CCT 300: Critical Analysis of Media

1. CCT 300:Critical Analysis of Media Class 6: Reinventing Comics: Economics of Comic Genres and Subgenres

2. Administrivia • Do note - media genre research due next week • Groups for final assignment to be set next week – groups must be in same lab

3. Rise and Fall of the Hit • Mass media having trouble maintaining mass market domination • Example in in music - NSYNC as last “hit”? Somewhat - 50 Cent vs. Kanye West proved still some value in “hit” model, and the fact we know Madonna is divorcing suggests there’s still some saliency in mass hit model

4. The Long Tail • New media - digital distribution is no longer a zero-sum game • Potential for wide access to all kinds of media product • Niches and word of mouth drive content sales and production • Result - a lot of potential niche success stories, but less “hits” and less traditional economic success • Examples?

5. Adaptation • Mass media has already begun to adopt to this - e.g. – highly fertilized “grassroots” campaigns • Buzz within valuable demographics might be worth as much or more than mass but undifferentiated audience • Examples?

6. Reinventing Comics • 9 basic elements • 3 components focused on potential of digital delivery

7. Reinventing Comics (1): Creation as Art • Comics as Literature • Comies as Art • Creators’ Rights

8. Comics as Literature/Art • Comics can be both literature and art if properly done • Many of you have already discovered this in writing the paper • Six steps in UC – building a foundation for something more than surface understanding as driving force

9. Comics as Literature • Focus on complex narrative • More complex than simple serialized strip or simple webcomic - a full story from beginning to end (or a serialized strip that takes months/years to tell story…) • Examples?

10. Comics as Art • Comics as visual narrative – complexity of narrative extends to area • Japanese influence - a range of interesting non-action transitions directly supporting artistic storytelling

11. Creators’ Rights • Like other media, similar battles between creators/publishers (examples?) • Creator concerns for ownership and control, fair share of profit • Increasing interest in maintaining fair access and compensation for talent – away from “studio” work for hire • Challenges?

12. Reinventing Comics (2): Industry and Audience • Industry Innovation • Public Perception • Institutional Scrutiny

13. Innovation in Industry • Creators’ rights require innovation in industry model - and sometimes drive it • Simple model of “getting into the business” - photocopy a drawing and sell it yourself - trite but true - but it’s more complicated in practice

14. Steps in Traditional Publishing • Author • Publisher • Accounting • Marketing • Printing • Distribution • Warehousing • Retail • Transportation among above

15. Creation and Distribution… • Many will sacrifice control over non-creative tasks to gain broader market • Often a good idea – but can be a trap – why?

16. Public Perception • Comics as kid-lit – what effect does stereotype have? • Traditional model of production creates vicious cycle around stereotype – perception of comics as kid lit influences what is and is not produced which reinforces perception

17. Comics and Censorship • US history - tainted by censors who lamented the debasement of culture, perversion of youth - pretty much everything • Ironically, drove comics underground where they became even more debased (e.g., R. Crumb and other alt comics of 60s) • Driven by perception - if comics were seen as valued art, would this happen?

18. Reinventing Comics (3): Audience/Creator Diversity • Gender Balance • Minority Representation • Diversity of Genre

19. Comics and Gender • Traditionally creators and audience were male - leading to particular stereotypes of both genders • Creators have been female - but still expected to follow expectations of audience • To what effect? • Alternatives?

20. Minority Comics • Stereotypical audience, and many creators - white, male, straight, Christian, young, physically able, middle class • Similar to gender issues – stereotype can be hard to break through • To what effect? • Alternatives?

21. Diversity of Genre • Superhero domination of shelf space via perception, creation and audience - a vicious cycle • Non-traditional graphic novels - breaks through ideas of what a comic “must be” • Required breaking through comic store as core distribution channel

22. Reinventing Comics (4): Digitization and the Internet • Digital Production • Digital Delivery • Digital Comics

23. Digitization • Production of comics digitally - including McCloud’s two last books, but others as well • Recalling Manovich on this – how does digitization influence the art form?

24. Digital Delivery • Like other media, removes steps in production process - ideally creating more direct consumer/producer links and lowering costs of system • Middlemen role - still useful - why?

25. Micropayments • Addendum to Reinventing Comics as technology improved to make it plausible • General principle re: chains of distribution - consumer fairness (rel. to creative rights) but audience fairness as well - rights to sample, test and pay fair prices

26. Micropayments (2) • Consumer obtains product from source (whatever source may be) • Consumer values product • Consumer wishes to compensate producer directly - but how? • Still an open problem - why?

27. Digital Comics • Can include immersive and interactive environments • Not as bound to page requirements (e.g., I Can’t Stop Thinking scrolling example) • May even include games (e.g. Myst as interactive picture-dependent webcomic?) • Can even be more traditionally framed comics simply distributed via web • Diversity of genres, explosion of options (http://www.thewebcomiclist.com/)

28. Related Direction: Flash-based Animation • Why Flash? • What does Flash contribute to visual and experiential effect of animation? • Why is it still comical in nature?

29. Examples • Weebl’s Stuff/Weebl & Bob • Homestar Runner • Alternative financing strategies used – free content supported by merchandise • Niche media that may not work in mass culture (e.g., Quizno’s use of Spongemonkeys) • Other examples?

30. Next week… • Formation of groups - be in the right lab! • Work time on comic creation, finishing off media genre analysis, etc.