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The New York Times today published a front-page article on the increasingly hostile threats that female video game critics are facing, underscoring the growing backlash against the so-called Gamergate movement. The report, published Thursday, comes one day after the leading video game trade group spoke out against the controversy, whose supporters claim they are rallying against perceived corruption in gaming journalism but who have become inextricably linked with misogyny and harassment.
The Entertainment Software Association (ESA), a trade group that organizes the annual E3 event in Los Angeles, didn't explicitly mention Gamergate or misogyny in a statement to the Washington Post yesterday, though the reporter who wrote the story later clarified that she specifically asked the organization for comment on Gamergate. The ESA includes many of the gaming industry's leading companies, including Microsoft, EA, Sony, and Nintendo.
Make sure to pick up a copy of the New York Times tomorrow morning and check the front page. #StopGamerGate2014
— Feminist Frequency (@femfreq) October 16, 2014 "Threats of violence and harassment are wrong," an ESA spokesman said in a statement. "They have to stop. There is no place in the video game community — or our society — for personal attacks and threats."
At the risk of repeating myself: I asked for a statement on GamerGate, by name, for that story. Thanks for your comments!
— Hayley Tsukayama (@htsuka) October 15, 2014 