{"id":822,"date":"2009-06-07T12:07:01","date_gmt":"2009-06-07T19:07:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.talesfromthe.net\/jon\/?p=822"},"modified":"2024-01-20T04:54:03","modified_gmt":"2024-01-20T04:54:03","slug":"we-can-do-better-grassroots-organizing-against-hate-speech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/2024.thenexus.today\/index.php\/2009\/06\/07\/we-can-do-better-grassroots-organizing-against-hate-speech\/","title":{"rendered":"We *can* do better: grassroots organizing against hate speech"},"content":{"rendered":"
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TommyXtopher<\/a>: Playboy Magazine Officially Hates Women, Conservative or Otherwise http:\/\/bit.ly\/1aqcMe<\/a>.* <\/span>I hope other liberals join me in defending women, #tcot<\/a> or not, from this crap.<\/span><\/div>\n

jointheimpact<\/a>: <\/span><\/span>AT&T Latest Advertiser To Leave KRXQ Confronted By Advertisers, Media and Community … <\/span><\/span>UPDATE: McDonald’s Is 10th Company to Pull KRXQ Advertising http:\/\/bit.ly\/ki7vc<\/a> \/\/zomg! Amazing! <\/span><\/span> (via @Andy_Marra<\/a>)<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

nerdette<\/a>: Join me in blogging this weekend against hate http:\/\/bit.ly\/JqdDr<\/a> We can #dobetter<\/a> than use violence to change minds.<\/span><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
— from Twitter, June 1-5 (1<\/a>, 2<\/a>, 3<\/a>, 4<\/a><\/span>, 5<\/a>)
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In nerdette’s Don’t get mad, ORGANIZE<\/a> call to action for the “We can do better” blogathon she discusses how online and offiline organizing are increasingly blurring together.\u00a0 The swift reactions to Playboy’s article about hate-f***ing conservative women<\/a> and KRXQ radio hosts encouraging violence against transgendered youth<\/a> are two good examples of this — and both have gotten immediate results.<\/p>\n

Word spread quickly after Autumn Sandeen blogged on Pam’s House Blend<\/em><\/a> about KRXQ’s bashing and Michael Rowe picked up the story in The Huffington Post<\/a><\/em>.\u00a0 As GLAAD new media strategist Andy Marra writes<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Outlets like The Huffington Post<\/a><\/em>, PerezHilton.com<\/a>, The Sacramento Bee<\/em><\/a>, FOX40<\/a>, Instinct <\/em>(here<\/a> and here<\/a>) and many more started to take a closer look at the show.<\/p>\n

So did lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender advocates. Constituents frustrated over the segment and the hosts’ failure to apologize took it upon themselves to make their voices heard. Social networking tools like Facebook<\/a> were – and still are – being used to contact KRXQ advertisers.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

GLAAD issued an action alert<\/a>, and became the central contact point, complementing the broad grassroots effort.\u00c2\u00a0 The list of advertisers dropping support for the show has steadily mounted: Chipotle, Snapple, Sonic, Bank of America, Verizon, Carl’s Jr,\u00a0 Wells Fargo, Nissan North America, AT&T, McDonalds … the ball’s in KRXQ’s court, and after Judy Lin’s AP story<\/a> yesterday, I’m sure we’ll be seeing more attention in the mainstream media.<\/p>\n

The reaction to the Playboy story was even swifter.\u00c2\u00a0 Tommy’s Twitter Community Defeats Playboy Hate List<\/a> has a summary of the early success:<\/p>\n

I found out about it via Twitter<\/a>, when one of the women on the list, Amanda Carpenter, sent a tweet (a public message) about it.\u00a0 I contacted Amanda, and wrote a story about it<\/a>.\u00a0 That story was quickly forwarded to thousands of Twitter users, along with urgings to boycott Playboy<\/a>.\u00a0 The pressure mounted, and by late afternoon, Playboy had pulled the piece<\/a>.\u00a0 You can still see screenshots of it here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Twitter flexed its muscle again<\/a> when Politico took down a sanitized version of the list<\/a>** at the urging of many Twitter users.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

On the conservative side, Tabitha Hale on <\/a>Pink Elephant Pundit<\/a>, <\/em>Ed Morrissey on Hot Air<\/em><\/a> and a media release from Smart Girl Politics<\/a> catalyzed the reaction.<\/p>\n

It’s not clear whether the anti-Playboy protests will be able to build on this initial success.\u00c2\u00a0 Other than Fox News’ Megyn Kelly and The View’s Elizabeth Hasselback (both named on the list), I haven’t seen any coverage of the story in the mainstream media.\u00c2\u00a0 Disappointingly, relatively few progressives spoke up … in particular, as far as I know, other than the Huffington Post, none of the “big blogs” of the progressive blogosphere got involved.\u00a0 And as Antonia Zerbisias discusses on Broadsides<\/em><\/a>, some conservatives took the opportunity to bash feminists and progressive women.\u00a0 Still, even if it doesn’t go any farther, it’s a great example of how a strong grassroots response can shine a spotlight on hate speech and get swift action — and the people involved are now working together in ways that will hopefully continue.<\/p>\n

Put these in context with the campaign led by Colour of Change that forced the New York Post to apologize for the racist Obama cartoon earlier this year, and trends starting to emerge.\u00a0 In the right situations, a grassroots social network\/blog campaign can call enough attention to hate speech that media has to react.<\/p>\n