About
About the Blog
Geek Studies presents observations and commentary about traditionally/stereotypically geeky media and culture, with periodic updates on the progress of my dissertation project, an ethnography on geek cultures. Several of my interviewees expressed interest in being kept up to date on where my project goes, and a couple specifically suggested setting up a web site so that people could follow along and offer feedback. I’m lucky that my research interest involves contact with a lot of very smart people, so this blog is my attempt to take their advice to heart.
More recently, I also began conceptualizing this blog as a potential way to integrate online (or “virtual”) ethnography into my research in geek cultures. My research has taken me to a variety of field sites, but venues like fan and professional conventions only exist in space for a few days at a time; on the internet, geek cultures thrive year-round. By following a variety of media and making a contribution of my own, I hope to get a more integrated sense of how to geek out in the 21st century.
As for the blog’s title, most of my interviewees preferred to call themselves “geeks” over “nerds” or “dorks,” so I went with “Geek Studies.” The same words mean different things for different people, however, so this could have just as easily been called “Nerd Studies” or any of a number of other things. The tone here will be respectful to anyone regardless of labels, self-declared or otherwise. All visitors are invited to comment under whatever names they choose, and email addresses are not required to comment.
This blog runs on Wordpress and is built on a heavily modified version of Azeem Azeez’s White as Milk theme.
About the Author
My name is Jason Tocci, and I’m a doctoral candidate in the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. My research and professional interests include visual communication, new media, and culture, with particular attention to video games, graphic design, and comic art. Having completed coursework, I’m working on my dissertation under my advisor, Paul Messaris (expected completion in May, 2008). In addition to Geek Studies, I am also a contributing writer to Shouting Loudly, a media policy and criticism blog maintained by fellow Annenbergers Bill Herman and Lokman Tsui. Originally from the Boston area (and still making the occasional trip back), I currently live in Center City Philadelphia with my Xbox 360, PS2, Gamecube, two Macs, and a ton of comics.
If you have any questions or suggestions that you’d rather send directly than post to comments, feel free to email me at jason@geekstudies.org.
Frequently Asked Questions
People keep asking me two things:
Both of these link to the same post, which seemed worth making more prominent. I update it occasionally as I find relevant new information. I also maintain an entire category now titled “Defining Geekdom.”
