Fandom, like a lot of the things we talked about this year, brings people together. However obscure you think something is, I am sure there is a group of fans who bond over their love for whatever obscure thing is. One of the reasons for this widespread fandom for endless things is the unlimited access to these things. You can’t be an avid Star Wars fan without seeing or at least hearing of Star Wars. For example, Mary Franklin was fairly removed from the rest of the world in her small fishing town in Alaska, somehow the Star Wars movies found their way to her even in the early 90s. 

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Star-Wars-film-series

Now, if we think about the access to movies, TV shows, books, stories passed along by word of mouth or by word of podcast, imagine how easily and quickly the fandom world grew. The media has an influence on what it throws in front of us which also plays a role in what we become a fan of. However, it does not have complete control. We do still have some free will about what we consume. Then, we can actually use the internet and media to connect with others about what we care about. 

When people are true fans of something, hopefully at a healthy level, lead to people creating some pretty great things. As Henry Jenkins explains, people spend the most time and exert the most energy and even learn the most on things they care about outside of school rather than what they are forced to learn in school. School is important for a baseline, yes. But I think most acts of genius are inspired by fandom.