Thread:Fedora Kid/@comment-27379466-20150526024731/@comment-1734566-20150604010633

And see, that's the thing when it comes down to focusing on how a person/season is received by the fanbase; the Survivor fanbase is, admittedly, pretty intricate in that it's divided into so many factions. I like to think of my own, original comparison combined with the brilliant way Shane Powers compared the fanbase to the two main political parties in the United States.

The Casuals are like the Democratic Party: They have overwhelmingly higher numbers, but on a whole, they're much stupider, uninformed, and flow with the latest of trends and couldn't give less of a crap of the deep facts, behind-the-scenes interviews, and seasons any further than, like, the last three. And then, even farther to the "left" of the casuals are the Hipster faction of the fanbase; the ones who are just like Hipsters IRL - they think they're such hot sh** because they love what everyone else hates and dislike what everyone else loves (they think Season 29 is better than Cagayan, they think Shirin is the best player in Worlds Apart, etc. - and trust me, I HAVE encountered people like this).

And then the Hardcore fans are the Republican Party: Smarter and more informed, but sadly, they have fewer numbers even though they're more passionate about Survivor and Survivor info in general - more of a social media presence, which MAY influence the casuals, but not often. And like the Republican Party, they're deeply divided between two more factions - the moderate Hardcores, who may capitulate to some casual opinions (such as WA being a "sexist" season, etc.), but still have great disdain for casuals. And then the EXTREME Hardcore fans, who are like the Tea Party and unapologetically obsessed with everything Survivor. They will gladly take on the casuals and attack casual opinions, but thus come across as exclusive and biased.

So in regards to Cochran:

Popular with Casuals.

Probably more or less popular with Moderate Hardcores.

Hated by Hipsters.

Half-and-half among the Extreme Hardcores.