One of the internet's oldest gaming forums is imploding over sexual harassment charges
NeoGAF, one of the lingering examples of what gaming fandom on the internet looked like in an era before social media, is going through some shit.
Stop me if you've heard this one before: The owner of a long-lived, community-driven website is the subject of sexual harassment allegations. Such revelations have surfaced before, but in this post-Weinstein period when names are being named, the new information has triggered a mass exodus among the site's users and staff.
It started last week when the site's owner, Tyler Malka, was publicly accused of sexual harassment. In the hours and days that followed, a number of the gaming forum's moderators publicly stepped down and a growing number of users -- some of them longtime fixtures on the site -- declared that they were done.
It was a similar situation back in September for another example of Old Internet: Movie news and rumormill site Ain't It Cool News. Sexual harassment charges swirled around Harry Knowles, the site's founder. He initially pushed back, but ultimately stepped down as more stories floated to the surface.
For Malka and NeoGAF, it started with a Facebook post last week. In her own contribution to the #MeToo hashtag, filmmaker Ima Leupp described an ugly experience she'd had in 2015 with an unnamed assailant. It wasn't until later, in a comment on the same post, that she named him, indirectly: "Google Evilore," Leupp wrote.
Evilore is Malka's NeoGAF username. The gaming forum he presides over hasn't ever been the gentlest place. Anytime you hear talk about "console wars" or "resolutiongate" or other trifling, in-the-weeds gaming "controversies," there's probably a 100-page long discussion thread about it on NeoGAF.
Politically, however, the site has embraced a firmer stance in recent years. A distinctly progressive mindset has become the norm there, fostered by the NeoGAF's team of moderators. Over time it's been made clear that toxic viewpoints, such as those embraced by the Gamergate hate group, are not welcome on GAF.
Much like Knowles, Malka has positioned himself publicly as a defender of progressive values. Though, as NeoGAF users tell it, that attitude seems to stop short of issues relating to sexual misconduct.
Kotaku's report on the NeoGAF situation cites users who have taken note of Malka's more problematic, occasionally tyrannical behavior. One claimed to have been banned for making the case that Playboy's Hugh Hefner wasn't a feminist icon. Another claims they were shut down for supporting the #BelieveWomen hashtag.
This paragraph is particularly telling:
In one thread, a NeoGAF poster uploaded screencaps of another woman’s #MeToo post, involving allegations about a film journalist. Malka asked, “No evidence at all? No corroborating testimony? No behavioral red flags?,” adding, “So far this is nothing like other recent industry scandals.” Later, after receiving pushback from posters who found his initial comment callous, Malka described posters’ immediate support of the #MeToo post as “witch hunts,” adding that it will take time for the allegations’ veracity to be proven. Several vocal critics of Malka’s approach say they were banned. One of Malka’s posts responding to a ban read, “Fuck off, dipshit. That enough toxic masculinity for you? I was moderating my platform, not going to bat for Dr. Neckbeard.”
I highly recommend reading the rest of that report. It's one of the most thorough investigative looks out there right now at what's happened with NeoGAF, as well as the history that brought the site to this point.
This is far from over. NeoGAF is still down for "scheduled maintenance" (LOL) as of Monday morning. The picture of what's ahead for the gaming forum should become clearer once it's back online, and once Malka has responded -- in a statement that is also still believed to be forthcoming.
Topics Gaming
Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
