Sacred Symbols+, Episode V: Cancel Culture

51:15 "Republicans and the justice seat" if I remember correctly the republicans did this in response to Harry Reid changing the filibusters rule first. In fact McConnell said in 2013 as the democrats were changing the rules, “You’ll regret this, and you may regret this a lot sooner than you think." As a former democrat I have had to look real hard at my former party.

Context Should Matter

Having listened to this and about 100 others talk about GG I still dont understand it. I guess for us normies out of the loop, it's just something that doesnt make any sense? It seemed to be something about nothing. And anything that revolves around 1 or 2 toxic people (Zoe Quinn) it's safe to say, it's probably no worth paying attention to. That said, cancel culture is bad for everyone BUT often does show the said cancelled person who their real friends are. You are case and point on this. The SF crowd are so toxic and live in such an echo chamber it's terrifying. It's been amazing to see your success and finding your family again. Family will always be there for you, ,so i'm heartened to hear you're going back home.

Marc Cairney

Hello Colin, I have followed your podcasts from earlier in the Beyond days to being a patreon with Kinda Funny only for PS I love you and now Colin’s Last Stand when it was mainly political. I tweeted at you when the Jets game was moved from Buffalo to Detroit, due to inclement weather, and you responded to have a good time. I felt compelled to write you because I always felt you are a standup person and I enjoy the content you create. I have not enjoyed the bullshit you had to endure from the “tweet” which I thought was funny, to the more recent Pax panel cancellation. For everyone to treat you like you did something ohh so wrong bothers me. Is this where we are as a society now? Listening to the cancel culture podcast inspired me to write this. I feel this mob mentality is crazy. So we are where if you disagree with someone politically, everything else they say is invalid. I have differing opinions politically than you. However, I still listen and respect your views. I wanted to let you know that there are people out here that know you are a good person and are not what the media and people say you are. I am sorry to hear about the dark place you were in afterward for something that was absolutely nothing. However, I can completely relate to realizing who your friends are and who are not. I appreciate your content you create and keep on sacrificing those babies.

Xavier (X) Bell

Not trying to make light of the seriousness of this matter but I don't think we are giving enough attention to the fact that this is the first time I think anyone is hearing the origin story of the man the myth the legend Chris Ray Gun and how random Facebook feminists accidentally created this beast.

Tyson Williams

Alright, well, not everyone is a Chain Chomp from Mario, but you do see it. We just get lucky that the chain on them won't let them get to you, and Chris having his job listed on Facebook, perfectly proves they bite when they get to you. And if his employers were cunts, there goes an extra life.

Ryan King

Just put a few pieces together: if large mobs of people are lashing out at the guys at the top, the people composing those mobs are dispersed throughout the rest of society, and those of us on the ground floor have to interact with these fucking lunatics. You don't see that much shit aimed like a fucking pinpoint laser at the top, without a shit ton of radiation hitting everyone in the vicinity. We have to deal with cancel culture on the ground. These people interact with us, man! It's "out of touch" to think they don't. Everyone's like a fuckin' Chain Chomp sometimes, cocking a pistol, verbally, before they lunge at you. At least online.

Ryan King

This irked me throughout: So, we don't have to worry about this. Chris says, mid episode, how his job at Gamestop was attacked, while he was one of us. Then we return to saying how it never happens. And later, it's mentioned how people, who aren't openly opposed to this as entertainers, cannot say whatever they want. So, the episode opens with, "You guys don't have to worry about this," follows by giving an example of how we do, and concludes by saying we have to watch what we say. THIS WOULD'VE BEEN NOTICED, if you didn't come in trying to say we don't have to worry about it.

