Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

July 24, 2008 7:54:48 AM CDT

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Threats Force Women Out of Blogosphere

Posted Apr 30, 07 10:54 AM CDT in US,  Business,  Arts & Living 

(Newser) – Violent, sexualized threats against female bloggers are forcing some of them out of the online community, reports the Washington Post. The problem, highlighted by the harassment that caused Kathy Sierra to suspend her popular technology blog, is frustrating at best; at worst, it causes women to fear for their safety and abandon the medium.

To avoid it, some women adopt gender-neutral pseudonyms; others moderate comments. But Internet anonymity makes stopping perpetrators nearly impossible. Those who report harassment say police brush them off and other bloggers tell them to toughen up. Few can shake the experience. "I will never feel the same. I will never be the same," Sierra writes.

Source Washington Post

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • My Search Term, Myself

    Apr 21, 08 2:04 PM CDT
    My Search Term, Myself Freud would have a field day studying Google searches, posits a blogger who tracked the terms visitors to his web page used and found a window into man's pathologies. John Kelly, a columnist on leave from the Washington Post, writes in the Guardian about "how the fetishes, pathologies and strange obsessions of humankind are catalogued every day on the world wide web."  More »

  • Bitter Breakup? Time for a Blog

    Apr 18, 08 10:45 AM CDT
    Bitter Breakup? Time for a Blog Call it therapeutic or call it revenge, but more ex-spouses are airing their dirty laundry on the Internet—and courts are supporting them even if their former partners are not. Personal blogs have quadrupled since 2003, the New York Times notes in a look at the trend, with many using them to dish about everything from marital affairs, divorce proceedings, or their ex's profile on Match.com. More »

  • Gawker Selling Off a Few Blogs

    Apr 14, 08 3:59 PM CDT
    Gawker Selling Off a Few Blogs Gawker Media is cutting loose three of its blogs, CNET reports: Wonkette, Idolator and Gridskipper. “To be blunt," explained Gawker founder Nick Denton in an internal email, "they each had their editorial successes; but someone else will have better luck selling the advertising than we did." Denton wouldn't comment on the prices the sites might've fetched. More »

  • 'Death by Blogging' Story Was Pure Hooey

    Apr 8, 08 11:27 AM CDT
    'Death by Blogging' Story Was Pure Hooey The relentlessly self-analytical blogosphere had a field day with the recent New York Times story on bloggers allegedly writing themselves to death. But as the Internet exploded with reaction to the paper's claims, a Slate critic points out that the dire trend story was backed up by the thinnest tissue of circumstance. "Let's not kid ourselves that any white-collar work ranks high among dangerous professions," sniffs Timothy Noah in Slate. More »

  • 'Sweatshop' Bloggers Drop Dead

    Apr 6, 08 6:10 AM CDT
    'Sweatshop' Bloggers Drop Dead The news cycle never stops, and neither do the bloggers who relentlessly chase stories, enduring a sweatshop kind of life stressful enough to apparently induce heart attacks. Two prominent web commentators have died in the last few months, and the community is reflecting on the toll of its hardcore, caffeine-fueled, take-no-prisoners lifestyle, the New York Times reports. More »

A screenshot from Kathy Sierra's blog, Creating Passionate Users.
Arvind Grover and Kathy Sierra   ((c) Brianfit)
Kathy Sierra loves her mac, and wishes it came in green.   ((c) Brianfit)
FOO II: Kathy as cool as a cucumber   ((c) miss_rogue)
The Das Keyboard from Metadot Corp. contains blank keys that keep the user from focusing on the keyboard to try to speed up typing speed.   (KRT Photos)
USA. 1984. Computer keyboard. (NYC37749)   (Magnum Photos)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Our editors also recommend:

Threads (1 of 3)

Tags

Internet  • women  • blog  • discrimination  • blogging  • blogosphere  • sexual harassment


Loading...

Loading...

Today's Most Popular


Other Home Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Newser gives you more news in less time. We search for the best and most important stories all over the web, read them for you, and deliver concise and sharp summaries—along with links to the full text. Newser provides a way to stay on top of an ever-expanding horizon of news and opinion—politics, sports, business, trends, technology, personalities, crimes, and controversies. Newser keeps you not just better informed, but, with our signature graphic interface and smart condensed format, more enjoyably informed.

Learn more »