#Stop posting about among us professional

Maddox said the Seattle Kraken made a mistake in pandering to the hockey romance subgenre of BookTok, a corner of the community that has a very passionate fandom.

“People escalate things very quickly on the internet.” “Anytime a corporation messes with a fan community in a way they don’t fully understand, you’re creating a scenario in which things can be taken to the next level very quickly,” Maddox said. The official team account left comments under Lewis’ posts and started to play into BookTok’s newfound fandom. When Lewis first started making videos sharing her love for players on the Seattle Kraken, the team took notice. 'And then how we’re kind of taking that out and putting that on top of real people.' At first, the Kraken leaned in to BookTok “For romance readers and for hockey romance lovers, there is this question that we all should sit with and interrogate of where those lines are, and where we should draw the boundaries between this content that we love and that we appreciate,' she said.

This can make it difficult for them to understand or empathize with other people who feel harmed by their behavior.īookTok creator Marines Alvarez, who has made several videos explaining and commenting on the situation, said the blurring of lines between fan fantasy and real people is not exclusive to BookTok and is common in parasocial relationships with celebrities. The reaction to the Wennbergs’ posts, Maddox said, is an example of solipsism, or the theory that one’s own experience is the only important one, online. “But we’re seeing a disconnect between how it would be understood in a book versus how it would be understood IRL, so to speak. “The irony is that communities of romance readers are often very attuned and aware of ideas of consent,” she said. Jessica Maddox, an assistant professor of digital media technology at the University of Alabama who has researched BookTok, said the conflict unfolding on BookTok underscores a “disconnect.” Alex Wennberg of the Seattle Kraken greets his wife, Felicia, and son, Rio, during warmups on April 13 in Seattle. Other creators across TikTok are sharing videos expressing disdain that BookTok was being unfairly dragged for the actions of one subgroup in the community. Several users pointed out that the official Seattle Kraken TikTok account had seemingly played into the hype by posting now-deleted thirst traps of its players. Some on BookTok say the incident serves as a cautionary tale about how, when some readers project their book fantasies onto real people, it can dehumanize them. Even the Kraken team leaned into the fervor, inviting creator Kierra Lewis, who is credited for being among the first to cultivate the crossover fandom of hockey and BookTok, to one of their games.įollowing the Wennbergs social media statements, BookTokers are debating whether they took their desire toward the NHL star too far.Ī representative for Alexander Wennberg said in an email that “there is nothing further to share at this time.” Lewis did not respond to requests for comment. Videos showing Kraken players doing groin stretches and walking in slow motion gained popularity, with many using a catchphrase, “Krack my back,” to sexualize them.

#Stop posting about among us professional

Hockey romances have become a popular subgenre within BookTok, a huge community of book lovers on TikTok, and in recent months many have translated their love for these books – romance stories centered around the sport – into an interest in professional hockey. Their public request came amid a rise in social media content surrounding Wennberg and his Kraken teammates, who have become viral heartthrobs on TikTok.