Gamergate was originally coined by Firefly actor Adam Baldwin as a hashtag, #GamerGate. It was created on August 27, 2014, in response to a controversy involving the gameDepression Quest, developed by Zo Quinn. Gamers criticized the games simplicity and its departure from standard gaming formats, and people claimed the game didnt warrant its positive and extensive press coverage. Not long after, Quinns ex-boyfriend wrote a blog post falsely detailing how Quinn had cheated on him with five different guys, one of whom was a gaming journalist who worked for Kotaku. (Notably, said journalist never reviewed the game)
An online campaign accusing Quinn of exchanging sex for press coverage followed, and users across online communities (including 4chan, Twitter, and Reddit) all jumped on board.Threats and harassment ensued, and users leaked Quinns and others personal information in a practice known as doxxing. Another notable target was Anita Sarkeesian, an outspoken feminist media critic and blogger, who was forced to cancel a speaking engagement due to Gamergate-related threats on her life.
Supporters ofGamergateclaimedto shed light on the sometimes unethical relationship between developers and journalists, as the two are often too close on a personal level. Their goal was to snuff out corruption and to spearhead an ethics reform in the industry. Despite this stated goal, the movement produced countless attacks on women who commented on the situation. As a result, Gamergate raised concerns about anti-women views in gaming as a whole.
See original here:
