She's going to have some serious scratches later.
So there's that.
Anyhow. Dale North, who is a major contributor on both Japanator and Destructoid, asked his readers if he was sexist. Amusingly, in describing the difference between Japanator and Destructoid, he had this to say about Destructoid:
...which, amusingly, is one of the best descriptions I've seen yet of Destructoid. Good to know that sexism is apparently part of the writing style guide.
Now normally I would ignore stuff like this on a site like Japanator. I do try to avoid crossing too much into anime fandom here, since the problems with anime fandom are rooted a great deal in cultural differences and Japanese misogyny. However, since Dale North is a contributor on both sites, and content that he writes for Japanator sometimes gets cross-posted on Destructoid - which are both part of the same blogging network, I consider this fair game.
So here's the question Dale posed to his readers:
Not surprisingly, given the wording, the rest of the post was then followed by defensiveness and strawmen. This seemed to be more a facetious inquiry to cause a bit of controversy and garner hits rather than a genuine attempt at self-examination. Especially since near the end of his post he tosses out:
Nope! No sexism here! I mean, there's scads of sexy women. And our staff is mostly men. And GOOD OTAKU SHOULD BE HORNY. I mean, come on. QED. But none of that makes us sexist. (Now show us your tits.)
Anyhow. None of this should be in any way shocking coming from Dale North, who titled an article about the banning of RapeLay in Japan with: "RapeLay raped off Japanese shelves for good"... and then had this as the headline image:
For fuck's sake.
Anyhow. Dale North, who is a major contributor on both Japanator and Destructoid, asked his readers if he was sexist. Amusingly, in describing the difference between Japanator and Destructoid, he had this to say about Destructoid:
If you frequent Japanatator, then you surely know about ModernMethod's flagship site, Destructoid. This gaming community is past hope, and we like it like that! We offend on a daily basis, and we're championed by our readers for it.
...which, amusingly, is one of the best descriptions I've seen yet of Destructoid. Good to know that sexism is apparently part of the writing style guide.
Now normally I would ignore stuff like this on a site like Japanator. I do try to avoid crossing too much into anime fandom here, since the problems with anime fandom are rooted a great deal in cultural differences and Japanese misogyny. However, since Dale North is a contributor on both sites, and content that he writes for Japanator sometimes gets cross-posted on Destructoid - which are both part of the same blogging network, I consider this fair game.
So here's the question Dale posed to his readers:
Am I, Japanator's Editor-in-Cheif, a sexist pig? And, if I am, should I be concerned about this as a writer on anime/manga/Japanese culture?
Not surprisingly, given the wording, the rest of the post was then followed by defensiveness and strawmen. This seemed to be more a facetious inquiry to cause a bit of controversy and garner hits rather than a genuine attempt at self-examination. Especially since near the end of his post he tosses out:
I'm not really doubting myself or the work of the Japanator staff here. And in the end, like it or not, we still get paid to write this crap. Sexy? Maybe. Japanator is filled with sexy commentary and pictures and whatnot. We're all horribly perverted, as good otaku should be. But I don't think there's anything here that makes us terribly sexist.
Nope! No sexism here! I mean, there's scads of sexy women. And our staff is mostly men. And GOOD OTAKU SHOULD BE HORNY. I mean, come on. QED. But none of that makes us sexist. (Now show us your tits.)
Anyhow. None of this should be in any way shocking coming from Dale North, who titled an article about the banning of RapeLay in Japan with: "RapeLay raped off Japanese shelves for good"... and then had this as the headline image:
For fuck's sake.
Dale's no Jim Sterling, but he certainly has his moments.
Predictably, Japanator users fell over themselves to defend Dale. Here are some of my favorite comments. (My commentary is in brackets.)
As always, the internet restores my faith in humanity. Or, wait, it restores the inverse of my faith. Anyway, having female commenters tell you that you're not sexist doesn't automatically make it true - in the same way that "having black friends" doesn't make you automatically not racist. Read Derailing for Dummies, for god's sake.
(Sidenote: I'm amused by the concept disembodied body parts leaping to Dale's defense. "Hey! I've got four tits and two vaginas that say I'm not sexist!" Protip: having ladybits does not automatically make you an arbiter of what is and is not sexist.)
