77 Nerdfighteria: A Civic and Politicized Fandom
Mara Di Persio
John and Hank Green are widely known as successful and respected authors, vloggers, educators, and philanthropists. After their YouTube channel accumulated a significant number of subscribers and a dedicated following, the brothers went on to pursue other endeavors beyond the video platform. Their shared interests in traditionally nerdy pursuits led to the brothers dubbing their fanbase Nerdfighters, who constitute the fandom of Nerdfighteria. While the name might suggest a disdain towards nerds and all things related, this community is precisely the opposite. Nerdfighteria is an especially interesting case because John and Hank Green have leveraged the fanbase toward charitable pursuits outside of their original objects of affection. The current study aims to investigate Nerdfighteria’s use of memes on X.com to fight against various corporations who play major roles in the accessibility of tuberculosis treatments and equipment. In doing so, the emotional and psychological factors that have caused the fandom to become so politicized and civically engaged will be revealed.
The origins of the Nerdfighteria fandom can be traced back to 2007, when John and Hank Green developed a project called Brotherhood 2.0 on YouTube. The brothers decided to communicate with each other exclusively through videos addressed to each other, which were also posted online for others to watch (WBUR, 2015). As the channel started to amass a following, the Greens started posting a wide variety of content that established their image as “nerdy” or “goofy.” The brothers doled out challenges to each other if they accidentally exceeded the time limits on their videos or communicated through means aside from YouTube, such as waxing their chins or spending a full day in Target. As a fourteen-year-old, I vividly remember laughing to the point of tears while watching John cover his face in sharpie or peanut butter in Q&A videos. Hank wrote and played the instrumentals for original songs about other fan-objects like the Harry Potter series, including one called Accio Deathly Hallows that went viral (WBUR, 2015). After a while, they decided to establish their fanbase as the Nerdfighters, who “… instead of being made out of, like, bones and skin and tissue [are] made entirely of awesome” (vlogbrothers, 2009).
Several years of garnering subscribers and viewership on YouTube led to other opportunities outside of the platform. John and Hank Green went on to co-found VidCon, an annual online video conference celebrating digital content creators, brands, and fans. They also launched other YouTube channels dedicated to sharing free educational videos, including CrashCourse and SciShow. Hank released five studio albums about science and nerd culture, releasing songs like Strange Charm: A Song about Quarks and performing at concerts with various guest bands. He even interviewed United States President Barack Obama as part of a Y