Althouse: "BuzzFeed plans to withdraw its participation from the South by Southwest Interactive festival after organizers decided to cancel two gaming and online harassment panels..."

October 28, 2015

"BuzzFeed plans to withdraw its participation from the South by Southwest Interactive festival after organizers decided to cancel two gaming and online harassment panels..."

"... after receiving 'numerous threats of on-site violence.'... 'We will feel compelled to withdraw … if the conference can’t find a way to do what those other targets of harassment do every day — to carry on important conversations in the face of harassment.'"

14 comments:

damikesc said...: Ironically, the group labeled as "harassers" is the only one who've had actual get-together cancelled due to bomb threats. Including one involving the SPJ that they originally ignored until the threat maker decided to ALSO call the police to insure the even got cancelled.; 10/28/15, 6:33 AM
JSD said...: Compelled is such a weasel word.
I am compelled (I’m doing this shitty thing because somebody forced me)
This is so compelling (this really sucks, but you have to see it)
Whenever a writer uses this word, I am compelled to turn the page; 10/28/15, 7:03 AM
Kevin said...: Why does a music festival have a gaming panel anyway? Wouldn't it have not wandered into this minefield if it had just stayed on its core mission?; 10/28/15, 7:46 AM
Shawn Levasseur said...: Kevin,

It's more than just a music festival. It's many different things, including a tech conference. I'm not sure which (if any) of them were "first".

Since I follow a lot of tech podcasts, I knew it for its tech conference aspects first.; 10/28/15, 8:08 AM
themightypuck said...: Taking your ball and going home only works when you have the only ball.; 10/28/15, 8:56 AM
damikesc said...: I wonder why they couldn't afford security since they don't pay anybody who is involved anyway yet it makes a shit-ton of money.; 10/28/15, 9:02 AM
Diamondhead said...: The music festival came first. They added all the other corporate-tech crap later on.; 10/28/15, 9:40 AM
jr565 said...: There is a gamer gate at all because activists decided to insert activism into video games and then called pushback to their activism sexism.
This SJW crap is toxic anywhere it's inserted.; 10/28/15, 10:06 AM
Rick said...: The panel participants are a bunch of failed journalist - activists trying to eek out a living playing on the emotionalism of those desperate for something to be outraged about. Their complaints about harassment carry no weight since they do not criticize those who harass, dox, and initiate bomb threats on their behalf.; 10/28/15, 10:41 AM
mikee said...: Since it is the SJWs who are claiming harassment, is there any objective proof of harassment, and is it really coming from anyone other than the SJWs, who have a history of false claims of harassment and creation of their own false attacks on themselves?

Just asking, because the SJWs deserve every bit of legitimate pushback they get, and because of their history I can't believe initial claims from them about anything. I, for one, look forward to them realizing their own tactics deserve pushback, good and hard.; 10/28/15, 11:11 AM
HoodlumDoodlum said...: Wait, so is "no platform" a just tactic, or not?; 10/28/15, 11:26 AM
Anonymous said...: Good for BuzzFeed. Probably the first time in my life I've ever said that. :-); 10/28/15, 12:03 PM
damikesc said...: Just asking, because the SJWs deserve every bit of legitimate pushback they get, and because of their history I can't believe initial claims from them about anything. I, for one, look forward to them realizing their own tactics deserve pushback, good and hard.

Hell, a lot of the "anti-bullying" activists are amongst the most noxious "bullies" on line. Read Milo Yiannopoulos series on Randi Harper.; 10/28/15, 12:17 PM
Lewis Wetzel said...: This is the result of totalitarians trying to move into every social space and control the discourse within that social space:

While making a speech, Schafer used a sock to make a joke about the movement. The sock is thought to be a representation of sockpuppets, a term used on the internet to refer to fake accounts and identities set up to give the impression that comments are coming from a third-party.

In the character of the sock, Schafer asks: “How many gamergaters does it take to make a single piece of armor?” Schafer, as himself, says that he doesn’t know.

The sock replies: “Fifty. One to do the modeling, one to do the materials, and forty-eight to tweet that it’s not your shield.”
Many prominent gamergaters took to Twitter, YouTube and other social networks to demonstrate the offence the joke had caused, perceiving it as an attack on the “not your shield” movement and so women and ethnic minority gamers in general.

One game developer called the joke a “huge setback to peace and diversity”, and another gamer described it as “hate speech against minorities, alternate gender identities, and sexualities”.

The totalitarians are well-known for using sock puppet accounts to publish attacks on themselves, and then claiming that the gamer community is full of hate.
"Fear of violence" my ass. They are experts at bullying others while manipulating the media into think that they are victims. The media falls for it every time.; 10/28/15, 1:23 PM