Misogyny and Sexism in the News

*Anya* · 10-14-2014, 08:20 PM

14 October 2014 Last updated at 12:55 ET

GamerGate: 'Press must tackle misogyny,' says developer

By Kevin Rawlinson & Leo Kelion

BBC News

More video game news sites must place a spotlight on the misogynistic abuse that could drive women from the industry, a developer has demanded.

Brianna Wu, whose firm is behind the Revolution 60 game,who said she faced death threats after speaking out, said the sites could help change the industry's culture.

A debate is raging in the sector about claims of corrupt relationships between some developers and reviewers.

But it has also regularly veered into the issues of feminism and misogyny.

"Every woman I know is terrified that what happened to me will happen to them next. And this is a true campaign of terror on women in the field," she told BBC News.

Ms Wu fled her home on Friday 10 October after graphic sexual threats were made against her.

The next day, she shared screenshots of tweets from one user who had threatened to murder her and her family, and had posted her home address to prove they knew where she lived.

The abuse came after she shared pictures on Twitter mocking players with sexist attitudes, who had used the Twitter hashtag GamerGate.

'Drive women out'

Her latest comments coincide with Ada Lovelace Day, an annual event celebrating women's feats in technology and science.

Ms Wu, head of development at games company Giant Spacekat, also said that internet services needed to do more to help police trace those who posted abuse.

"As it currently is, when crimes occur, law enforcement frequently cannot locate the people that are doing it," she said.

"We need to get more serious as a culture about making it possible for law enforcement to act in very serious situations like this.

"GamerGate could very seriously drive most women out of the industry. I realise that's a very strong statement and I absolutely mean it. I don't know a single woman in this field who is not asking herself if she wants to stay."

Ms Wu's experience was similar to those of games reviewer Anita Sarkeesian and developer Zoe Quinn, who were also on the receiving end of abuse.

Allegations about Ms Quinn's personal relationships with journalists were presented as evidence of "possible corruption" in the industry.

Ms Sarkeesian was hounded after releasing the latest in a series of video blogs that criticised bestselling games for propagating sexist stereotypes.

In response to the treatment meted out to Ms Sarkeesian, thousands of people signed an open letter calling on the gaming industry to change.

Ms Wu singled out IGN and Giant Bomb as two popular websites that she said had not drawn enough attention to the abuse aimed at women.

"They are choosing not to cover this story, or Zoe's story, or any of these stories. This has a real silencing effect," she told the BBC.

"These are video game sites that are tailored towards men, so the people that most need to understand the harassment and culture that's being created, the sites that speak to them are not covering this."

While Giant Bomb has not covered the debate in depth, it did report Ms Wu's story on Monday. Readers of both IGN and Giant Bomb have also discussed the wider debate on their forums.

Neither of the two sites was able to comment when asked for a response.

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-29616197

Kobi · 10-16-2014, 11:21 AM

Prominent feminist video game critic Anita Sarkeesian has officially canceled a speaking engagement at Utah State University after a threat was emailed to the school promising a mass shooting targeting her and anyone who attended the event.

The email said there would be “the deadliest school shooting in American history” if Sarkeesian’s speech was not canceled by the university, and goes on to detail exactly how the attack would be carried out.

“If you do not cancel her talk, a Montreal Massacre style attack will be carried out against the attendees, as well as students and staff at the nearby Women’s Center. I have at my disposal a semi-automatic rifle, multiple pistols, and a collection of pipe bombs.”

Originally, despite the threat, Sarkeesian was still planning to go ahead with the speech, but after learning from campus law enforcement that Utah’s concealed carry laws meant it would be possible that guns would indeed be at the event, she changed her mind.

The threat is the latest in a series of escalating attacks targeting prominent female game critics and developers. Anita Sarkeesian and developers Zoe Quinn and Brianna Wu have fled their homes in recent weeks after their personal addresses were posted online and death and rape threats were made against them. Sarkeesian has endured these kinds of attacks for years ever since her “Tropes vs. Women in Video Games” video series was attempting to raise funding on Kickstarter. Recently, matters have escalated however, culminated in this exceptionally graphic and detailed school shooting threat. The “ Montreal Massacre” mentioned in the email refers to the crimes of Marc Lépine, who killed 14 women, injured 10 and also killed four men in order to “fight feminism” in 1989 before committing suicide.
Fanboy Wars: The Newest eBook From Forbes
The Fight For The Future Of Video Games is a warts-and-all look at the clashes between the video game business and its passionate fans.

The obvious elephant in the room is that these threats and attacks against specific female developers have escalated as the popular #GamerGate movement has gained traction in the gaming community. The #GamerGate community is exceptionally defensive when being tied to “fringe” elements who directly threaten and harass women in this way, but it’s getting borderline impossible to extract what the movement claims to want to be with what it actually is.