Ryan King

I know this sounds callous, but I do not believe Zoe Quinn, at all. If it was anyone else I'd keep an open mind, I would never outright dismiss someone's accusations, but this woman is a known liar, and too many of her DMs have been leaked after the drama. She is not a good person, she should have gone to the police, she should have did it years earlier. I just believe there was an agenda here on her part, and as a result a man's career was destroyed, he was unpersoned and felt like he had nothing left to the point he killed himself. Maybe he is guilty, but I don't believe it, and even if he was, she went about it the wrong way. And another thing, how you were treated, Colin, for your harmless, and pretty funny joke was disgusting. I followed you from the IGN days, to Kinda Funny. I stayed with you when you started your (brilliant) history content. I know you hold no ill will towards the KF guys, but how they threw you under the bus was wrong, and I unsubscribed from them. But you're a better man than me, and more mature lol. You handle things in the right way, something I'll always take on board. This was a fantastic podcast, not many would tackle it the way you and Chris did. Thanks for this, awesome content, as always. You were dealt a bad hand from your cancelling, but you're doing much better content than you've ever done (I think so, anyway), and teaming up with Chris, whos content I love, was a stroke of genius.

Liam Mcnulty

Thank you for your kind words.

Colin Moriarty

Thank you for listening!

Colin Moriarty

Well, they're puritans, for sure.

Colin Moriarty

Well, I don't wish anyone ill, but I do think the universe kinda worked things out for me about who was real and who wasn't.

Colin Moriarty

It's very strange in the sense that I don't even know who their audience is. I was just reading an Iceborne review on Vice talking about the game's "settler-colonialism" Who wants to read that in a gaming review? Who is the audience?

Colin Moriarty

Thank you so much!

Colin Moriarty

Thank you so much. I'm glad you (and others, too!) are enjoying what we're doing with this expansion of our brand.

Colin Moriarty

Thank you. I appreciate your support!

Colin Moriarty

Yeah, I don't really get the political litmus test stuff. Everyone's welcome in our community.

Colin Moriarty

Thank you.

Colin Moriarty

Again, I don't think it's as easy as blaming someone for another's suicide, point blank. I don't think that's generally fair, nor do I like the end result of that mentality. I will say that, to your point about lying, it does seem like "the public record" of Tweets and behaviors doesn't seem to match up with some of her claims, and I'm a little confused why the games media so breathlessly reports on her in positive and sympathetic ways, but simply refuses to discuss any downsides or inconsistencies.

Colin Moriarty

That's a possibility. I think that permanent, extensive interconnectivity has given some people an immense amount of control over others.

Colin Moriarty

Thank you, that's very kind. We're trying our hardest to be fair.

Colin Moriarty

Thank you for your kind words!

Colin Moriarty

I think we need to be very, very careful when we talk about "the statistics" of false assault claims. Firstly, by their very nature, such statistics are solely based on someone either deciding to admit that they've lied (highly uncommon), or it being proven in court that they've lied (so difficult as to be even more uncommon). More importantly though, such statistics always lag behind current times by several years (i.e. "statistics cited are from the years 2005-2009, the most recent data available"). Extremely relevant to this conversation is the undeniable fact that, whether you view it as fortunate or unfortunate, our society's behavior towards this subject has changed *dramatically* in only the last couple/few years. Just a short few years ago, there was absolutely zero advantage to be gained by a woman making a false claim of assault or harassment against a man. At the time, such a claim was not capable of single handedly -- and without corroboration -- destroying the entire social and professional life of a man who had sexually victimized her (or importantly, a man who had NOT done so, but who had simply angered or crossed her in some other fashion). Many of us who have been badly hurt by a cheater or liar have felt the deep, burning desire for revenge or damage which can sometimes, if only temporarily, seemingly take over our entire mind. Or the true hatred we've felt for an asshole boss who, in any number of ways, has made our lives absolute hell; eight hours a day; for years on end. In the past, keying a car or spitting in a coffee was the worst thing we could even think to do. The power to destroy that person's entire life with a 240 word Twitter post simply did not exist. If it had, many of us, in our darkest, most irrational hour, at the height of our pain, would have certainly used such a tool (even if we don't want to admit it). Not only was the hollow satisfaction of ultimate revenge impossible to achieve with a false claim just a few years ago, but there was also little to be personally gained by ANY such claim (whether true or not). In fact, there was often a cost, which is why women sadly often stayed silent. A simple claim without evidence did not previously elicit a showering of attention and affection from thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of strangers; it didn't abruptly give you major social capital; it didn't present new career and financial opportunities; it didn't transform you overnight into someone people suddenly wanted to listen to, or look up to as brave and heroic; and it certainly didn't instantly grant you what most everyday hum-drum human beings desire most-- Attention. Importance. CONTROL. But that has all changed...big time! I agree with everything that was said about men often being pigs, and how uncomfortable it must be to be sexualized on the streets regularly. It's true; I've seen it my whole life! I also have no doubt that the number of actual assaults remains staggeringly and disgustingly high. But at the same time, given the way our society has suddenly made victimhood into capital, and into virtue (in the eyes of many, the most important virtue), and given the heretofore unimaginable power over others which can now be seized with just a few sentences typed from the toilet, I personally have absolutely NO doubt whatsoever, even with no statistical evidence to back me up, that the number of false claims has risen dramatically in the past couple of years. And I don't just mean, like... doubly. I mean *exponentially*! I've never seen any evidence that makes me believe that a significant number of human beings won't give in to the temptation of easy attention, power, or control if it's presented to them. Hell, let's not forget that such attention and power allowed young adults like Abigail Williams and Betty Parris (Salem which accusers) to stand by while dozens of totally innocent women were literally BURNED AT THE FUCKING STAKE on their behalf-- and they at least had to sit in a court room and see the people they were condemning! Giving words without evidence this much power has always proven to be a damaging mistake, and it always will be.

