the best any fandom can hope for in these situations is that the drama is minimal or non-existant. And fret not dear fandom, for this cutebold has some advice to ensure such a result!
For the purposes of simplicity, and the fact that I brought up that damned brony banner, I'll be using the following "groups" and will elaborate on what advice works for whom:
"Bronies" - the group or subculture that is for the special treatment, because they are receiving it. Will usually act (emphasis on act) calm or "above the drama," though they contribute to it quite a bit.
"Anti-Ponies" - the group that reacts negatively, as they did not receive such treatment. Few will try to coherently convey the reasons this special treatment is wrong, but most will be clearly and heavily outraged.
"Neutrals" - the group that pretends to be neutral. Few will actually be so, but most will take a side under the common "I'm neutral, but..." guise.
"Trolls" - the group that derives pleasure from the drama, and will intentionally stir up more for the lulz. Some are obvious, some are subtle.
"Admins" - the group that created the special treatment. May not have intended the drama to occur, but sometimes they very much do intend.
"The Artist" - an occasional figure in some instances. Created the thing that eventual became the symbol for the special treatment, whether or not they wanted it to be so. Will most likely been unfairly dragged into the drama.
Note that though this is appearing to relate to dotrook's banner, you can generally use all of these groups in any situation; a simple name change for some is all that's needed.
1) Bronies
Do not let it get to your head
Letting the special treatment inflate your ego is the worst possible thing you could do in such instances. By doing so, you allow yourself to become so smug and overconfident that you'll likely obsess with ensuring this special treatment lasts as long as it can. You will act volatile towards any dissenters, and your ability to be reasonable is diminished. You don't want to be this, especially if you usually are not like this.
Consider the other side
Regardless if you're ego is inflated or not, be sure to politely consider what the dissenter's have to say. Do not automatically assume their opinions are pure malice or pure stupidity. If, after proper consideration, they turn out to contain those qualities, do not give the fools the time of day and just ignore them. If not, feel free to agree to or respectfully and intelligently debate them.
Always be the bigger man
There is literally no other way to feel and look good then this. If the other insists on having the last comment, let them. If the other insists on being immature, let them. If the other insists on overusing memes and bad grammar, LET THEM. In the end, they'll look like the whiny, immature jerk, not you.
Avoid an overabundance of snark, sarcasm, repetitive posts, etc.
I cannot emphasis this enough. If you abuse these tones and concepts, it won't matter if you're the more mature appearing one. EVERYONE WILL COME TO SEE YOU AS THE GUY THAT JUST LOVES TO INSULT AND BELITTLE OTHERS AND/OR KISS THE SPECIAL TREATMENT GIVER'S ASS. And I hope you don't want to be that guy.
2) Anti-Ponies
Express your dissent coherently, respectfully, and intelligently
If you aren't a troll, there is no other acceptable way to express your dissent. No one will give you the time of day or legitimate, thoughtful consideration if you let your anger or upsetness dictate your words for you. And as an addendum, you want to be sure all your points are clear, concise, and detailed. In this way, you avoid any misinterpretation or confusion that may arise when others come to consider, agree with, or debate your dissent.
Consider reaching specific people
A public forum is not always the best way to express your opinion. Often times, your opinion will either be buried amongst the others OR the rabids from other side will twist your words. Thus--especially in hugely dramatic situations--the best is to take it straight up tp the person(s) responsible for the special treatment. Be it PM, Trouble Ticket, notes, or other private way, you'll get farther and will likely receive thoughtful and understanding responses. As with the general folk, be sure to express your opinion as coherently, as respectfully, and as intelligently as you can when you go straight to the top.
Always be the bigger man
Applies the same as it does with Bronies.
Avoid an overabundance of snark, sarcasm, repetitive posts, etc.
Applies the same as it does with Bronies.
3) Neutrals
Actually be neutral; don't respond
If you are truly neutral, than you have no reason to comment or add to the drama in the first place. It doesn't bother you, and you really don't have nothing to say when neutral. Just ignore it all and move on.
If you must respond, avoid the "but..." statement
If you just HAVE TO respond to the drama--be it "epic thread" reasons or what have you--avoid adding the "but..." adder to your comment. By adding the "but..." you immediately stop being neutral because you have officially taken a side at that point. If you are truly neutral, state that you are or whatever non-drama adding, non-side taking comment you want to leave there, and nothing more.
4) Trolls
Sometimes, its better to sit back and watch
Especially as with what happened with the brony banner, each side will provide you with sweet, juicy drama and fantastic lulz without any input from yourself. If that's the case, just sit back and enjoy the show. And you never know; your input may accidentally kill the lulz! And we certainly don't want that.
