Showbiz Sandbox 300: What is GamerGate and Why Should You Care?
November 3, 2015
South by Southwest (SXSW) set the tech world and media outlets aflame when they recently canceled two panel discussions on harassment in the gaming community scheduled for their 2016 conference. Organizers quickly reversed their decision realizing it sent the unintended message that the of the annual music, film and interactive festival not only tolerates online harassment but condones it.
SXSW officials claimed they were trying to protect attendees from violence threatening the panels from a group aligning themselves with GamerGate, an angry and misogynistic movement focused on sexism and progressivism in video game culture. Trying to define GamerGate is difficult since it has evolved from a debate raging through social media hashtags to real world death threats against prominent women in the video game industry. We’ll try to unravel the meaning of GamerGate and discuss whether SXSW can fully recover from the controversy it stirred up.
Meanwhile, tickets to hot franchise properties are getting hard to come by. When tickets for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” went on sale recently, web ticketing companies were crippled by demand. The same was true when tickets for the London West End production of “Harry Potter And The Cursed Child” which promptly sold out a year’s worth of performances.
Of course we also cover the week’s top entertainment news including the return of “Gilmore Girls”, Internet music service Pandora settles a copyright dispute to the tune of $90 million and a new Star Trek television series is headed straight to online streaming.
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‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Destroys Fandango First-Day Sales Record
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-fandango-start-wars-record-20151020-story.html
Behind the crash: Force Too Strong for Cinemas Selling ‘Star Wars’ Tickets
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-star-wars-theaters-20151019-story.html
“Emperor Palpatine” Victorious in Ukraine City Council Election
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/emperor-palpatine-victorious-ukraine-city-835156
Lenin Statue in Ukraine Turned Into Darth Vader
http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/10/25/lenin-statue-in-ukraine-turned-into-darth-vader/?_r=0
‘Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension’ Flop Shouldn’t End Early VOD Experiments
http://variety.com/2015/film/box-office/paranormal-activity-flop-early-vod-1201626191/
‘Empire’ Writers to Pen Movie About the “Mother of Hip-Hop”
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/empire-writers-pen-movie-mother-833206
China Film Quota Full for 2015, Hollywood Releases Confirmed
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/china-film-quota-full-2015-832925
China Vows Further Crackdown on Box Office Fraud
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/china-vows-crackdown-box-office-834516
How Sony Could Lose James Bond After Bloated ‘Spectre’ (Analysis)
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/how-sony-could-lose-james-833474
Women Comprise 7% of Directors on Top 250 Films (Study)
https://variety.com/2015/film/news/women-hollywood-inequality-directors-behind-the-camera-1201626691/
Amazon Sues 1,114 Fake Reviewers On Fiverr
http://www.forbes.com/sites/cherylsnappconner/2015/10/18/amazon-sues-1114-fake-reviewers-on-fiverr-com/
‘Gilmore Girls’ Revival Series in the Works at Netflix
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/gilmore-girls-revival-series-works-833108
Another StarCraft Cheating Scandal Rocks Korea
https://www.playerattack.com/news/2015/10/19/84630/another-starcraft-cheating-scandal-rocks-korea/
Andy Kaufman and Redd Foxx to Tour, Years After Death, as Holograms
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/24/arts/andy-kaufman-and-redd-foxx-to-tour-years-after-death.html
Yahoo Loses $42 Million on ‘Community,’ 2 Other Original Series
https://variety.com/2015/digital/news/yahoo-misses-q3-earnings-marissa-mayer-narrower-product-focus-1201622483/
Pandora to Pay Labels $90 Million Over Pre-1972 Music Fight
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/pandora-to-pay-labels-90-million-over-pre-1972-music-fight-20151023
HBO CEO Richard Plepler Criticizes Comcast, Other Pay-TV Firms for Snubbing Streaming Service
https://variety.com/2015/digital/news/hbo-ceo-richard-plepler-slams-comcast-other-pay-tv-firms-snubbing-hbo-streaming-service-1201622823/
YouTube Red Unveiled: Ad-Free Streaming Service Priced Same as Netflix
https://variety.com/2015/digital/news/youtube-red-launches-ad-free-svod-netflix-1201623219/
CBS’ ‘Supergirl’ Soars on Premiere Night as Fall’s Biggest Debut
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/tv-ratings-cbs-supergirl-soars-834627
ABC’s ’20/20′ Spikes With Leah Remini; ‘Supergirl’ Hits 16 Million in 3-Day Viewing
https://variety.com/2015/tv/news/ratings-2020-leah-remini-supergirl-delayed-viewing-1201631055/
Vice Plans to Launch TV Channels in U.S., Europe
https://variety.com/2015/digital/global/vice-launch-tv-channels-europe-1201624969/
ESPN to Lay Off Nearly 4% of Workforce Amid Changing Pay-TV Landscape
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-espn-layoffs-20151023-story.html
SXSW’s Gamergate Debacle, Explained
http://www.vox.com/2015/10/29/9635348/sxsw-gamergate-harassment
SXSW Apologizes for Axing Online Harassment Talks, Adds Full Day of Programming
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/herocomplex/la-et-hc-sxsw-apologizes-for-canceling-talks-on-online-harassment-20151030-story.html
Gamergate Advocate Milo Yiannopoulos Blames Feminists for SXSW Debacle
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-milo-yiannopoulos-gamergate-feminists-20151028-story.html
Maureen O’Hara, Irish-Born Star Who Played Strong-Willed Beauties, Dies at 95
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/25/movies/maureen-ohara-irish-born-actress-known-as-queen-of-technicolor-dies-at-95.html
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