Dave Carsley

Great episode! I love hearing people debate interesting topics using their brains. I don’t always agree with Colin points of view (must of the time i do), but must of all i appreciate his logic. He’s very good explaining and expressing, why he thinks the way he does. Love hearing this podcast.

Eduardo Banda

Amazing episode, went through a bunch of gamer gate videos that Chris Ray Gun posted a couple of years ago and what a coincidence the very topic is mentioned in todays video. I was 16 at the time and was oblivious to the thought of anything full of contreversy in my little world of games now as an adult i understand why things are the way they are now.

Chetsnooze

They look like televangelists to me...

Shane Stevens

I can't stand listening to them after the BS they pulled on Colin. You can't preach the best friend mantra like they do and turn on your real best friend. Now when I hear them they sound like such hypocrites. And I wouldn't want any of them as a friend.

Shane Stevens

Same reason I can't listen to them anymore. The best friend bs come off as hypocrite when you do your supposed best friend like that. Used to be a giant Greg fan and always dreamt of meeting him (I live in Canada) and now he is often coming and doing meet and greet and I never went. It left a bad taste in my mouth.

RD_21

Games media has become so strange, lead article on kotaku these days is as likely to be about video games as it is to be about politics. Stay strong guys, you have a great show!

Orion88

Good stuff. Think you guys tackled a difficult subject with quite a lot of balance and rationale. As for KF, I completely agree that those guys were never your friends Colin. I can't even bring myself to listen to them, not because I'm a Colin Moriarty fan boy but because I think it's so morally bankrupt to sell out your supposed "best friend" for some social justice and good publicity points. You've been through a lot but if it's any consolation, you and Chris are doing your best show yet.

Your Boi Nicky V

This was an amazing episode. Loving these conversations on tougher topics. Keep up the amazing work.

Adrian Pinter

I'm really digging these SS+ episodes. Love the in depth conversations. Colin, for a long time now you've been my go to for indepth analysis and opinions. I trust what you have to say because, although I don't always agree, I know its genuine. You and Chris are a great duo and I think myself lucky to have access to so much great content. Keep up the great work and I look forward to the next episode!

Felipe Delfin

Hey Colin, Really dug the episode. I'm sorry to hear that Bundy-gate (or whatever we're calling it) caused so much mistrust in people for you. I hope you can take some solace in the fact that *we* trust *you* - trust you to be honest, trust you to be candid, and above all trust you to have the best intentions. We all make mistakes along the way and we all grow. I (and I'm sure many others here) have followed you since Beyond and while most of us are just faceless names on Patreon, we have gotten to know you pretty well through the years and know you as nothing less than a stand-up dude. Keep doing what you do and we'll support you.