Be subtle
You don't want to be an "obvious troll is obvious" do you? Avoid abusing memes and bad grammar. "Pick a side" and play as if you are so rooted in that side you'll do anything for it. Using logical fallacies such as the straw man and red herring tend to work best in situations such as these, I have found. Pick a specific target, and stay with it: too many targets, and you risk detection. And if you do feel you're close to being detected, immediately stop and leave, as the drama will most certainly continue without you.
Do not announce that you are a troll
Probably the best advice a non-troll like I can give. Announcing that you've been "trolling this entire time" does not make you a "winner" or some similar variant. Rather, it immediately makes you fool, as everyone will automatically assume (regardless of how true or false it is) that you are some immature little baby that can't accept when people have been beating you in debates or that you're point of view has been wrong the entire time. Trust me, nothing sucks like having the tables turned on you, but don't make it worse if they do.
Better yet, don't guarantee that the tables turn in the first place by announcing your awesome troll status.
5) Admins
End the special treatment if the drama becomes too much
Even though it should never have been in the first place, its better to save face and end the source of drama as fast as possible. Trust me, despite what some will claim, you didn't "cave in" by doing this. Instead, you actually realized this was a bad idea and you corrected it.
Don't give special treatment in the first place
Seriously. Its not just unfair. Many people's interest are so wide and so varied that you are bound to receive negativity no matter how benign you think the subject matter retrieving special treatment is. It is ultimately not worth the headaches and drama that always come with subculture-specific special treatment, so why do it in the first place?
Do not do it on purpose
If you are doing just so you can see the drama unfold, then FUCK YOU. First, it is terrible for whatever business or means your site keeps itself afloat with. Secondly, really? Are you so conceited or jaded that you have to derive pleasure from the misery of others? Exclusive to FA, we aren't a trolling website like Encyclopedia Dramatica. Despite how easy it is to generate furry drama, this is not the point of the site, and it ultimately hurts YOU, THE SITE, and YOUR REPUTATION...all for a few cheap laughs.
6) The Artist
Report any extreme harassment, but otherwise ignore it
Honestly, most of the time, how whatever you created attained its infamous status is not your fault, yet you will inevitably be dragged into the ensuing drama anyway. While unfortunate, your best bet is not to pay it any heed. Only acknowledge it if its out of hand or specific sources are really causing trouble, then take the appropriate action to correct such moments.
Do not do it on purpose
Applies very much the same way as it does for Admins
If you must respond, do not play the victim, yet don't be an ass either.
You will get absolutely no sympathy from anyone if respond melodramatically or assholishly over the course of the developing drama. If you do, the best you'll get is the worst of the Bronies groupset backing you up, and this will further tarnish your reputation on top of what your responses have done by themselves. The worst: everyone will become convinced that you are the twat that the Anti-Ponies claim you are, and you can basically kiss a good chunk of your business goodbye. Honestly, the best way to respond is to the few comments the actually constructively critique, give unbiased praise to, or ask unbiased questions about your work. All else should be noise to you.
I want to reiterate that this is NOT brony/anti-pony specific. They are just examples I used for the for the otherwise general groups that can be involved in such similar drama
As fandoms, we'd all be better off if drama just stopped existing. This is impossible for a variety of reasons, but at the very least we can minimize what drama does occur.
And, again, this is all just advice. As much as I would love if everyone took this too heart and followed it, I realize that words are words, and this is advice is not needed for many and unnecessary for a few.
As for the specific issue that is the FA banner at times, I advocate that there be no more special weeks. None. The banner should just be there to showcase artists and, at the VERY MOST, tell us what season and/or holiday we happen to find ourselves in. We've seen what special weeks can do hear, and it is just ridiculous. For everyone's sake, FA staff, no more. Let the subcultures celebrate amongst themselves.
ANYWAY, I'm off to finally give my body the rest it needs. Feel free and please comment and debate my points and advice below. Askir out.
Y'know
The brony banner
Ah, the unfairly infamous piece by
dotrook sure sent our website into quite the tizzy, no? The rabid bronies and anti-bronies came out in full force. The few intelligent and coherent members from either side were drowned out. Not a single member was neutral that day. The trolls had a field day. And the admins (well, maybe just one specific admin) sat up high on Mount Olympiad and chuckled at us silly losers.I'll get this out of the way now, but I was one of the people who absolutely detested the banner. This was WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY before
antipony, however. My main gripe was with how shitty the art style and how purposely drama-inducing the banner was at the time. As of now, that's still my main gripe.But...as I read the comments, and delved a wee bit deeper...I came to learn this isn't the first time a banner raised such an atrocious stink. Apparently, there was a smaller yet still over-dramatic fiasco involving a "Fat Bunny Week" banner. And if I know the furry fandom...I'm sure there are more similar incidents regarding other banners.
So then, the question is: What the hell is up with people and specialty banners? And quite frankly, the answer is deeper than "furry drama being furry drama." After all, if there are going to be multiple incidents revolved around similar subjects of contention (read: FA banner), there is a more complex answer to the question.