Now, I get that Japanese culture mass-produces misogynist media, and that a certain level of tolerance for that goes with being part of anime fandom. Examining issues of sexism in anime fandom isn't easy because it's often hard to tell when you're dealing with Japanese cultural issues and when you're dealing with Western cultural issues - which is why I usually stay out of it.
But here's a tip for all you game "journalists" out there who may be wondering if you are sexist. If you're actually interested in obtaining a real answer, then you need to step outside your little echo chamber. The users on Japanator are there because they like the site and the content that it posts. Are they going to want to see a negative label attached to a major contributor for said site? No, because that would mean being a fan of that contributor might make them sexist as well.
But I guess that wasn't really the point of this whole exercise.
Predictably, Japanator users fell over themselves to defend Dale. Here are some of my favorite comments. (My commentary is in brackets.)
Grow a backbone! Be more like Jim Sterling. He doesn't give a fuck. [Note: Yes. Because we should all seek to emulate Jim Sterling...]
I've been a reader for over a year and I've never found your comments insulting (I have a vagina). I think there is a lot of coverage on "sexy news" like PVC figures, but that's a part of the otaku experience. So, no, you're not sexist, you're just an excited fanboy as we all are. [Someone with a vagina says you're not sexist! That makes it true!]
Last time I checked, I had a vagina so I can comment I suppose. =P There are those on the interwebs that love to stir up a bunch of bull. As a long time reader (though I rarely if ever comment), I have never been offended by your nor anyone else's word choice or whatever has been shown here.
Tits or GTFO
Either way the entire otaku community has a heavy emphasis on fanservice. Girls who get all huffy at a small thing like the term "good looking gal" should just stay away completely [Yeah! Hear that, wimminz? GTFO!]
As a person with no financial relationship and thus no legal liability with Samantha Robertson, you have the opportunity, nay the duty, to be a sexist pig for all us sexist pigs out there unable to attend this convention. As a representative of this fine oasis of otaku in the vast desert of drivel we call the intarwebs, you carry the honor and privilege of commenting on all the shapely figures and voluptuous bosoms you might encounter in our stead. So go forth and offend. With pride. With courage. With conviction. And let exhaustion and weariness not touch you till you have recieved at least one restraining order.
As a girl, I have to say, not only are the things you say not sexist, but they're downright hillarious! The call me thing was classic.
Just as the other females have said, my tits say you aren't a bad guy at all. I think you're hilarious. I don't understand what the commotion is about, you guys cater to the female crowd too with the yaoi. [Right. Because all women love yaoi, right?]
Dale, I must admit that you are indeed a sexist pig. You offend the very core of my man-finger, and you continue to do so on a regular basis with your sexual innuendo, such as your reference to "I worked hard," and referring to me as "dear reader." I am appalled, good sir! Now back to the beautifully luscious breasts and asses of Anime Expo 2008!
As always, the internet restores my faith in humanity. Or, wait, it restores the inverse of my faith. Anyway, having female commenters tell you that you're not sexist doesn't automatically make it true - in the same way that "having black friends" doesn't make you automatically not racist. Read Derailing for Dummies, for god's sake.
(Sidenote: I'm amused by the concept disembodied body parts leaping to Dale's defense. "Hey! I've got four tits and two vaginas that say I'm not sexist!" Protip: having ladybits does not automatically make you an arbiter of what is and is not sexist.)
Now, I get that Japanese culture mass-produces misogynist media, and that a certain level of tolerance for that goes with being part of anime fandom. Examining issues of sexism in anime fandom isn't easy because it's often hard to tell when you're dealing with Japanese cultural issues and when you're dealing with Western cultural issues - which is why I usually stay out of it.
But here's a tip for all you game "journalists" out there who may be wondering if you are sexist. If you're actually interested in obtaining a real answer, then you need to step outside your little echo chamber. The users on Japanator are there because they like the site and the content that it posts. Are they going to want to see a negative label attached to a major contributor for said site? No, because that would mean being a fan of that contributor might make them sexist as well.
But I guess that wasn't really the point of this whole exercise.
