| The old fashioned wall posters that | | | | of new shows and the launch of new |
| featured TV and movie stars along with | | | | seasons. Web fan sites provide the |
| rock bands and that highlighted | | | | opportunity for the TV networks to |
| generations of teen-age bedrooms have | | | | premiere character outlines and even |
| been overshadowed, if not replaced, by | | | | selected promotional clips. This was |
| fan sites on the Internet. There are | | | | previously the exclusive domain of |
| untold tens (hundreds?) of thousands of | | | | morning news programs and entertainment |
| them, ranging from amateur idol worship | | | | news magazines like Entertainment |
| to sophisticated collections of | | | | Tonight. |
| information, photos and often video | | | | In the World of Sports |
| clips of the person, or shows being | | | | In the sports world, there are several |
| lionized. | | | | gaming sites - particularly in the UK - |
| For the most part, fan sites can upload | | | | that invite viewers to upload their |
| photos and small clips from films under | | | | personal videos or photos of pro |
| the "fair use" policy. Generally | | | | athletes or games. The entire sports |
| speaking, fair use is a court-defined | | | | industry, including the gaming segment, |
| copyright principle based on the belief | | | | is TV driven. Some sites pay for this |
| that the public is entitled to freely | | | | content. In this country as in Europe, |
| use portions of copyrighted materials | | | | many of the media savvy pro athletes |
| for purposes of commentary and | | | | have their own websites. Controversial |
| criticism. Short clips or stills of a | | | | pros such as Barry Bonds and Terrell |
| program or film are usually covered | | | | Owens use those sites to respond to |
| under fair use. | | | | negative news coverage; you will often |
| Turning Fandom into Big Business | | | | see their personal blogs quoted in |
| Like most everything else on the | | | | sports stories. Some athletes peddle |
| Internet, people are finding ways to | | | | their own autographed memorabilia over |
| make money from the phenomenon. There | | | | their web sites. |
| are indexes of TV fan sites that are | | | | TV Personalities |
| peppered with advertising. Sites for the | | | | Many teen TV and music personalities |
| soap opera stars provide particularly | | | | also have their own websites and provide |
| potent advertising opportunities. There | | | | (ostensibly) personal updates on their |
| are "official" and unofficial sites | | | | lives, careers, etc. It has changed the |
| dedicated to public figures in the | | | | nature of teen idol worship by bringing |
| entertainment world. Many of the | | | | the entertainer much closer to the fan. |
| unofficial sites have advertising as | | | | These personal "star" sites have proven |
| well, while the official sites often | | | | to be productive publicity and outreach |
| peddle memorabilia. For that matter, so | | | | tools for performers seeking to build a |
| do the unofficial sites. | | | | following among the 12-24 age group. |
| Any Press is Good Press | | | | They have also helped to build ratings |
| What the entertainment industry has | | | | for the TV shows starring these young |
| learned is that, generally, fan sites | | | | actors. |
| have a positive impact on the | | | | is a site dedicated to television and |
| entertainer or entertainers featured. | | | | film industry gossip, news and images. |
| The old adage about negative news | | | | You can find television show clips |
| coverage is "Print anything you want | | | | there, presumably placed with permission |
| about me, just spell my name properly." | | | | from the studio. An important component |
| In other words, any coverage is good | | | | of their content, however, is the index |
| coverage, any exposure is good exposure. | | | | of fan pages for stars of all types - |
| The really short version is "there's no | | | | music, movies, TV. All of this content |
| bad press." | | | | including the fan sites is interlaced |
| For television, this is particularly | | | | with advertising for upcoming movies and |
| important with regard to the premieres | | | | many non-entertainment, online products. |