Featured on the front page of the @nytimes today “Feminist Critics of Video Games Facing Threats” pic.twitter.com/bZuxDtNnu2
— Feminist Frequency (@femfreq) October 16, 2014
In recent days, #Gamergate has gone from being covered mostly by niche sites to gaining full cultural awareness by the mainstream media. Yesterday, Anita Sarkeesian’s story of harassment hit the front page of The New York Times.
You can read the story in full here, in which they also speak with the man who coined the term #Gamergate, Adam Baldwin. Sarkeesian, like game developer Brianna Wu, is still calling for major players in the gaming industry to speak up against harassment.
“Game studios, developers and major publishers need to vocally speak up against the harassment of women and say this behavior is unacceptable,” Ms. Sarkeesian said in an interview. Representatives for several major game publishers — Electronic Arts, Activision Blizzard and Take-Two Interactive Software — declined to comment.
Additionally, the New York Times has put out a call for any women who have experienced sexism in gaming to come forward and speak with them about their experiences “related to gender.” If you are interested in speaking with the NYT, be aware that your name and location may be published alongside your comments.
Sarkeesian also appeared on CBS This Morning to speak about #Gamergate, which she calls a “sexist temper tantrum” from “mostly men, male gamers, who are attacking women” because “they’re afraid we’re going to take their toys away.”
And Wu is still standing up to her harassers on national media. Here she is speaking with PBS NewsHour about the “war on women in this industry.”
Of course, while she continues to be vocal about her experiences, Wu is continuing to receive threats such as this:
The campaign to destroy me professionally continues. They’re targeting my game Revolution 60. Please RT! pic.twitter.com/ssQmgktgA1 — Brianna Wu (@Spacekatgal) October 17, 2014
It is, of course, of the most supreme irony to say, “We don’t harass people on this message board! Let’s prove our good name by mobilizing a massive harassment campaign!”
And though Baldwin is firmly on the #Gamergate side of the debate, Sarkeesian and the #StopGamergate2014 crowd do have some large cultural figures standing up for them.
TERRORISM ISN’T BLOWING THINGS UP. IT’S USING THE FEAR OF VIOLENCE TO COW US AND CONTROL OUR ACTIONS. http://t.co/piK9w1cqNC
— Joss Whedon (@josswhedon) October 15, 2014
Well @AdamBaldwin sure seems like a fucking idiot. — Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) October 15, 2014
In which @waxpancake chronicles GamerGaters confused as to why their idols don’t want to join their sexist crusade: http://t.co/u0Zd9PeCEa
— John Scalzi (@scalzi) October 17, 2014
.@assclit I’m not a gamer. The misogyny of “GamerGate” sickened me, which you could have learned with two clicks of research. — Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) October 14, 2014
Finally, as a follow-up to our post yesterday about Eron Gjoni, the man who sparked the #Gamergate movement, you might recall that his interview with BuzzFeed ended with this statement:
I can’t deny my letter was the spark. I guess I feel compelled to offer an apology to them. But also I don’t know how to do that without taking the responsibility away from people who are actually doing the harassment. But, I guess, let me know how I can make it up to you?
But unfortunately it seems as though he may not be as open to suggestion as previously claimed.
s o c i o p a t h pic.twitter.com/qObm59PrQx
— Killizabeth Simins (@ElizSimins) October 16, 2014
- Man Who Sparked Gamergate Says The Movement Is “For The Best” Despite Harassment
- [UPDATED] Major Video Game Associations Condemn #Gamergate’s Harassment Of Women
- Intel Issues Official Statement Over Gamergate Related Advertising Pull
Are you following The Mary Sue on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Pinterest, & Google +?
