Dr Brandon Harris
@drbrandonharris.bsky.social
1.7K followers 500 following 35 posts
Husband + cat dad + Prof in AL studying: twitch, gaming, platforms, media industries, labor, & content creators one unhinged study at a time.
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drbrandonharris.bsky.social
We’re all still waiting for ICA submission decisions, but a reminder that ICA GSD is hosting onsite precon on toxic masc in gaming & media industries June 12. Submissions due Feb 8th icagames.org/2025preconfe...
Flyer for International Communication Association preconference, “Draining the Swamp: Toxic Masculinity as a Threat to the Media Industries and Beyond”
When:  June 12, 2025
Where: Denver, CO
Questions and submissions: icagameprecon2025@gmail
Submissions due Feb 8th
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
@chefboibex.bsky.social Hi Bex, are you planning on writing a story about how French Kick streamers tortured Pormanov to death while live? If so, I can speak to how platform governance and terms of service agreements can allow this behavior in the first place. @bloggeronpole.bsky.social rec'd you
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
I'll be discussing the state of political discourse on Twitch. Creators develop on- and offline harassment campaigns or "smear" attacks on rivals. I use "cycles of antagonism" to explain the cyclical nature of smear campaigns
lnkd.in/gc6Jrd_J
3pm EST/12pm PST- VOD later
Model of "Cycles of Antagonism", in which "Creator A" and "Creator B" participate in never-ending antagonistic skirmishes. These often take the form of Creator A making a claim about Creator B in their content, then Creator B replies to these claims in content of their own. Since both creators are paid for content creation, these cycles of antagonism are likely to continue forever until external measures are taken- like a platform banning one of the creators, or one of the creators deciding to retire.
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Headed to #ICA25, excited to share 2 presentations w/ yall at the #DebatingCreatorCulture precon— talking how anon hate creators and NIL athletes do influencer work. Looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones, say hi 👋🏻
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drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Was recently quoted in CNN on the resurgence of the r-word as a slur by figures like Joe Rogan, Musk, and Ye. Cruelty is good for business in the creator economy but audiences need to reject it to make it less profitable

lnkd.in/g2Um_b6J

Thanks Scottie Andrew!
Screenshot from article Screenshot from article Screenshot from article Screenshot from article
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Me and @bowmanspartan.bsky.social wrote on trad'l sports franchises experimenting w/ esports & gaming content for the Beyond Sports Initiative. icir.ua.edu/bsi/ NFL channel incorporated athletes to create new entertainment genre, NBA made esports tourneys but struggled for viewership
Beyond Sports Initiative - Institute for Communication and Information Research | The University of Alabama
Part of the University of Alabama
icir.ua.edu
Reposted by Dr Brandon Harris
bloggeronpole.bsky.social
In a new paper for Convergence, @pamogranite.bsky.social & I examine the challenges Instagram & TikTok creators at risk of de-platforming face when holding onto communities, arguing that these spaces' turn towards entertainment & selling is producing fatigue: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
we talking about twitch again in games and culture class! teaching some of my favorite readings and doing twitch field trips in class... last week we found a musician playing guitar, class asked me to request "mr brightside" in chat, streamer said we had poor taste... poggers
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Excited to share ongoing work w/ The University of Alabama College of Communication & Information Sciences family this Friday. I'll present some current research on inconsistent platform governance on Twitch and how that benefits androcentric hegemony in gaming and esports communities.
Infographic - 
Event name: Research Luncheon
Who: Dr. Jack Lipei Tang & Dr. Brandon Harris
When: March 21, 2025, 11 AM - 12 PM
Where: Ph 466 or Zoom
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
@tsingleton.bsky.social so great to connect with you at IACS this weekend!
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Headed to Chicago for the @IACSacademic conference, presenting ongoing work on professional sports leagues that are experimenting with esports and content creation w/coauthor @bowmanspartan.bsky.social — see my Beyond Sports Institute folks soon 🙌🏼
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
5 more days to submit to the @icagames.bsky.social precon on toxic masculinity! All disciplines are welcome because this is a problem that affects all of us, not just the games industry. Join us :) icagames.org/2025preconfe...
ICA Game Studies 2025 Preconference: Draining the Swamp: Toxic Masculinity as A Threat to The Media Industries and Beyond – ICA Game Studies
icagames.org
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Roses are red, violets are blue, plz keep applying to our tox masc precon In June!

