Game of Tweets

As well as posting content on the Game of Thrones convergence Facebook group, I have also been regularly updating my Twitter account with thoughts, reviews, and random content relating to the program. I found that by posting on Twitter and ‘following’ other Game of Thrones related accounts, I was able to interact directly with fans across the globe and grasp a better understanding of the viewership.

Posted below are some examples (click on the image to enlarge):

Culture Jamming

The convergence of online technologies has changed the “way we create, consume, learn and interact with each other” (Jenkins, 2006).

The purpose of this blog is to explore the way in which we experience, consume, and interpret new technologies in the 21st century, using Game of Thrones as an example. Watching a television program is no longer a personal experience shared by families and friend –  it is a global event, experienced simultaneously by millions within the online community. Each television series has developed its own online presence, and as soon as the newest episode has finished airing, there are guaranteed to be hundreds of thousands of reviews, blog posts, video reactions, and remixes posted online. Thanks to the convenience and immediacy of Twitter, people in the online community will often discuss the episode and make predictions while the program is still airing.

THE FACEBOOK GROUP

I have decided to use social networking as a means to explore this topic, as it allows for an open flow of communication and combines many forms of media. I have created and maintained a Facebook group over the last 5 weeks that has acted as venue for my friends and I to experience the series together. The group has collected many videos, images, surveys, and website links related to Game of Thrones, as well as prompting healthy discussion about the series.

The post below is the first I posted in the group, requesting that members participate in uploading content:

As you can see, the second reply I received was a YouTube link for a fan-made video that combines aspects Game of Thrones and Star Wars.  This appropriation of the two texts is a form of ‘culture jamming’, combining two forms of mass media for a satirical purpose. It also further proves the popularity of Game of Thrones, as the hype and love surrounding the series is being compared to the monolithic Star Wars.

There were many other examples of images and video that satirised and subverted the material that were uploaded to my Facebook group. See  results below:

 

The video below shows a Sydney University that rigged its bell to play the Game of Thrones theme song.

Some members linked YouTube videos to the Facebook group that were animated parodies of the series.

Others linked podcasts and reviews of the program:

INTERNET MEMES

“A meme is a concept, catchphrase or byword that spreads from person to person” (Schubert, 2003) Internet memes are ideas – usually expressed as images – that  respond to pop culture in an often humourous manner.

Game of Thrones is no exception. There have been hundreds of memes uploaded to my Facebook group that satirise Thrones and other pop culture phenomenons, ranging from Iron Man to World of Warcraft.

References

• Henry, Jenkins (2006), Convergence Culture, New York University Press, New York
• Schubert, Karen (2003), Bazaar Goes Bizarre, USA Today. Retrieved 2007-07-05.).

Technological Convergence

Peretti, as cited in Politics, Products and Markets: Exploring Political Consumerism Past and Present, describes convergence as being “the morphing of devices (mobile phones, computers, televisions, etc.) as they become multi-purpose conduits for a range of activities involving digital media” (Peretti, 2004).

Technological convergence has blurred the lines between television and the internet; never in the history of entertainment has a television series – or any form of entertainment – been so readily available to the consumer. The program can be viewed on HBO, streamed directly to your television through Netflix, downloaded through iTunes, live streamed from sites such as QuickStream and VipBox, and, most controversially, illegally downloaded through various torrenting websites. Once the user has some form of the series, it can be linked and streamed through several devices at once (such as laptops, iPads, iPods, gaming consoles, and digital televisions).

(Jackson Pollock’s ‘Convergence’, 1952)

Game of Thrones has expanded beyond the small screen to become a global pop culture phenomenon. The online fandom for the series  has exploded over the last 3 years, with the rabid passion of the fans rivaling even those of Star Wars, Star Trek, Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings. The series has millions of dedicated followers on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and HBO’s own website (https://www.hbo.com/game-of-thrones/), allowing for the creation of a global online community that can interact, share, and remix content.

(Note: As I’m writing this, there are 400,000 people talking about Game of Thrones on Facebook)

(Game of Thrones official Twitter, 745,683 followers)

(Game of Thrones official Facebook, 5,987,158 likes)

References

• Peretti, Jonah (with Michelle Mitcheletti) 2004, ‘The Nike Sweatshop Email: Political Consumerism, Internet and Culture Jamming’, Politics, Product and Markets: Exploring Political Consumerism Past and Present, Michelle Mitcheletti, Andreas Follesdal and Dietland Stolle (eds), Transation Publishers, New Jersey, pp. 127-142