Practicum post #3 - Jen

Tomorrow i am giving my presentation on virtual communities with rebecca, whose topic was special interest groups. While thinking about the relationship between the two groups, media fandom and special interest groups, I came to the conclusion that these two places are both sources for people to express their opinions and feelings to people that they know will understand what they are talking about. They are both really similar because they are targeted at a specific show/movie or hobby/interest. People wouldn't just join the community board for it if they didn't have knowledge on the topic. Thus, many of the people writing on these boards are 'experts' on the subject. In my case of the 90210 message board, people are true die-hard fans of and can answer and recall any past incident that ever occurred on the show. I think that these type of community boards whether it be based on a show or hobby really allow people to lend out their knowledge on something that normally may seem useless. I've started to really enjoy writing on the message board because I think it gives you a sense of fulfillment in a way. It allows the people to use what they know and talk about it in a very serious way that otherwise would normally not be discussed. I think the people writing on the boards each day see this as a positive outlet where they know that they'll never be wrong, because frankly, it's all based on your opinions and how you want to share them.

The discussion question for tomorrow is: Do you think virtual communities really bring people closer together? Why or why not?