Joss is (no longer?) Boss

Three layers of cancelling in the Joss Whedon fan community

Datos Bibliográficos

ID7154281
AutoresHadas Gur-Ze’ev (0000-0002-7706-5908, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, autor de correspondencia), Neta Kligler-Vilenchik (0000-0003-3470-3305, Hebrew University of Jerusalem)
Año2025
Volumen25
Número8
Páginas1837-1852
Fecha de publicación2025-11-17
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaFeminist Media Studies (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1468-0777 • E-ISSN: 1471-5902
EditorialInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/14680777.2024.2381244
OpenAlexW4400896500
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas4
Referencias citadas25

Over the past few years, and in the aftermath of the #MeToo movement, increased attention has been devoted to the practice of “cancelling:” the withdrawal of support from someone whose values, action or speech are deemed unacceptable. While social justice advocates see cancelling as a tool advancing equality and inclusion, the pejorative term “cancel culture” has quickly earned a contested status and was used by opposers to warn against a “takeover” of “woke” values. The Joss Whedon fan community, centered around a creator celebrated for advancing feminist agendas in popular culture, is an intriguing site within this broader controversy. The aim of this study is to explore how fans navigate the ambivalences inherent in cancelling a previously-valued creator, and the tensions between promoting liberal values and protecting objects of fandom. Drawing on 20 in-depth interviews with Whedon fans and former fans, we propose a framework conceptualizing cancelling as consisting of three layers: cancelling the emotional relationship towards the creator, cancelling his works, and promoting cancelling as an ideological choice. The framework is helpful in understanding the broader tensions inherent in the practice of cancelling, in the context of culture and gender wars

Aesthetics · Art · Boss · Economic Justice · Fandom · Ideology · Media studies · Pejorative · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Engineering · Gender, Feminism, and Media · History · Law · Media Studies and Communication · Sports, Gender, and Society