Bloviated Rendering

Great episode. When Colin ask what's the end goal or a listener ask about it, Colin's answer reminds me of a podcast I used to enjoy way more before they started to inject politics on their show. One of the host who is a terrible person ironically think that conservatives are horrible persons, he doesn't want them a listeners. He said that he don't want them to be killed or cease to exist, he JUST want them to lose their jobs. What kind of crappy human wish that to someone else just because he doesn't share the same belief. There is a lot to think and to me it feels like they never thought about it that much before trying to cancel people.

RD_21

There were a few particularly poignant insights from Chris on this one. Really appreciated his thoughts as well as Colin's here.

Well looks like Zoe Quin lied and now a man is dead.

Johnny Rosado

Great episode. I truly believe that cancel culture is primarily caused by boredom and people with no real interests in hobbies.

Reuben Barrett

I appreciate the retrospective and the current analysis of this tough topic. This was frankly the most fair and still brutally honest discussion about Gamergate, and the culture war since then.

JusticeSoulTuna

It’s crazy. I didn’t know “Cancel Culture” was a term so I came into this so blind to the whole zeitgeist of it. But you two are hitting the nail on the head with a lot of this. It’s even more telling that you’re from two different walks of life and beliefs in certain areas. The commonality is you’re both RATIONAL people. Wish more people were as rational and insightful as you two. If people just took the step back and thought before they spoke, things would be different. Great conversation, great episode. Keep it up you two, SS plus has been fantastic. 🤙🤙

DB Cooper

Thank you. <3

Colin Moriarty

Fuck yeah man you are the shit. Always knew it. And everyone should be listening to Knockback because it's actually just as good as Sacred Symbols. It's been a real treat going through the backlog. Your brother is a very charming fellow and I learn a lot listening to your conversations.

Jason Olmstead

Thank you. I appreciate your kind words. (I'm only speaking to the nice things you said about me. =D)

Colin Moriarty

Colin is the realest fucking person in this industry and I'm so fucking happy to give him a few dollars a month to help him build this thing. I loved Beyond back in the day. I loved Colin and Greg's friendship and chemistry. It breaks my heart for him that clearly for Greg it was his image that was most important and not true friendship. After listening to this I unsubscribed to Kinda Funny and to IGN on YouTube because I'm choosing not to give them views. And it's fucked because I thought I still liked these guys. Brian and Max and Greg are great entertainers. But after listening to Colin be so honest and open about his feelings I realized these other guys never will do that. For them it's pure business and entertainment. And something feels wrong about that. I'm so proud of Colin for coming out of that as successful as he is and I hope his popularity blows through the fucking roof.

Jason Olmstead

Thank you!

Colin Moriarty

I have to go back and listen to what I said, because a few people have brought this up, and I'm not exactly sure what I said that people are up in arms about (so to speak).

Colin Moriarty

Thank you. <3

Colin Moriarty

Thank you! We will do our best.

Colin Moriarty

Thank you. &lt;3

Colin Moriarty

Colin and Chris, this was an excellent conversation and I just wanted to thank you guys for talking about the topic. These SS+ episodes have been fantastic.

Alex Bolton

I have nothing but respect for you Colin however if you decided to commit suicide after how some of your best friends betrayed you like they did would you say they didn't contribute to your decision? I also believe in personal responbility but your reputation being dragged through the mud in front of the world by those you trusted is a tragedy. You can't say that external factors don't contribute to ones decision to commit suicide. I'm glad you decided to rise above and keep living. My heart broke when you were betrayed but to act like external factors don't contribute to suicide isn't accurate. I will always support anything you do Colin and I hope you don't think less of me because of our opposing view points. You've helped me get through many trials and tribulations I have had. Much love Colin.

Johnny Rosado

Listening to the tail end of this podcast made me want to reach out and tell you, you have alot of love out there, you have touch thousands of people. You have always been there through my tough times so we will all be there for you! Killer podcast guys!x

Isaac Hodgson Downs

I love everything CLS has to offer. This episode was another great listen. Keep it up C&C!

