Call for Papers: The Cultural Impact of Heated Rivalry
Upon awarding it a 2026 Peabody Award for excellence in entertainment, jurors argued that Canadian series Heated Rivalry made “the biggest cultural impact in television this year.” The show broke viewership records for US supplier HBO, and booksellers couldn’t keep the original source material on the shelves.
To examine this phenomenon, we invite scholars, media practitioners, and other potential presenters to submit research that considers the broad appeal and overall impact of Heated Rivalry for a special panel at the 2026 MAPACA conference, held November 5-7 in Baltimore, Maryland.
Potential topics include but are not limited to:
- adaptations
- ‘coming out’ narratives
- heteronormativity and queer relationships
- hockey in popular culture
- international media production
- LGBTQ+ television history
- (non)toxic masculinity and gender representation
- over-the-top (OTT), streaming, and digital distribution
- parasocial fandom and social media
- political economy of television
- sexuality and desire
- sports and consumer culture
- stereotypes of ethnic and national identity
All theoretical viewpoints and methodologies are welcome.
This panel is co-sponsored by the LGBTQ+ Area and the Television Area of the Mid-Atlantic Popular and American Culture Association (MAPACA), an academic organization dedicated to critical analysis of various aspects of popular and American culture. Each area is also welcoming general submissions for the 2026 conference.
Deadline: June 30, 2026
Visit mapaca.net for submissions and more conference information.
Submit your abstract to the LGBTQ Studies area and note your interest for inclusion to the special Heated Rivalry panel.
Contact: Candice Roberts, candice.d.roberts@gmail.com
candice d. roberts, phd 