And I think I know the answer. Well, the specific answer for the "FA banner" question, at least. That answer being: NO ONE LIKES WHEN ONE ASPECT/INTEREST/SUBCULTURE IS ELEVATED ABOVE THE OTHERS
Let's face it. With these "X Week" banners, one part of the fandom becomes overinflated in terms of ego, while the rest (or, at the very least, a good portion) of the fandom becomes angered and/or upset that they do not get such special treatment. Both reactions are totally out of the park, but they are practically guaranteed in a polarizing fandom such as ours.
And as always, it most certainly isn't just furries that overreact, or just website banners that cause drama. ANY special treatment for ANY one specific part of ANY fandom will cause massive drama overload. The best any fandom can hope for is that these things never happen. But that is like expecting pigs to one day spontaneously sprout wings and fly (read: IMPOSSIBLE). The reality is, the best any fandom can hope for in these situations is that the drama is minimal or non-existant. And fret not dear fandom, for this cutebold has some advice to ensure such a result!
For the purposes of simplicity, and the fact that I brought up that damned brony banner, I'll be using the following "groups" and will elaborate on what advice works for whom:
"Bronies" - the group or subculture that is for the special treatment, because they are receiving it. Will usually act (emphasis on act) calm or "above the drama," though they contribute to it quite a bit.
"Anti-Ponies" - the group that reacts negatively, as they did not receive such treatment. Few will try to coherently convey the reasons this special treatment is wrong, but most will be clearly and heavily outraged.
"Neutrals" - the group that pretends to be neutral. Few will actually be so, but most will take a side under the common "I'm neutral, but..." guise.
"Trolls" - the group that derives pleasure from the drama, and will intentionally stir up more for the lulz. Some are obvious, some are subtle.
"Admins" - the group that created the special treatment. May not have intended the drama to occur, but sometimes they very much do intend.
"The Artist" - an occasional figure in some instances. Created the thing that eventual became the symbol for the special treatment, whether or not they wanted it to be so. Will most likely been unfairly dragged into the drama.
Note that though this is appearing to relate to
dotrook's banner, you can generally use all of these groups in any situation; a simple name change for some is all that's needed.
|ADVICE|
1) Bronies
Do not let it get to your head
Letting the special treatment inflate your ego is the worst possible thing you could do in such instances. By doing so, you allow yourself to become so smug and overconfident that you'll likely obsess with ensuring this special treatment lasts as long as it can. You will act volatile towards any dissenters, and your ability to be reasonable is diminished. You don't want to be this, especially if you usually are not like this.
Consider the other side
Regardless if you're ego is inflated or not, be sure to politely consider what the dissenter's have to say. Do not automatically assume their opinions are pure malice or pure stupidity. If, after proper consideration, they turn out to contain those qualities, do not give the fools the time of day and just ignore them. If not, feel free to agree to or respectfully and intelligently debate them.
Always be the bigger man
There is literally no other way to feel and look good then this. If the other insists on having the last comment, let them. If the other insists on being immature, let them. If the other insists on overusing memes and bad grammar, LET THEM. In the end, they'll look like the whiny, immature jerk, not you.
Avoid an overabundance of snark, sarcasm, repetitive posts, etc.
I cannot emphasis this enough. If you abuse these tones and concepts, it won't matter if you're the more mature appearing one. EVERYONE WILL COME TO SEE YOU AS THE GUY THAT JUST LOVES TO INSULT AND BELITTLE OTHERS AND/OR KISS THE SPECIAL TREATMENT GIVER'S ASS. And I hope you don't want to be that guy.
2) Anti-Ponies
Express your dissent coherently, respectfully, and intelligently
If you aren't a troll, there is no other acceptable way to express your dissent. No one will give you the time of day or legitimate, thoughtful consideration if you let your anger or upsetness dictate your words for you. And as an addendum, you want to be sure all your points are clear, concise, and detailed. In this way, you avoid any misinterpretation or confusion that may arise when others come to consider, agree with, or debate your dissent.
Consider reaching specific people
A public forum is not always the best way to express your opinion. Often times, your opinion will either be buried amongst the others OR the rabids from other side will twist your words. Thus--especially in hugely dramatic situations--the best is to take it straight up tp the person(s) responsible for the special treatment. Be it PM, Trouble Ticket, notes, or other private way, you'll get farther and will likely receive thoughtful and understanding responses. As with the general folk, be sure to express your opinion as coherently, as respectfully, and as intelligently as you can when you go straight to the top.
Always be the bigger man
Applies the same as it does with Bronies.
Avoid an overabundance of snark, sarcasm, repetitive posts, etc.
Applies the same as it does with Bronies.