Zoe Quinn was the figure who in effect spawned the hashtag movement, who accused her of sleeping with members of the games press for positive coverage for her game (when in reality the press members in question barely mentioned her game in passing, and did not review it). Developer Brianna Wu, who fled her house as recently as this week, was targeted by 8chan, the 4chan spin-off ousted from the site, because of her harsh words for #GamerGate and those who claim to march under that banner. And Sarkeesian has been a consistent target for years, and her repeated and public disdain for #GamerGate has escalated attacks on her as we see today.

While it’s true these threats aren’t being signed with a #GamerGate hashtag, we’re past the point of pretending that it’s a complete coincidence these threats have increased as #GamerGate members have gotten more fervent. The stated goal of #GamerGate, a movement concocted on Twitter TWTR -4.08%, Reddit and 4chan, is the pursuit of a more “ethical, professional and unbiased” video game press. Yet, whatever reasonable elements of the group there may be, some members have taken it upon themselves to threaten “unethical” females in the industry and everyone who supports them. This has happened so often and the threats made are so personal, graphic and unsettling, that it’s overshadowed anything that could have ever been productive about the movement. Whether or not the “goal” of #GamerGate was to literally chase prominent women out of the industry, that’s the effect its now having. Each day seems to bring a new low, and it seems like only a matter of time until a woman is physically harmed when someone follows through on one of these hundreds and thousands of threats. In Sarkeesian’s case, she wasn’t willing to risk speaking at an event that allows concealed weapons after the looming threat of a massacre. It’s hard to find fault with that logic, unfortunately it comes with the side effect of the person who made the threat getting exactly what they wanted.

It’s no longer possible to defend #GamerGate. For every member that unequivocally condemns these sorts of attacks against women, there’s another explaining why it’s completely unrelated from the movement, while yet another is cheering the harassers on. #GamerGate is an amalgam of a million different goals raging from the valid (better disclosure!) to the insane (death to feminists!), and it’s become bloated and grotesque with hate. Perhaps it’s too bad the sane members of the movement are caught in this tidal wave, but there’s no avoiding getting swept out to sea at this point.

The police need to be heavily involved as these threats escalate. The games press needs to unite with fans to condemn this sort of thing outright, and not pretend that ethics in games journalism has absolutely anything at all to do with…whatever it is this has become.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertco...at-utah-state/

10-14-2014, 08:20 PM	#1
Anya Infamous Member How Do You Identify?: Lesbian non-stone femme Preferred Pronoun?: She, her Relationship Status: Committed to being good to myself Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: West Coast Posts: 8,258 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 39,306 Thanked 40,449 Times in 7,284 Posts Rep Power: 21474858	14 October 2014 Last updated at 12:55 ET GamerGate: 'Press must tackle misogyny,' says developer By Kevin Rawlinson & Leo Kelion BBC News More video game news sites must place a spotlight on the misogynistic abuse that could drive women from the industry, a developer has demanded. Brianna Wu, whose firm is behind the Revolution 60 game,who said she faced death threats after speaking out, said the sites could help change the industry's culture. A debate is raging in the sector about claims of corrupt relationships between some developers and reviewers. But it has also regularly veered into the issues of feminism and misogyny. "Every woman I know is terrified that what happened to me will happen to them next. And this is a true campaign of terror on women in the field," she told BBC News. Ms Wu fled her home on Friday 10 October after graphic sexual threats were made against her. The next day, she shared screenshots of tweets from one user who had threatened to murder her and her family, and had posted her home address to prove they knew where she lived. The abuse came after she shared pictures on Twitter mocking players with sexist attitudes, who had used the Twitter hashtag GamerGate. 'Drive women out' Her latest comments coincide with Ada Lovelace Day, an annual event celebrating women's feats in technology and science. Ms Wu, head of development at games company Giant Spacekat, also said that internet services needed to do more to help police trace those who posted abuse. "As it currently is, when crimes occur, law enforcement frequently cannot locate the people that are doing it," she said. "We need to get more serious as a culture about making it possible for law enforcement to act in very serious situations like this. "GamerGate could very seriously drive most women out of the industry. I realise that's a very strong statement and I absolutely mean it. I don't know a single woman in this field who is not asking herself if she wants to stay." Ms Wu's experience was similar to those of games reviewer Anita Sarkeesian and developer Zoe Quinn, who were also on the receiving end of abuse. Allegations about Ms Quinn's personal relationships with journalists were presented as evidence of "possible corruption" in the industry. Ms Sarkeesian was hounded after releasing the latest in a series of video blogs that criticised bestselling games for propagating sexist stereotypes. In response to the treatment meted out to Ms Sarkeesian, thousands of people signed an open letter calling on the gaming industry to change. Ms Wu singled out IGN and Giant Bomb as two popular websites that she said had not drawn enough attention to the abuse aimed at women. "They are choosing not to cover this story, or Zoe's story, or any of these stories. This has a real silencing effect," she told the BBC. "These are video game sites that are tailored towards men, so the people that most need to understand the harassment and culture that's being created, the sites that speak to them are not covering this." While Giant Bomb has not covered the debate in depth, it did report Ms Wu's story on Monday. Readers of both IGN and Giant Bomb have also discussed the wider debate on their forums. Neither of the two sites was able to comment when asked for a response. http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-29616197 __________________ ~Anya~ Democracy Dies in Darkness ~Washington Post "...I'm deeply concerned by recently adopted policies which punish children for their parents’ actions ... The thought that any State would seek to deter parents by inflicting such abuse on children is unconscionable." UN Human Rights commissioner

