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Former Professional MLBB Players turned Content Creators Host a Watchparty of an eSports Tournament

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Community: MLBB Community

Platform: YouTube

Form of Participatory Culture: Expression, Circulation, and Affiliation

Mobile Legends eSports Watchparties consists of a streamer/s who gathers the community to come watch a broadcasted event and interact with one another through the chatbox, making it innately a form of Affiliation since it is fundamentally about community-building and shared interests. It also poses as a form of Circulation as it helps distribute existing content (the broadcasted event) and share it with a wider audience who are within their fandom (as content creators) but may not be within the circle of MLBB eSports enthusiasts. Lastly, it could also be an Expression since the streamers intervene with the live broadcast to create an environment where they can express their expertise, reaction, interpretation, commentary, bantering, etc. to elevate or even create a unique viewing experience to an eSports tournament.

Challenges to Participation:

Most content creators often strike deals and sponsorships with big brands or companies, which may sometimes be ethically questionable. In e/Sports, betting is quite a normalized form of gambling, and with most of these viewers being young adolescents to teenagers, it may pose a serious issue about underage exposure to illegal practices.

Additionally, the informal tone of watchparties and the gamer culture of trashtalking may also result in an environment of toxicity and profanity. It can be observed within the thousands of viewers, who can type anything in the chatbox with little restriction and censorship, besides a handful of moderators who try to sustain its civility. The streamer themselves may also express bias and expletives due to shock or excitement, which may not make it an appropriate environment for children.

On the platform side, participation may be a challenge if there are certain requirements to participate. In YouTube, you need an account to type a message in the chatbox. Oftentimes, streamers may also opt to make their chatbox accessible only to subscribers, paywalled, or disable them.

New Media Literacy Skills at Play:

I believe that all 11 New Media Literacy Skills could be observed in watchparties and could be justified in some way (considering the streamer, viewer, and main event elements). Thus, skills that may be more evident include:

Performance: Everyone adopts an MLBB fan identity which helps in interacting within the watchparty.

Simulation: The streamer's ability to create a space that acts as a "virtual theatre" to conduct an online watchparty.

Appropriation: The streamer's ability to elevate and make a unique and informal style of the eSports viewing experience

Multitasking: The viewer's ability to scan the gameplay on the screen and engage in the chatbox.

Collective Intelligence: Everyone's ability to draw their knowledge of a game and form collective constructive reactions/critique of a moment within the event

Networking: Everyone's ability to recap past games/series

Negotiation: Everyone's ability to interact with one another as fans of MLBB; beyond ethnicity, gender, age, etc.

Is it meaningful participation?

Definitely. I believe watchparties are the best example of participatory culture in action because the participation is live and there is little delay for interaction. It provides an avenue for the MLBB community to gather and creators to practice community-building despite proximal barriers. It also leaves plenty of space for creativity, as is evident with the attached screenshot of a watchparty with an entire graphical interface and set design for the stream.

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Backloggd

Type of participatory culture: Circulations

A website/community that functions similarly to Letterboxd, but instead is centered around video games. While reviews, as a feature, is prominent, Backloggd also functions as a website for detailed journaling, and curating collections. For the new literacy skills involved, negotiation is perhaps the highlight of Backloggd's community, as various reviews highlight the differences not only of opinions but also the backgrounds of individuals that use the site. However, Backloggd, as a website, is still rather small and niche despite its success, in contrast to other reviewing sites.

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Filipino TikTok Medical Content Creators

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Filipino TikTok Medical Content Creators

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Community: Filipino Medical Content Creators

Platform: TikTok

Type of Participatory Culture: Expressions & Collaborative Problem-Solving

Medical Content Creators on TikTok are the influencers or content creators that create videos around medical-related topics like general health, medical and health myths, sexual health, etc. This Participatory Culture consists of famous Filipino creators like Arshiethromycin, Dr. Killimanguru, Dr. Krizzle Luna, etc.

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A Post from Subtle Clown Traits Using Tiktok Content/Memes

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Subtle Clown Traits Community on Facebook

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Subtle Clown Traits Community on Facebook

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Community Name: Subtle Clown Traits
Platform: Facebook

Type of Participatory Culture: Expressions & Circulations

Subtle Clown Traits (SCT) is a Facebook group where users share memes, stories, and jokes about being a "clown" in relationships, friendships, and life. The term "clown" refers to someone hoping for something unrealistic, ignoring red flags, or making foolish decisions in love and life. It thrives on humor and relatability, where people laugh at their own mistakes, share stories of being “played,” and support each other through lighthearted banter.

Members bond over their shared "clown moments"—whether it's waiting for a text back or believing mixed signals.

Users share memes, TikTok clips, and personal anecdotes about getting ghosted, falling for someone unavailable, or overanalyzing texts.

Users give relationship advice and emotional support in the comments, helping each other navigate love life struggles.

New Media Literacy Skills

Users create, remix, and evolve memes over time

Members use humor as a coping mechanism for heartbreak and social struggles.

Discussions about when jokes cross the line into toxic mindsets (e.g., normalizing unhealthy relationships).

Members interact through polls, reaction challenges, and debates over clown-worthy situations.

Challenges to Participation

Toxic Humor & Normalization of "Clown" Behavior – Some jokes might unintentionally encourage unhealthy relationship habits.

Oversharing & Privacy Issues – People sometimes post personal situations that could lead to public embarrassment.

Trolling & Harassment – Some members might not respect boundaries, leading to mean-spirited comments.

Success Story of Meaningful Participation

Many members say laughing at their own "clown moments" helped them move on from toxic relationships and gain self-awareness.

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Community Name:

Kpop Twt

Type of Participatory Culture: Affiliation

Platform: X (Twitter)

Fan culture in Kpop is highly participatory in terms of concert attendance, organizing streaming parties, fan art creation and more. The most interesting aspect of this fan culture is the Selca Day where fans post pictures of themselves to celebrate their favorite idols. This is usually done on a specific day every month of the year.