3) Neutrals
Actually be neutral; don't respond
If you are truly neutral, than you have no reason to comment or add to the drama in the first place. It doesn't bother you, and you really don't have nothing to say when neutral. Just ignore it all and move on.
If you must respond, avoid the "but..." statement
If you just HAVE TO respond to the drama--be it "epic thread" reasons or what have you--avoid adding the "but..." adder to your comment. By adding the "but..." you immediately stop being neutral because you have officially taken a side at that point. If you are truly neutral, state that you are or whatever non-drama adding, non-side taking comment you want to leave there, and nothing more.
4) Trolls
Sometimes, its better to sit back and watch
Especially as with what happened with the brony banner, each side will provide you with sweet, juicy drama and fantastic lulz without any input from yourself. If that's the case, just sit back and enjoy the show. And you never know; your input may accidentally kill the lulz! And we certainly don't want that.
Be subtle
You don't want to be an "obvious troll is obvious" do you? Avoid abusing memes and bad grammar. "Pick a side" and play as if you are so rooted in that side you'll do anything for it. Using logical fallacies such as the straw man and red herring tend to work best in situations such as these, I have found. Pick a specific target, and stay with it: too many targets, and you risk detection. And if you do feel you're close to being detected, immediately stop and leave, as the drama will most certainly continue without you.
Do not announce that you are a troll
Probably the best advice a non-troll like I can give. Announcing that you've been "trolling this entire time" does not make you a "winner" or some similar variant. Rather, it immediately makes you fool, as everyone will automatically assume (regardless of how true or false it is) that you are some immature little baby that can't accept when people have been beating you in debates or that you're point of view has been wrong the entire time. Trust me, nothing sucks like having the tables turned on you, but don't make it worse if they do.
Better yet, don't guarantee that the tables turn in the first place by announcing your awesome troll status.
5) Admins
End the special treatment if the drama becomes too much
Even though it should never have been in the first place, its better to save face and end the source of drama as fast as possible. Trust me, despite what some will claim, you didn't "cave in" by doing this. Instead, you actually realized this was a bad idea and you corrected it.
Don't give special treatment in the first place
Seriously. Its not just unfair. Many people's interest are so wide and so varied that you are bound to receive negativity no matter how benign you think the subject matter retrieving special treatment is. It is ultimately not worth the headaches and drama that always come with subculture-specific special treatment, so why do it in the first place?
Do not do it on purpose
If you are doing just so you can see the drama unfold, then FUCK YOU. First, it is terrible for whatever business or means your site keeps itself afloat with. Secondly, really? Are you so conceited or jaded that you have to derive pleasure from the misery of others? Exclusive to FA, we aren't a trolling website like Encyclopedia Dramatica. Despite how easy it is to generate furry drama, this is not the point of the site, and it ultimately hurts YOU, THE SITE, and YOUR REPUTATION...all for a few cheap laughs.
6) The Artist
Report any extreme harassment, but otherwise ignore it
Honestly, most of the time, how whatever you created attained its infamous status is not your fault, yet you will inevitably be dragged into the ensuing drama anyway. While unfortunate, your best bet is not to pay it any heed. Only acknowledge it if its out of hand or specific sources are really causing trouble, then take the appropriate action to correct such moments.
Do not do it on purpose
Applies very much the same way as it does for Admins
If you must respond, do not play the victim, yet don't be an ass either.
You will get absolutely no sympathy from anyone if respond melodramatically or assholishly over the course of the developing drama. If you do, the best you'll get is the worst of the Bronies groupset backing you up, and this will further tarnish your reputation on top of what your responses have done by themselves. The worst: everyone will become convinced that you are the twat that the Anti-Ponies claim you are, and you can basically kiss a good chunk of your business goodbye. Honestly, the best way to respond is to the few comments the actually constructively critique, give unbiased praise to, or ask unbiased questions about your work. All else should be noise to you.
I want to reiterate that this is NOT brony/anti-pony specific. They are just examples I used for the for the otherwise general groups that can be involved in such similar drama
As fandoms, we'd all be better off if drama just stopped existing. This is impossible for a variety of reasons, but at the very least we can minimize what drama does occur.
And, again, this is all just advice. As much as I would love if everyone took this too heart and followed it, I realize that words are words, and this is advice is not needed for many and unnecessary for a few.
As for the specific issue that is the FA banner at times, I advocate that there be no more special weeks. None. The banner should just be there to showcase artists and, at the VERY MOST, tell us what season and/or holiday we happen to find ourselves in. We've seen what special weeks can do hear, and it is just ridiculous. For everyone's sake, FA staff, no more. Let the subcultures celebrate amongst themselves.
ANYWAY, I'm off to finally give my body the rest it needs. Feel free and please comment and debate my points and advice below. Askir out.
That said, we birds need more love.
And I'm totally behind more bird love around here.