Frankie

Also, as an addendum to the above post, just to confirm that next week will see the release of the full project for download. This is an expanded version of what has appeared online - containing every article (12 in total); easy-to-read bullet point analysis of each article; introduction and conclusions to the project as well as full recommendations and suggestions for the club to take on board. The club will today be in receipt of their printed copy and we will also be contacting all websites/forums/fan groups to give them their opportunity to read the report and pass it into their members if considered appropriate.

Gazza - please don't edit the post after admin have edited the title...

All good points Cal...

This is the final article of the STS project. It is perhaps fitting that we have an independent academic view which lends credibility to supporter opinion and shows that we are worth listening to despite the attempts by some to dismiss us. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Professor Atton for his STS contribution and invite critics of online communities to heed his wise words. 'Why Fanzines Matter' Written by Professor Chris Atton - Napier University http://www.gersnetonline.co.uk/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=795&Itemid=1 It is easy, perhaps too easy, to dismiss fanzines. Some consider them as the inconsequent ramblings of obsessive’s with too much time on their hands. Others feel that they are vehicles for wannabe journalists who cannot make it in the professional media. With so many fanzines available on the web, some believe that the level of discussion that takes place on fanzine sites rarely rises above that of the gutter. As an academic I have been researching fanzines for over fifteen years. My work shows fanzines in a very different light. I have read thousands of these amateur publications; I have talked with their editors, their contributors and their readers. And I have learned that fanzines play an extremely important role in the cultural life of a nation. The fanzine deals with popular culture, such as football, music, films, television and genre fiction. By its very nature, popular culture is enjoyed by ordinary people – its audiences do not need any special qualifications to appreciate it. In this respect football fans (for example) are no different from sports journalists. Simon Frith, Professor of Music at Edinburgh University, argues that ‘critics of popular forms need know nothing about such forms except as consumers; their skill is to be able to write about ordinary experience’. In other words, the ‘amateur’ fan has the potential to write about their experiences of football just as expertly and just as knowledgeably as the football commentator. The football fan is just as likely to offer a detailed analysis of a game, of a team or of an individual footballer as is the professional journalist. That fan is likely to draw on a wealth of accumulated knowledge, comparing games that have taken place that same day, comparing games and players historically, examining the local game as well as the European competition. These analyses do not take place in a vacuum, however. Simon Frith goes on to say that music fanzines provide a space where a ‘democratic conversation [takes place] between music lovers, a social celebration of a particular kind of musical attention and commitment’. The same is true of the football fanzine. I would add that the conversation in fanzines is ‘democratic’ because the knowledge and authority on which it is based come not from formal education or professional training but primarily from untutored, amateur enthusiasm. The development of online fanzines makes this conversation even more intense: no longer to contributors have to wait till the next issue to have their opinions read, nor wait till the issue after that to read the reaction of others. The online fanzine is valuable not only to local fans. It enables fans scattered across the country – even the world – to participate freely in this conversation. There are negative aspects to this freedom, of course. Much attention has been paid to the display of sectarianism on some football fan sites, and with good reason: hate speech must not be tolerated. But we must remember that the majority of fans do not engage in this shameful activity. More importantly, perhaps, all the football fanzine editors I have spoken with over the years have expressed their strong antipathy to such speech: they do everything they can to prevent it and nothing to encourage it. Sectarian behaviour comes from a misguided sense of loyalty to a club. That loyalty, however, is more often put to much better use, to create a community. Fanzines are produced by amateurs, by non-professionals. They offer great potential for democratic participation. Rather than media production being the province of elite, centralised organisations and institutions, fanzines offer the possibilities for individuals and groups to create their own media ‘from the periphery’, so to speak. But this is not to think of fanzines merely as cultural aberrations or marginal activities: the football fanzine can be central to an especially powerful form of community. The loyalty of fans to a club does not end when the full-time whistle blows. Their loyalty extends to an interest in how the club is run, the facilities it offers and how it manages its finances, even to the price of the match programme. Football fanzines are often places where the corporatism of the big clubs is critiqued, not out of a sense of disloyalty or disruption, but because fans care passionately about the game. For them money should not be the primary concern (though all will concede its importance). Pinned above my desk I have a clipping from the Celtic fanzine Not the View that captures this attitude perfectly: “The problem with having the club run by financial investors is that when they look at Celtic they see only a bunch of assets which make money. When we as fans see Celtic, however, we see something unique and magical.” Replace ‘Celtic’ with the name of your favourite club and you would probably agree. Views such as this can make for uncomfortable reading in the boardroom. Fans, though, have invested heavily in their chosen club, financially (season tickets do not come cheap) and emotionally (this is their passion after all). They might not be actual shareholders, but they have a very significant stake in what they consider to be ‘their’ club. The fanzine is able to bring together this community of fans who care, the better to give them a collective voice. Whether it gives a voice to individual opinion or to collective commitment, the football fanzine offers fans the opportunity to engage with – and perhaps improve - aspects of popular culture that are central to their lives. (Who was it who said that football’s not a matter of life and death, it’s important than that?) In a world where so many of our experiences seem to be mediated by professional critics, where we seem to be constantly told what to like and how to like it, the fanzine is where ordinary people can engage with popular culture on their own terms, finding their own pleasures for themselves and engaging socially in the cultural life of their country. That is why fanzines matter. About Prof. Chris Atton Chris Atton is Professor of Media and Culture in the School of Arts and Creative Industries at Edinburgh Napier University. His research specialises in alternative media, and he is the author of four books, including Alternative Media (Sage, 2002) and Alternative Journalism (Sage, 2008), as well as over fifty articles and book chapters. He has made special studies of fanzines, popular music journalism and the media of new social movements.

