Lara Kruck

Major: Sports Admin Minor: Public Relations

[gborromeo]

Original Content 1 - explain how audiences connect with each other on social media over their love for a show

There are different levels of fans of shows. There is the average show enjoyer who watches the show for the sake of watching it, and then there are fans who deep dive and break down every tiny detail that could potentially mean something. Those are the fans who post on social media. We saw an uproar of this with shows like Stranger Things. I was in elementary school when the show started, but even people in my grade were obsessed and talking about it. Fans love agreeing with people just as much as they love disagreeing with people. Fan art and fan fiction are common ways people express their love for shows.

[larakruck]

I love how you highlighted the range of fan engagement some fans just enjoy the show, while others build entire online communities through fan art, theories, and debates. Social media becomes the space where that love turns into conversation, creativity, and even conflict, which keeps the fandom alive between episodes or seasons.

[gborromeo]

Original Content 2 - explain how audiences connect with show creators and producers on social media

Fans love contacting the creators and producers when the show turns out to be different than how they pictured the season/episode to end, and they love to contact producers when the show ends. We're living in a time where all shows are being rebooted. Shows are getting remade with different casts, like Dynasty, getting spin-offs, like Stranger Things, or getting continued, like Phineas and Ferb. Fans beg for things like this, and they even pitch their ideas to writers. Some fans can really be wild.

[larakruck]

Audiences use social media to feel heard by creators, especially when they disagree with plot choices or want more content. That direct access gives fans a sense of power even if their ideas aren’t used which explains why so many are vocal, emotional, and persistent online.

[gborromeo]

Original Content 3 - share an example of your favorite television show or movie - how does that show/movie help you work through this project and understand angry fandom?

I started watching RuPaul's Drag Race back in 2017, but I recently fell out of the fandom because I didn't have cable in my dorm to keep it up, and I wasn't motivated to watch on streaming services. I was a huge part of the fanbase. I went to DragCon in 2018 and 2019, and I optimistically waited to see if one would occur in 2020. I have gotten the chance to meet at least 20 drag queens who have competed on the show, and I even got somewhat close with one of the contestants from Canada's Drag Race season 3. (I have spent so much money on this fandom that it really hurt when I fell out of it.)

All that information aside, I have been the angry fan. I am so tired of how predictable the seasons are, and the seasons aren't as cutthroat as they used to be. In my opinion, the last intense season aired back in 2018, and the last good season aired in 2022. Since I have been the angry fan, I know how to relate to an angry fan.

[larakruck]

Your experience with RuPaul’s Drag Race shows how angry fans often come from a place of deep love and investment, which helped me better understand how to write authentic responses for the cancellation project. Knowing how it feels to be disappointed by something you once cared about made it easier to connect with the emotional side of fandom.

[larakruck]

Original Post 3: Appreciation of Web Writing: 

During these last couple of weeks of taking this course, I have learned a lot of valuable information that i will carry on in my career. What I appreciate most about learning web writing is understanding that content isn’t just about what you sa, it’s about how and where you say it. Audience, platform, and context shape every decision. WRIT 318 showed me that writing for Tumblr isn’t the same as writing for Instagram or an internal email. Now I look at everything from tone to formatting and even hashtags differently. I feel more equipped to write content that connects with people because I now think like a web user and a writer. That shift in mindset is something I’ll carry forward in my career.

[larakruck]

Original Post 2: Audiences Connect with Show Creators & Producers: 

There are different ways that audiences connect with show creators and producers. This is mainly through social media. This is because it is used now as a direct line to creators and producers when major announcements are going on, like premieres or cancellations. Fans push for recognition through hashtags, tagging official accounts, and sharing fan art or petitions. When creating my studio responses, I tried to match this dynamic being responsive but also intentional. I noticed how studios that don’t reply come off cold, while those that respond even if they can’t change anything—build goodwill. This back-and-forth is part of digital fan culture, and writing both sides of that exchange helped me see how tone and timing matter in web writing.

[larakruck]

Original Post 1: Connecting with Audience: 

I am connecting with the audience and seeing their reactions to my version of Favorite Show. In my version of Favorite Show, I noticed that the audience is passionate about fantasy worlds with long-running character arcs. I imagined the show being canceled and knew the fans would become upset since they invested lots of time with the characters and cliffhangers over the years. My sample fan responses reflect the heartbreak and urgency; some are sarcastic, express grief, and demand closure. I wanted to connect their reaction to the real online fan cultures to build emotional relationships with shows. Crafting these posts has shown me how language can mirror shared fan experiences and show the impact of narrative storytelling. 

[larakruck]

Dr P Check-in Post:

This week, there are only a couple more things to do till the course is done. Working on the “Favorite Show” cancellation posts made me realize something when it comes to audiences. Like how tricky it is to match the tone for an angry fan audience. How dramatic should the fan language be while sounding realistic and not off-brand? I also have questions about writing for the studio, such as how formal or apologetic the tone should be if we’re trying to calm fans down, but also stand by the decision. Please let me know your guidance on finding that tone balance. Thank you! @npfannen

[sourstarlight-blog]

My Focus On Instagram

I decided to put my focus on Instagram because it's the app I use most often, and the easiest for me to navigate in the context of this assignment. I think analyzing Instagram is easier for me because its engagement metrics (likes, comments, shares) are organized in a way that's easy to interpret, and it's easy to navigate the accounts I follow.

[larakruck]

Focusing on Instagram makes total sense, it’s intuitive to use, and having a platform you’re comfortable with helps you focus more on analyzing strategy than just figuring out how to gather the data.