Submissions due Feb 28, all disciplines & fields encouraged to submit and join our conversation on how tox masc is a threat to the media industries and beyond

icagames.org/2025preconfe...
a blackboard with red hearts and the words happy valentine 's day on it
ALT: a blackboard with red hearts and the words happy valentine 's day on it
media.tenor.com
Reposted by Dr Brandon Harris
tomdivon.bsky.social
New publication! 🚨 Together with my brill team (@taylorannabell.bsky.social & @cgoanta.bsky.social), we explore how parents turn kids into commodities on TikTok, diving into the nuances of *kidfluencers* & raising legal questions about platform governance. See🧵 journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1...
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Thrilled to be included in this list of finalists from @djeditorialteam in 2024. Go check out @MaxwellFoxman @william_partin and I's article on Twitch streamers doing news work on the platform - innovation and collapsing boundaries while producing news for fans

doi.org/10.1080/2167...
Digital journalism names 8 articles as finalists for outstanding articles of the year.
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
We’re all still waiting for ICA submission decisions, but a reminder that ICA GSD is hosting onsite precon on toxic masc in gaming & media industries June 12. Submissions due Feb 8th icagames.org/2025preconfe...
Flyer for International Communication Association preconference, “Draining the Swamp: Toxic Masculinity as a Threat to the Media Industries and Beyond”
When:  June 12, 2025
Where: Denver, CO
Questions and submissions: icagameprecon2025@gmail
Submissions due Feb 8th
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Very excited for my games & media course this semester! Lots of exciting readings, guest speakers, activities, playing games, and thinking about how games are made/what they mean and represent in our culture. Hope my students are ready for me to absolutely nerd out on this every week
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Watching the beast games show on Amazon and I think Jimmy has finally transformed/emerged into a villain.. clip of him screaming “find you someone money can’t buy” while forcing ppl to compete for 5mil in his own squid games seems like he’s taken a turn for the worst
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Get your “Netflix is crashing, they bad at livestreaming” memes ready for the Beyoncé halftime show with a football game sandwiched around it next week
a woman wearing a cowboy carter sash rides a horse
Alt: Beyoncé wearing a cowboy carter sash rides a horse, artwork from the cowboy carter album
media.tenor.com
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
I didn't think I would get to include "Twitch thot" in my manuscript but here we are... misogyny in streaming isn't v. creative. You can swap "topless meta" or "hot tub meta" and achieve the same article today
www.polygon.com/2018/6/27/17...
Streamer Amouranth is latest example of ‘Twitch thot’ harassment problem
Amouranth says she’s suffered harassment, doxing threats
www.polygon.com
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Almost 20 years of unsupervised internet culture straight to the dome and look at me now…
Screenshot of historic “Charlie the Unicorn” video with the three unicorns.
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Yes!! Love when my friends publish amazing things, congrats on publication day, yall have been working on this for a while and it’s out in the world now!
jessrauchberg.bsky.social
my latest with @jessmaddox.bsky.social is out this morning in @femmediastudies.bsky.social! We propose influencer snark as a feminist media practice to address concerns of credibility, authenticity, and representation in the influencer industry.

please share!!!

www.tandfonline.com/eprint/XZSZD...
The abstract for Jess and Jess's article on influencer snark
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
safety.twitch.tv/s/article/An...

More inconsistent governance from twitch, by banning streamers from using Zionist as personal critique, while allowing streamers to critique the political movement & policies… destiny, Ethan Klein, asmongold organizing off platform complaint campaigns to censor all
Twitch policy update: in line with that approach, starting today, using the term “Zionist” to attack or demean another individual or group of people on the basis of their background or religious belief against our rules. We recognize that “Zionist” and “Zionism” also refer to a political movement. Using the term to refer to the political movement, whether in a supportive or critical way, does not violate our hateful conduct policy”
drbrandonharris.bsky.social
Starting so soon! Making some coffee now 🙌🏼
jessrauchberg.bsky.social
can't wait to be in conversation with @producing2power.bsky.social, @brookeerinduffy.bsky.social, and Michelle Beaver tomorrow!! we're gonna talk about all things creator studies. Link to register below ⤵️
zoeglatt.bsky.social
Curious about the creator economy? Join us tomorrow for our first #CCSNChats event! Industry insight meets academic expertise in a virtual roundtable ❤️‍🔥

Book your ticket HERE: www.eventbrite.com/e/ccsn-chats...