FANDOM FLAMES: Fine, Slate, Tumblr IS ancient, you win – The Beat

In an…interesting piece about Sonic the Hedgehog porn, which has to be the very definition of a slow news day thinkpiece, Slate writer Luke Winkie declared Tumblr “ancient”: “Think of the vast reams of erotic Harry Potter slashfic that linger around ancient Tumblr,” he says. I’ll chafe at that insinuation; it’s the same insinuation made all around the Internet, especially on sites like Twitter or TikTok, or wherever Gen Z and younger millennials can be found: Tumblr is an old, dying thing, and not at all important to the current meme or fandom culture. Part of this might be how Tumblr’s management strains to make it seem as popular as humanly possible, like when they rolled out a subscription model before quietly taking down every reference to it on the website as if it was just a summer day fool’s joke gone too far. Ah, Tumblr Post+ you were a dumb idea, with an even dumber execution. Of course, Tumblr isn’t the most popular social media site on the Internet; its humor lies in a niche place, and its fandom culture can be difficult to navigate due to years of both healthy discussions and in-fighting. Still, Tumblr breaks out of…
Read More