Welcome to School of Pop, where curiosity meets pop culture! Join Katrina Monroe, your host and study buddy, as she explores the stories, trends, and cultural shifts that define entertainment.
Each "semester" takes a deep dive into a new "course", featuring interviews with experts, industry professionals, and passionate fans. This season, we're exploring the ethics of fan culture, unpacking the behaviors, boundaries, and unspoken rules that shape modern fandoms.
New episodes drop every Tuesday, so grab your notebooks! Class is in session.
In this season finale, we’re unpacking what it really means to be an “ethical fan” today, and how the system around fandom often makes that harder than it should be. From the rise of the “respectable fan” to the quiet pressures of celebrity worship, this finale takes a look at the systems, marketing and cultural expectations that shape how fans behave — and how they’re perceived. We’re asking tough questions about performance, proximity and power in order to name the dynamics that often go unchecked. This episode isn’t about having the final answers. It’s about making space for a smarter, more grounded kind of fandom. One that sees the full picture, and still chooses to care.
29 Jul 2025
The Perfect Celebrity: A Reflection on Cancel Culture, Projection, and Entitlement
In this solo reflection, we’re exploring how cancel culture, projection, and entitlement shape the modern fan experience.
In this solo reflection, we’re exploring how cancel culture, projection, and entitlement shape the modern fan experience. Is cancel culture really about justice — or just another performance shaped by PR spin, algorithmic outrage, and the need to pick a side? And when fans start filling in the blanks, how much of our disappointment comes from the gap between who we thought an artist was… and who they really are?
From redefining what fan entitlement really looks like to unpacking the industry's role in blurring boundaries, we’re diving into the systems and emotions that fuel these dynamics and what to do with all of it.
Follow School of Pop:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/schoolofpophq/
Follow Fan Fave Media:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fanfavemedia/
15 Jul 2025
Fan vs Fan: Why Are Fandoms So Competitive?
In this episode of School of Pop, we’re diving into the psychology behind competitive fans. From chart battles and fandom feuds to internal hierarchies and stan wars, we're looking to understand: Why do fans get so emotionally invested in wins and losses that don’t directly affect them? Why is sports fandom celebrated while pop fandom is mocked? And what happens when fan spaces become less about community and more about proving you're the best?
Dr. Courtney Plante, a social psychologist and professor at Bishop’s University, joins the class to break it all down. With over a decade of research on media and fan culture, including fandoms like My Little Pony, anime, and furries, Dr. Plante helps us explore what makes competition in fandoms so common, and what it says about how we connect today.
Follow School of Pop:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/schoolofpophq/
Class Notes: https://schoolofpop.substack.com (https://schoolofpop.substack.com/)
Pop Recap: https://poprecap.beehiiv.com (https://poprecap.beehiiv.com/)
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
4 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
5 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 59 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
76
Social presence
90
YouTube
0
Engagement
60
Contact Fan Fave
Guest appearances
Books guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Host of Fan Fave?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
Explore this show Podcast research with Pod Engine
