In 1997, a small band of folklorists formed NewFolk@AFS, the online community dedicated to pushing the envelope of folklore scholarship, particularly in the exploration of contemporary culture. Over the years since it began, NewFolk@AFS has grown both in its membership and in its impact on the scholarly community. In 2000—the folk millennium—our members petitioned to create a formal section within the American Folklore Society, and in 2001 that petition was approved.

So here we are coming to you from the AFS website to invite you to become a member of the section; join the email list; and read and contribute to New Directions in Folklore, one of the pioneers of online folklore scholarship.

NewFolk scholars are dedicated to innovative work around issues of emergent folklore in the modern world. Emergent folklore arises out of the need for new kinds of community or new strategies for maintaining and dealing with communities faced with change. Emergent folklore may make use of traditional genres—jokes, song, narrative, material culture or may create new genres. The materials, sources, or means of transmission such as electronic media are influenced by the issues and problem of "modernization," which both includes and transcends popular culture. NewFolk questions the concept and role of tradition as a cultural and intellectual construction working with, as well as against, forces of modernity.

Here are some links where you can find out more about NewFolk@AFS and our activities:

The NewFolk Listserv Community

New Directions in Folklore, the NewFolk journal

The Bill Ellis Prize is awarded annually for the best graduate student essay that combines research and analysis on folklore, broadly construed, and digital culture, popular culture, or new media.

Convener of this section is David J. Puglia.

The editor of New Directions in Folklore is Trevor J. Blank.