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a place where fans can directly communicate with the creators of that media . Panels often include Q & A sessions that allow individuals to speak directly with artists and celebrities . They can share their opinions , ask questions , and even make suggestions . Bolling found that many of the creators “ expressed genuine interest in consumer input in the creative process ” ( 48 ). Beyond the ability to drive content , comic con panels are important signals of the culture . When a topic is important enough to merit a panel , it signals that that topic is something the community should be discussing or considering . Expected comic con topics include “ Marvel vs . DC ,” “ The Future of Star Wars ,” and general cosplay tips . In recent years , however , panels have begun to focus more on marginalized groups and their representation in popular culture .
Across the continent , comic cons in 2015 featured panels dedicated to discussing diversity . In Kansas City , a panel titled “ LGBT and Comics ” included “ a gender non-binary writer ... a lesbian comics fan , and ... a transgender woman in an awesome supergirl [ sic ] costume ” ( Arnone ). Yet another panel addressed the virtual absence of people of color in comic books . Panelists “ all remembered going to their local comic shop , looking at the wall of comics , and finding few characters who looked like them .” In New York diversity was a theme , with events and panels dedicated to questions of diversity in media content and a focus on bringing more diverse voices to speak on the panels ( Salkowitz “ Diversity ”). This last lesson was learned , painfully and infamously , by Denver ComicCon months earlier when they held a “ Women in Comics ” panel that featured only white men as speakers ( Asselin ). This misfire was repeated again on an all-male panel titled “ Writing Women Friendly Comics ” at Gen Con in Indiana . This has become a common enough problem at conventions and academic conferences that all-male panels
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