Kathy Sierra's a well-known blogger who was to appear at San Diego's ETech conference, but as she reports , she's not. Instead she's...
"..at home, with the doors locked, terrified. For the last four weeks, I've been getting death threat comments on this blog. But that's not what pushed me over the edge. What finally did it was some disturbing threats of violence and sex posted on two other blogs... blogs authored and/or owned by a group that includes prominent bloggers. People you've probably heard of. People like respected Cluetrain Manifesto co-author Chris Locke (aka Rageboy)."
Whom ever has written the death threats and for what reason, are both unknown. I observe that this kind of activity, where people get online and behind the cover of the Internet express there most hostile beliefs and desires, should be outlawed. It should be a Federal offense to either use someone elses name or hide your real identity online.
When I was a newspaper columnist, we had a rule that letters to the editor that could not be identified did not get published. When I started blogging I was taken aback at the racist hate that's written and more often than not by a person who doens't give their real name, but something like "fells7" (who's on YouTube and who makes no videos of his own, but takes time to spread hate text on YouTube like at the Chris Rock Video from SNL , and has NOTHING but Nazi-sympathy videos on his channel!! The police should watch this person.)
I took up a rule that I was not going to permit anonymous responses to SBS' blogs or video responses. It was just too much to take.
Now, if someone uses a name can I trust that it's actually their real name? No. I can't. But my experience is that 90 percent of the time the person does uses the same name they present in their own blogs. Now, if we can just take care of the other 10 percent, life would be grand.
But for now, life is not grand for Kathy Sierra. She writes:
I do not want to be part of a culture--the Blogosphere--where this is considered acceptable. Where the price for being a blogger is kevlar-coated skin and daughters who are tough enough to not have their "widdy biddy sensibilities offended" when they see their own mother Photoshopped into nothing more than an objectified sexual orifice, possibly suffocated as part of some sexual fetish. (And of course all coming on the heels of more explicit threats)
I do not want to be part of a culture where this is done not by some random person, but by some of the most respected people in the tech blogging world. People linked to by A-listers like Doc Searls, a co-author of Chris Locke. I do not want to be part of a culture of such hypocrisy where Jeneane Sessum can be a prominent member of blogher, a speaker at industry conferences, an outspoken advocate for women's rights, and at the same time celebrate and encourage a site like meankids -- where objectification of women is taken to a level that makes plain old porn seem quaintly sweet.
(Of course, Frank and Jeneane are among the people who make outraged posts about the lack of female speakers at tech conferences. If THIS is what a woman has to put up with for having visibility in the tech world...)
Most of all, I now fully understand the impact of death threats. It really doesn't make much difference whether the person intends to act on the threat... it's the threat itself that inflicts the damage. It's the threat that makes you question whether that "anonymous" person is as disturbed as their comments and pictures suggest.
It's the threat that causes fear.
It's the threat that leads you to a psychiatrist and tranquilizers just so you can sleep without repeating the endless loop of your death by:
* throat slitting
* hanging
* suffocation
and don't forget the sexual part...
I have cancelled all speaking engagements.
I am afraid to leave my yard.
I will never feel the same. I will never be the same.
To all of you were meant to be at my tutorial today at ETech, or my keynote tomorrow, you have my deepest apologies. If you want to do something about it--do not tolerate the kind of abuse that includes threats or even suggestions of violence (especially sexual violence). Do not put these people on a pedestal. Do not let them get away with calling this "social commentary", "protected speech", or simply "criticism". I would never be for censoring speech--these people can say all the misogynistic, vile, tasteless things they like--but we must preserve that line where words and images become threats of violence. Freedom of speech--however distasteful and rude the speech may be, is crucial. But when those words contain threats of harm or death, they can destroy a life.
I deeply appreciate all the support y'all have given me here. It really sucks that so few can do so much damage.
I have no idea if I'll ever post again. I suspect I will. But for now, I have a lot to rethink.
I wish Kathy would not go into hiding. That's exactly what any anonymous blogger wants to have happen. Instead, they should go to jail.