10-16-2014, 11:21 AM	#2
Kobi Infamous Member How Do You Identify?: Biological female. Lesbian. Relationship Status: Happy Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Hanging out in the Atlantic. Posts: 9,234 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 9,840 Thanked 34,618 Times in 7,640 Posts Rep Power: 21474860	Anita Sarkeesian Cancels Speech After School Shooting Threat At Utah State Prominent feminist video game critic Anita Sarkeesian has officially canceled a speaking engagement at Utah State University after a threat was emailed to the school promising a mass shooting targeting her and anyone who attended the event. The email said there would be “the deadliest school shooting in American history” if Sarkeesian’s speech was not canceled by the university, and goes on to detail exactly how the attack would be carried out. “If you do not cancel her talk, a Montreal Massacre style attack will be carried out against the attendees, as well as students and staff at the nearby Women’s Center. I have at my disposal a semi-automatic rifle, multiple pistols, and a collection of pipe bombs.” Originally, despite the threat, Sarkeesian was still planning to go ahead with the speech, but after learning from campus law enforcement that Utah’s concealed carry laws meant it would be possible that guns would indeed be at the event, she changed her mind. The threat is the latest in a series of escalating attacks targeting prominent female game critics and developers. Anita Sarkeesian and developers Zoe Quinn and Brianna Wu have fled their homes in recent weeks after their personal addresses were posted online and death and rape threats were made against them. Sarkeesian has endured these kinds of attacks for years ever since her “Tropes vs. Women in Video Games” video series was attempting to raise funding on Kickstarter. Recently, matters have escalated however, culminated in this exceptionally graphic and detailed school shooting threat. The “ Montreal Massacre” mentioned in the email refers to the crimes of Marc Lépine, who killed 14 women, injured 10 and also killed four men in order to “fight feminism” in 1989 before committing suicide. Fanboy Wars: The Newest eBook From Forbes The Fight For The Future Of Video Games is a warts-and-all look at the clashes between the video game business and its passionate fans. The obvious elephant in the room is that these threats and attacks against specific female developers have escalated as the popular #GamerGate movement has gained traction in the gaming community. The #GamerGate community is exceptionally defensive when being tied to “fringe” elements who directly threaten and harass women in this way, but it’s getting borderline impossible to extract what the movement claims to want to be with what it actually is. Zoe Quinn was the figure who in effect spawned the hashtag movement, who accused her of sleeping with members of the games press for positive coverage for her game (when in reality the press members in question barely mentioned her game in passing, and did not review it). Developer Brianna Wu, who fled her house as recently as this week, was targeted by 8chan, the 4chan spin-off ousted from the site, because of her harsh words for #GamerGate and those who claim to march under that banner. And Sarkeesian has been a consistent target for years, and her repeated and public disdain for #GamerGate has escalated attacks on her as we see today. While it’s true these threats aren’t being signed with a #GamerGate hashtag, we’re past the point of pretending that it’s a complete coincidence these threats have increased as #GamerGate members have gotten more fervent. The stated goal of #GamerGate, a movement concocted on Twitter TWTR -4.08%, Reddit and 4chan, is the pursuit of a more “ethical, professional and unbiased” video game press. Yet, whatever reasonable elements of the group there may be, some members have taken it upon themselves to threaten “unethical” females in the industry and everyone who supports them. This has happened so often and the threats made are so personal, graphic and unsettling, that it’s overshadowed anything that could have ever been productive about the movement. Whether or not the “goal” of #GamerGate was to literally chase prominent women out of the industry, that’s the effect its now having. Each day seems to bring a new low, and it seems like only a matter of time until a woman is physically harmed when someone follows through on one of these hundreds and thousands of threats. In Sarkeesian’s case, she wasn’t willing to risk speaking at an event that allows concealed weapons after the looming threat of a massacre. It’s hard to find fault with that logic, unfortunately it comes with the side effect of the person who made the threat getting exactly what they wanted. It’s no longer possible to defend #GamerGate. For every member that unequivocally condemns these sorts of attacks against women, there’s another explaining why it’s completely unrelated from the movement, while yet another is cheering the harassers on. #GamerGate is an amalgam of a million different goals raging from the valid (better disclosure!) to the insane (death to feminists!), and it’s become bloated and grotesque with hate. Perhaps it’s too bad the sane members of the movement are caught in this tidal wave, but there’s no avoiding getting swept out to sea at this point. The police need to be heavily involved as these threats escalate. The games press needs to unite with fans to condemn this sort of thing outright, and not pretend that ethics in games journalism has absolutely anything at all to do with…whatever it is this has become. http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertco...at-utah-state/