[sourstarlight-blog]

How I Chose My Accounts

When choosing my Instagram accounts for the data project, I decided to go with "catfluencer" Instagram because I love watching cat videos, and I follow a lot of pet-centric accounts with high follower counts. I chose accounts that I know are well known to large audiences, and whose content I see often on my FYP

(@indoor_outdoor_kat on Instagram)

[larakruck]

Choosing popular “catfluencer” accounts you already enjoy is a smart move; it keeps the project fun while giving you access to strong engagement data and wide-reaching content trends.

[sourstarlight-blog]

What I Learned from Module 2

Collecting and analyzing data in module 2 helped me identify trends in data, like the kinds of content followers of a specific account choose to engage with over others, and what those trends say about content strategy. I've had statistics classes before and they've helped me contextualize these processes better, and help me take a closer look at patterns in data, and understand how to record quantitative and qualitative data points.

[larakruck]

It’s great that your background in statistics is helping you dive deeper into the numbers and the meaning behind them. Your insight into patterns really strengthens your content strategy work!

[webbywordsbygab]

Data Isn’t Just Numbers

One thing I really took away from the Data Analysis Practice is that data isn’t just numbers but a way to see what matters to your audience. At first, I thought likes were just a measure of popularity. But I learned that those numbers are part of a much bigger picture. They reflect strategy, timing, audience needs, and the design choices that either help a post connect or don’t.

That practice helped me slow down and ask better questions: What does this post do visually? Why might someone stop and click? Is the content meaningful for the space it’s in?

In Module 3, I’m carrying that mindset into my data collection.

Here is a reflection question for you: What’s one post you’ve seen recently that had high engagement but maybe didn’t have a strong strategy behind it? What made it “work” anyway?

Let’s talk

[larakruck]

I love how you’re shifting from just counting likes to actually reading what the data says about audience behavior; that mindset makes your analysis so much stronger.

[lovecraftianlatino]

Original Content - Week 3, Post 1

• Share your strategy for tackling a longer project with less stress

I try and make a list of everything that needs to get done. It’s easier to space out the work if I know all the moving parts at the start. Then just try and tackle it little by little.

I’m finding that difficult to do though. I work long shifts at the hospital, 12 hour days. So days I work (like today) can be difficult to squeeze time into. Same goes for days off. Working two days of 12 hours makes the third day I’m off a slog focus wise.

So, just trying to fit in reading and course work as I can.

I’m working on trying to keep my head clear. I found it makes setting aside time to focus easier and helps prevent anxiety. (Something that loves to loiter despite my best efforts to have it get lost.)

[larakruck]

Your strategy of breaking the project into manageable parts while prioritizing mental clarity is brilliant and relatable, especially with such a demanding schedule. Hang in there!

[larakruck]

Original Post 3:  What I Learned From Module 2 Data Analysis Practice Project

I gained many insights in module 2 and the data analysis practice project. I learned the importance of viewing content through a lens with the purpose, user experience, and audience. This module gave me a good foundation in web writing, and it's strategic and backed by data. While completing the project, I saw how the differences in audience engagement reflected how well the posts went. It helped me realize that focusing on the data to see what works better. I will focus on the content and the data of how well posts do this week to help draw conclusions that help guide future content strategy.

[larakruck]

Original Post 2: Narrowing Down Account Choices

So, based on what I said in the first post, I will choose collegiate women's lacrosse teams' Instagrams. The audience I am focusing on is those who support women's sports and concentrate on college athletes. I chose Millersville’s team because I have worked with them and am also on the team, so it's familiar. The next team I picked was two similar programs that post consistently and have good public engagement. Those were the University of Mary Washington Women's Lacrosse and York College's Lacrosse. I will focus on the awards, game day, and community involvement posts, and see what strategies each team uses to get more engagement. I will also look at the posts' consistency, like reels or stories.

[larakruck]

Original Post 1: Digital Space I'm Focused On

The digital platform I will focus on is Instagram for my content analysis project. I will be focusing on specific athletic team accounts like @villelax, Millersville University Women's Lacrosse, @yorkcollegewlax, York College Women's Lacrosse, and @umwlacrosse, University of Mary Washington Women's Lacrosse. Instagram is a platform that is highly used by many athletic programs to share updates, engage with fans, and promote their team. These three team accounts are active with game day content, acknowledgement of teammates, awards, and team photos. I have experience posting on athletic accounts, from running the women's lacrosse team in high school. I'm excited to see how Eat's poststream differs and what that says about their team's strategy. 

[larakruck]

During this week, I will be working on the content analysis project. I am nervous because there are a lot of steps, and I don't want to miss anything. My biggest question so far is about the "How to Write Guide". I would like to have more direction with the format and tone you want. I'd like to know if it should be more manual instruction-based or just the regular blog post we have been doing. Then, moving on to the analysis and guide, do you recommend Google Slides or Canva? I am following your expectations. @npfannen

[amaz1nggrace]

Original Content Post 7 - May 21st

Share an example of a data piece you recorded that surprised you.

An example of data that I collected that surprised me was a comparison that I discovered while looking through the posts of the English and World Languages Instagram Page. While it isn’t surprising that students and staff are available more often on social media once graduation is here, but what is surprising is the amount of engagement that the posts receive from the start of classes versus graduation. The first post shows a “welcome back students to your first day of classes” post, with no comments whatsoever, but a few likes. The second post shows graduation, with a lot more likes, and a couple comments. This raises a question for me as to why is it the opposite for the posts? Why is it less comments for the beginning of school versus the end? My only assumption would be because students have a lot on their plate with classes, assignments, extracurriculars, etc., but at the same time, this would be a great opportunity to encourage classmates on a “welcome back” or “good luck” for their classes. I found this to be an interesting discovery and I’m going to keep this in mind for my project.

[larakruck]

Hey!

This post insightfully highlights the surprising lack of engagement on back-to-school posts compared to graduation, prompting thoughtful reflection on student behavior and timing.