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Web Sexism Spurs Meltdown

Salon Editor offers mea culpa for years of telling women to ignore it and "man up"

By Sarah Seltzer, Newser User

Posted Apr 2, 2007 7:29 AM CDT

(Newser) – Salon Editor-in-chief Joan Walsh admits that sexist web trolls are a serious problem, despite her own longtime dismissal of the issue. Her mea culpa follows the implosion of programming instructor and game developer Kathy Sierra's blog after Sierra was assaulted, on her site and others, by crude sexual insults and finally death threats.

After years of telling Salon's women writers to blow off the nastiness—to "man up, " so to speak—Walsh observes that even at Salon commenters' "criticisms of women writers are much more brutal and vicious than those about men." Now she wonders whether her advice has been tantamount to "telling them to stop wearing such provocative outfits online, lest they get what they deserve."

Kathy Sierra ((c) Jeff Kubina)

Kathy Sierra loves her mac, and wishes it came in green. ((c) Brianfit)

FOO II: Kathy as cool as a cucumber ((c) miss_rogue)

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Web Sexism Spurs Meltdown

Salon Editor offers mea culpa for years of telling women to ignore it and "man up"

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Salon Editor offers mea culpa for years of telling women to ignore it and "man up"

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OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

Related Blog Posts

Internet • feminism • women • sexism • discrimination • blog

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

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Threats Force Women Out of Blogosphere

Virtual sexual harassment stifles voices, raises fears of real-world hostility

Female Journalists Own This Election

From Couric to Brown to Maddow, women have kicked butt in '08

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Candidacy exposed America's hatred of women, says columnist

In Workplace, Haggling Widens Gender Gap

Study shows women's smoother elbows may be holding them back

SlutWalks Are the 'Future of Feminism'

Young women are angry and organizing themselves: Jessica Valenti

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Newser By Users

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What is Newser?