Below is a paper written for a 2024 summer digital studies map, Pixel Puppetters, in conjunction with Jen Shook. The original thrust of the project was to research sock puppets’ malicious digital accounts online that were made under deceptive pretenses. Quickly, however, I narrowed in on a specific case study. Ms. Scribe was a 2004 Harry Potter fan fiction author who was the subject of much controversy and drama. While some fans very early on identified that this controversy was, in fact, manufactured by Ms Scribe to draw attention to herself, the vast majority of the community didn’t uncover this until two years later, in 2006. This monumental reveal, all immortalized online, shook up the community drastically and revamped a lot of underlying tension and unresolved issues. This project became the study of this reckoning, a critical rhetorical inquiry into the discourse surrounding Ms. Scribes and what the conversations about her revealed about the nature of online communities. I was very appreciative of the flexibility that allowed me to pursue such a hyper-niche subject and of the amazing support of my faculty advisor, Jen Shook. The paper that was the end product of this MAP was also published and archived at Digital Grinnell. This paper only scratches the surface of this very complex subject, but I hope it contributes to the often overlooked but very important fields of fan studies and digital humanities.
Abstract: This paper conducts a critical rhetorical analysis of the discourse surrounding the 2006 exposure of Ms. Scribe, a notorious serial sock puppeteer, within online fandoms. It investigates how the rhetoric employed by community members during this crisis illuminates the underlying dynamics of online communities and the complexities of identity and trust within them. By examining the framing of the crisis, the analysis reveals how perceptions of responsibility and accountability are shaped and contested. The findings suggest that rhetorical strategies significantly influence community responses to deception, highlighting the interplay between individual actions and collective narratives in digital spaces. Ultimately, this research emphasizes the need for critical engagement with rhetorical practices in online communities to foster a culture of transparency and resilience.
Key words: Sock Puppet, Online Commutes, Deception, Critical Rhetorical Analysis
Also attached is a link to the published version in Digital Grinnell: https://grinnell.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/fulldisplay?docid=alma991011551111704641&context=L&vid=01GCL_INST:GCL