mix, match and catch

There are so many different strands of thought regarding “dissent”, essentially a critique of society, think back to old books like Vance Packard and Rachel Carson that our parents may have read, or even more profoundly the type of criticism of a David Reisman or Erich Fromm to realize that dissent itself is part of pop culture. The dissent industry, of which new platforms like Facebook contribute mightily to this sense of participation and activism.

The energy put into the critique and the ensuing result show much discrepancy, perhaps because there are so many proposals to resolve conflicts over inequality, racism, misogyny that we end up with an unintentional reinforcing of those same tendencies, which drive further efforts of activism. Because the problems are greater than the total of the elements, they defy rational theories and we are left fencing off against, and parrying blows at the symptoms, which themselves are hideously clothed in a stew of religion,tribalism, ideology and messianism of both the secular and faith based. Still, reason is the only viable instrument in the toolbox. Remix-videos are the most recent manifestation of dissent, and in the cases of some, a profound articulation squarely within the context of pop culture. In a sense, its an attack against pop culture, which basically, is a commercial monster, pervasive,and what critics like Donald Kuspit have termed the “industrial entertainment complex” where almost anything can be commodified and turned into kitsch. And from kitsch its a short hop skip and jump to perversion….

Henry Jenkins: Your selections here suggest a strong over-lap between fan vidding and political remix. Can you tell us something of the relationship which has emerged between the two DIY video communities?

Jonathan McIntosh: The overlap in my curated examples is definitely intentional on my part, though I’m not sure how much of a self-conscious relationship there is between the two genres. I can say little about the impact of political remix on vidding but I can detail the impact of vidding on political remix work. Many of my favorite political remix videos are created by people from a wide range of DIY communities who felt inspired or compelled to make one (or several) remixes addressing a political/social issue. I think many of these people creating remixes with a critical edge would not necessarily describe themselves or their remixes as being part of the political genre….

Read More: http://www.politicalremixvideo.com/2010/11/18/chevron-we-agree-respect-the-chevron-way/ Jenkins:The older American folk culture was built on borrowings from mother countries; the modern mass media builds upon borrowings from folk culture; the new convergence culture will be built on borrowings from various media conglomerates.

…There are of course, a relatively small group of remixers who primarily do political work, and I am one of them. Unfortunately, within this self-identified group I still find some resistance to include vidding as a legitimate part of the political/critical remix tradition.


From my point of view it seems clear that vidding is not only an integral part of remix history but vidding practice can also can teach political remixers an enormous amount on a wide range of practices and techniques. Through my engagement with vids and vidders I have gained invaluable insights about the fannish use of narratives and pop culture characters in remix videos. When I look at vidding I see as a core element the idea that it is possible to simultaneously enjoy and love a television show while also being critical of aspects of the show’s writing, characters, story arc, embedded messages etc….

John Heartfield. Read More:http://ninevolts.pbworks.com/w/page/10102023/collage

…Most people engage with mass media stories in a subtle and complex way – we both love it and are critical of it. I’m slightly embarrassed to admit this now but I didn’t really understand this tension very well before I learned about vidding. I think that part of the resistance to vidding I encounter from other political remixers might be related to this point. They may be uncomfortable with the fannish and or sympathetic relationship that vidders have to their source because self-conscious political remixers often have a relationship of ridicule or animosity to their source.

Political remix video can be a blunt tool that uses ridicule as a way to expose hypocrisy, illuminate tropes, and talk back to power – but it is a little harder to use the form in more subtle ways (especially if you still want to get the lolz). Learning about vidding really gave me permission to embrace my fannish-side as a political remixer instead of hiding or being ashamed of it.Read More:http://henryjenkins.org/2010/11/diy_video_2010_political_remix_1.html

Read More: http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2011/11/05/rex-murphy-forget-wall-street-occupy-hollywood/ Rex Murphy:Alas, Kim and her clan are only emblems of a wider, deeper and equally deplorable phenomenon. Want to really talk excess rewards and ridiculous spending? Go find James Cameron. Avatar, the puerile 3-D eco-fairytale, was his latest and most expensive cinematic trinket, approaching $500-million to make, according to some estimates. Half a billion dollars — that’s billion with a B — to make a three-hour distraction. Occupy James Cameron for epic excess and pointless expenditure in a world of want and woe. Speaking of which, is there not something appalling about paying $30-million to Jim Carrey to shriek at a camera while screwing up his face for a couple of days? Or $20-million to Cameron Diaz to chirp and smile for an hour. Or millions to Megan Fox for wearing tight jeans. Why then is there not an Occupy Hollywood movement twice


urious and twice as righteous as the Wall Street one? ... And occupy Lady Gaga while you’re at it. The sphere of outrages, as you can see, is potentially limitless: pseudo-literature, art auctions, sports stars. Limiting these delightful protests to the banal and obvious target of Wall Street is a failure of imagination and initiative. Greed has more high class venues and more outrageous exemplars by far.

ADDENDUM:

I should conclude by conceding that some of this legal discussion will ultimately prove moot. As Professor Hetcher’s article implies, studios and other corporate bodies largely understand that suing fan creators is counterintuitive and ultimately bad for business. My understanding is that – irrespective of what the law says – great strides are being made towards creating a situation where fan creators are more strongly embraced and legitimized by IP owners. As Jeff Gomez states, we will soon be living in a world where the best fan fiction is folded into the existing story canon. Note: If the idea of fan created content excites you, check out Scott Walker’s Runes of Gallidon – a sandbox fantasy world that is entirely created by fan participants.Read More:http://transmythology.com/2010/11/26/fan-fiction-remix-culture-and-social-norms-steven-a-hetcher/

…Again, we can blame the studios all we want. But they’ve learned from hard experience that for the most part, if they don’t play to our prejudices, we simply won’t go see their movie. Read more: 5 Old-Timey Prejudices That Still Show Up in Every Movie | Cracked.com http://www.cracked.com/article_19549_5-old-timey-prejudices-that-still-show-up-in-every-movie_p2.html#ixzz1eB6DR6rr

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