Willie916

We appreciate your support! No.

Colin Moriarty

I fundamentally disagree that the movement wasn't at least somewhat driven by misogyny.

Colin Moriarty

I agree. It's not very hard to just be kind.

Colin Moriarty

It’s content like this that makes me proud to be a patron, absolutely terrific episode today guys. Also, I totally understand Chris’s hesitation at the end. Touching on these topics can always be difficult, but we all deserve a chance to chime in and offer ideas.

I stopped listening to games media in general, its too much toxic bs for me to be bothered. I just listen to this, Gamescoop!, and NVC. This was an interesting episode though guys and I tend to agree with most of it. Colin you mentioned Brian and Max, are not not on good terms with those guys anymore?.

Ryan Murdoch

I'm not extremely knowledgeable about gamergate, but I think that being an editor at IGN has really made you biased against the movement. I don't think it was a misogynistic movement and I don't think it was out to "cancel" anyone. The games press that you were surrounded by made gamergate out to be racist, misogynistic villains, like the media does with Trump and his supporters. From my view, a lot of the games press is quite unethical and deserving of criticism. If the people you were surrounded by at IGN was afraid of criticism from gamergate, why was that? Maybe I have it wrong because I wasn't really paying attention during gamergate, but the current GG movement seems to be battling against the type of canceling that happened to you. I'd really like your input though, because like I said, I could be totally off.

Devin Harkins

Just tired of the outrage mobs that do the same thing as bullies. There needs to be more love & care in the world. Very disheartening how we treat each other.

Brandon Soto

Thank you. <3

Colin Moriarty

Thank you. I'm not hopeful, however.

Colin Moriarty

There's no doubt that most of games journalism is complete trash, and fueled the fire. I speak about that in the show. That said, I'm glad our episode resonated with you. Thanks for listening!

Colin Moriarty

We love to tackle stuff head-on. Thank you!

Colin Moriarty

Wow, thank you! High praise!

Colin Moriarty

Thank you so much. That's very kind.

Colin Moriarty

I mean, I have many problems inside my head and soul. I wasn't trying to discount mental illness, and I'm frankly not sure how you drew that conclusion.

Colin Moriarty

I'm totally willing to believe that the statistics show a greater volume of "sexual crime" than actually happens. I think they say that one-in-three women are sexually assaulted in their life or something. I don't believe that, because, as you said, what does that really mean? That said, I DO think that women who come forward are by and large telling the truth, because what do they have to gain by lying? Simply coming forward is difficult; telling your truth to people who will call you a liar anyway is even more difficult. Occam's Razor suggests women come forward when they're telling the truth. But obviously, some people lie, and clearly, some men don't get due process. This is why hundreds of US colleges are being sued by men under Title IX shit. I think the big takeaway is: Everyone should treat everyone else with respect, keep your hands off of people, and do unto others. It's simple!

Colin Moriarty

Thank you!

Colin Moriarty

I mean, we didn't dodge anything. We just spoke. There was no outline and no plan. We turned on the mics and began talking into them.

Colin Moriarty

Thank you. <3

Colin Moriarty

I'm not comfortable blaming someone else for someone's actions unless in very specific circumstances. I'm not a fan of her's by any stretch of the imagination. I'm merely attempting to be fair.

Colin Moriarty

There's definitely an addictive quality to it, one that I've certainly struggled with myself. I can't believe I've been using that dumb app for 10 years.

Colin Moriarty

In a way, Gamergate was never defined, and is even more loosely so now.

Colin Moriarty

It's definitely ridiculous. I love Contrapoints!

Colin Moriarty

Evolution. Very controversial!

Colin Moriarty

Awesome. Thank you for your support!

Colin Moriarty

Now we must Keep Them Great.

Colin Moriarty

Chris isn't going to like this very much.

Colin Moriarty

Well, we get into that saga within.