The Umbro deal ran out this summer but the club confirmed to me a couple of weeks back that it has been extended for at least one more year. The Carling deal runs out next summer. It looks to me as if some sort of new joint deal has been agreed for next season. Rumours were Carling were not renewing so perhaps the Emirates/Nike talk have some merit. It is all a bit strange that the club haven't made this known via a media release.

Sums it up perfectly... When the wee man does leave, I shudder to think where we'll get the same kind of hunger and spirit in games. For all his limitations, his sheer commitment means he's always a useful player to have and for opposition teams to worry about. When we talk about Rangers legends, Novo may not be a Cooper or a Laudrup but he's arguably been just as important over his 'Gers career.

Possibly BD. As with lots of things about our club at the moment, it is all a bit strange even if we do OK financially out of it.

Problem is if the JJB deal ended early, I couldn't see Rangers having the money to make the initial investment required into opening and stocking new stores again.

Mate, you are completely correct. The whole situation with regard to the Umbro deal running out this summer (and being extended with no publicity) yet no design available, no pre-order available and no old strips for sale either, is nothing short of crazy for JJB (and to a lesser extent) the club. JJB pay a lot of money to Rangers to supply our strips yet apparently refuse to stock and sell the kind of amounts that would make deal a good one for them. It is bizarre. And, while RFC may be happy as long as the money flows in from the deal, the customer is once again being sold short. Unacceptable doesn't begin to describe this.

Unfortunately there are too many clubs out for their own slice of the pie. That's why the ludicrous situation of knocking back the Sky deal some years ago happened. Shouldn't affect the Old Firm too much if Setanta go to the wall but other teams may struggle.

Said somewhere the other day his deal was up so while he's probably still part of the club, essentially until he signs a new deal, he's been freed...

I suppose he'd be closer to the linesman to claim offside every time the opposition goes up the park.

Wiki is usually pretty reliable but I can't say for sure if these guys have left or not...

Thought we'd have a sticky so we can keep an eye on the ins and outs over the summer. Will also have a section with linked signings. OUT - Christian Dailly (Freed) - Braham Hemdani (Freed - Ross Harvey (Freed) - Willie McLachlan (Freed) - Chris Craig (Freed) - Artur Vaiculis (Freed) - Lee Robinson (Freed) - Georgios Efrem (to Omonia Nicosia) - Dean Furman (to Oldham) - Graeme Smith (to St Johnstone) - Andy Webster (loan to Dundee Utd - 12 months) - Barry Ferguson (to Birmingham City - �£1.25million) - Charlie Adam (to Blackpool - �£500,000) - Alan Gow (to Plymouth Argyle - �£200,000) - Andrius Velicka (loan to Bristol City - 12 months) - Aaron (Loan terminated) IN - Jerome Rothen (from PSG - season long loan) Linked - Zak Whitbread (Bosman from Millwall) - Chris Brunt (�£2million + player from West Brom) - Gil Bluhmannstein (trial)

I love the wee man...

Obviously players can still be judged to a degree. Mendes has shown glimpses of what he can do - especially with a more mobile, defensive player alongside him such as Edu or Thomson. Now, if a good offer came in, then it may be worthy of consideration but we can't stop selling players if we want consistency and quality on the park.

Fine first post B... I'm one of Mendes' critics but I'd certainly agree he (or any other player) deserves more than 12 months at the club to show their worth. The whole team were under incredible pressure this season to win the league for CL access. That pressure is off to a degree next season so hopefully Mendes et al can really start to hit some form and consistency.

These should do the trick mate!

I'll send you a few tomorrow mate but if anyone wants anything in particular, let me know...

I think Adams is talking sh!t somehow...

Well, Jess was a RFC youth player also so I guess he counts...

In fact Van den Broeck is back in Belgium with AGOVV Apeldoorn

Nope but they are both still there IIRC...

Yeah, not sure where he went. Seen him on another site once day a few months back but he's disappeared from there as well... I'm sure Shroomz will be delighted to do more free design work for us...