Convergent Wrestling: Participatory Culture, Transmedia Storytelling, and Intertextuality in the Squared Circle [Hardcover]

This book examines how the current era of convergence has affected, and is reflected in, the world of professional wrestling, which combines several different genres, including drama, action, comedy, horror, science fiction, and even romance. Professional wrestlings business practices exist at the intersection of bottom-up fan-centric strategies and strict top-down corporate control. Meanwhile, the wrestlers themselves combine aspects of carnival hucksters, actors/actresses, comedians, superheroes, martial artists, or stuntmen, and the narratives consist of everything from social critique to geopolitical allegories, and from soap opera melodramas to stereotyped exploitation. Bringing together the latest scholarship in the field, Convergent Wrestling analyzes various texts, business practices, and fan activities to explore the commonalities that define professional wrestling and consider how it exists in todays new media ecology. In addition, the book considers the professional wrestling industry from several different angles, from massive multinational conglomerate World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) to local indie federations. As such, it will appeal to scholars with interests in popular culture, media and cultural studies, and fan practices.

1. Introduction: Defining Convergent Wrestling (CarrieLynn D. Reinhard and Christopher J. Olson)

2. Wrestlers, Fans, and Power Dynamics at Live Events (Annette Hill)

3. Kayfabe as Convergence: Content Interactivity and Prosumption in the Squared Circle (CarrieLynn D. Reinhard)

4. Wrestling with Characters: Viewer Engagement in Contemporary Television Wrestling (Oliver Kroener)

5. Sports Entertainment: Toward a High Concept of Professional Wrestling (John Quinn)