An open letter to #brands about Gamergate
If you want people to not view your company as craven and soulless, read on
Dear Corporate PR Departments,
You've probably heard of this thing called Gamergate. (In case you haven't, this will get you up to speed.) Chances are, if your company is even remotely connected with tech or media, you've already been inundated with emails and tweets demanding that somebody be fired, or some ad campaign pulled, or some publication burned to the ground. If you haven't yet, your time is probably coming.
That's scary, I know. You don't want trouble. You don't want to be seen as supporting or associating with bad people and bad ideas. Above all, you don't want controversy. It's the kiss of death for brands. You just want to email your pitches and tweet some edgy-but-not-too-edgy memes from 2011.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
So let's be real: I know that when you get hundreds of coordinated emails purportedly in favor of "ethics" and against "bullying," your first instinct will be to give in immediately. Intel, Adobe, and Mercedes-Benz all folded before Gamergate, because it carries the hallmarks of a genuine consumer rights movement.
There are three problems here from your perspective.
The first is that Gamergate is utterly duplicitous. They could not care less about bullying, or journalistic ethics, or whatever issue they're frothing about today. Their only concrete achievements are harassing several women out of their homes, and hazing the advertisers of publications that dare to criticize them. They have no other coherent agenda or manifesto whatsoever. Due to the incomprehensible complexity of the movement's history, it may take you some time to convince yourself of this (see here, here, here, and here for starters), but God strike me dead if it's not the truth. Head on over to their organizing forums at 8chan or Reddit, they're quite open about their objectives and methods.
The second is that there aren't that many committed Gamergaters, a few hundred at most. They openly boast of using sock-puppet accounts and bots to give the illusion of strength. They are not going to hurt the sales of the kinds of high-end products put out by Mercedes, Intel, and Adobe.
The third is that the Gamergate #brand is morally toxic. Just check out mainstream coverage in The New York Times and The Washington Post. To fold in the face of their demands is to lend credence to a movement widely regarded as despicable, and you will be attacked in the strongest terms by numerous writers, including this one, who work at outlets with far more influence over brand perception than Gamergate. It's not influence that will result in 40 bazillion enraged emails, but it exists, and carries far more credibility — especially among people who have the money to buy your products.
So, what to do? Luckily, this part is easy: just ignore Gamergate. If you suddenly get a whole bunch of people complaining about "ethics," do some digging and figure out if it's a Gamergate issue at root. If so, then just pretend nothing is happening. They've got no power other than what you give them, and to capitulate to their demands is to risk far greater damage to your carefully constructed brand image.
Regards,
Ryan
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Ryan Cooper is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. His work has appeared in the Washington Monthly, The New Republic, and the Washington Post.
-
Government shutdown looming? Blame the border
Talking Points Democrats and Republicans say funding for immigration enforcement is the budget battle's latest sticking point. That's about all they agree on.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
'Conservatives have not limited their attack on reproductive rights to the US'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Housing costs: the root of US economic malaise?
speed read Many voters are troubled by the housing affordability crisis
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The debate about Biden's age and mental fitness
In Depth Some critics argue Biden is too old to run again. Does the argument have merit?
By Grayson Quay Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
Henry Kissinger dies aged 100: a complicated legacy?
Talking Point Top US diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner remembered as both foreign policy genius and war criminal
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Last updated
-
Trump’s rhetoric: a shift to 'straight-up Nazi talk'
Why everyone's talking about Would-be president's sinister language is backed by an incendiary policy agenda, say commentators
By The Week UK Published
-
More covfefe: is the world ready for a second Donald Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question Republican's re-election would be a 'nightmare' scenario for Europe, Ukraine and the West
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Xi-Biden meeting: what's in it for both leaders?
Today's Big Question Two superpowers seek to stabilise relations amid global turmoil but core issues of security, trade and Taiwan remain
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Will North Korea take advantage of Israel-Hamas conflict?
Today's Big Question Pyongyang's ties with Russia are 'growing and dangerous' amid reports it sent weapons to Gaza
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published