Colin Moriarty

one of the best episodes of SS+ thus far. You guys are just knocking it out of the park.

QlvrFox

Terrific, interesting podcast about a very complicated subject. Like most things there are no simplistic answers. Hopefully things will calm down eventually.

Peter Campbell

Really appreciate the different, insider takes about GG. Chris's insight about GG's lateral nature due to being a hashtag, and therefore encompassing a multitude of issues is a great reminder that GG likely takes a on a unique meaning to everyone. To me, GG really was about the untoward relationship between game devs and games media and more importantly, the increasingly contentious relationship between games media and their readership. As a reader, I really felt hated. ESPECIALLY by people like Arthur Gies and Ben Kuchera, who you could almost hear circle jerking with their elbow patches and patchy facial hair as they opine over vegan, fair trade, ethically farmed avocado toast about the lack of Black characters in games set Europe, yet never once take issue with their almost entirely White staff and who would ban my profile for having the nerve to comment that merely having black characters in games, didn't inherently, magically, make any game better.....despite me being black myself -_- and a Liberal one at that. I hated the "soft n' hot" takes - like getting "T E M P O R A R Y PTSD" from 15 minutes in a vr gun range, and I felt hated for not taking them seriously. I'd imagine a lot of people felt spoken down to, by people who weren't being genuine in their approach to games, be it for hate clicks, or an undisclosed relationship, so when the info about ZQ came out, i remember it feeling like a bit of a smoking gun. everything that's happened sense, well, it's been a nightmare, and I'd like to think that the Origins of GG came from wanting to improve the relationship between readers and media, while shedding light on their relationship with the organizations they covered, but I think it's fair say that's largely been lost. anyways, it was great getting your take and insight. stay safe and happy out there!

Toren R. (KESA)

I really enjoyed the discussion in this episode. It’s nice to hear you guys tackle the sensitive topics rather than shying away from them like others do. Sacred Symbols and SS+ is the perfect ying and yang.

Anthony Gigi

SS+ is surpassing SS as my favorite cast of the week. This has been a very enlightening episode. You gentlemen could not be more spot on

Colin Mumma

Lemme just say this: Sacred Symbols+ fucking rules. Love you guys and love this community.

Will Hahn

I actually think that you have it backwards. This golden age of journalism in which journalists were full of integrity is a myth. Journalists have long been activists or mouthpieces of government agencies. Look at the CIA infiltration into media. Have you heard of Walter Duranty who won a pulitzer prize by giving positive coverage of the USSR in the New York Times? The problem is that his writings were mostly lies that omitted the atrocities that were being committed in the Soviet Union. The problem with games journalism is that too many of these journalists want to be journalist-activists. They are there to push an agenda. Games journalism was fine when it was largely apolitical and made up of writers who were enthusiastic about games.

Devin Harkins

I think you’re wrong about that. There have been people that were ruined or significantly damaged by the cancel culture. If they are a vocal minority and if most people were smart enough to see through the BS, nobody would be affected and this podcast probably wouldn’t exist.

Eric

Colin it's not about easy way out it's about how well you can deal with your demons inside. If you don't have any problems inside your soul it doesn't mean others don't have it. Not every person is mentally or spiritually strong you know. We can't judge people who choose to commit suicide. Be careful with this topic.

Saulius Vekteris

This entire subject of gamergate is fairly foreign to me, and I don't really want to have to navigate the swamp to learn more (I largely ignored it at the time). I think it's insane how much people in this sphere assume it impacts on the world. I'm more than confident I could ask my neighbors in a radius mile (I'm not in SF obviously) and the VAST majority of them would not know a thing about it. Your consideration in trying to understand the woman's point of view was fair-minded but I do think the statistics are tailored to the desired outcome. These kinds of statistics are rarely outright fudged, but just like often cited statistics that woman make only 77% of what men make, there is a lot of room to represent the correct numbers in a misleading way (to be clear I was fairly horrified when I first heard these income numbers, and quite upset when I learned they didn't even consider the job positions). I have read several places that the statistics regarding sexual violence have often relied on a definition of sexual assault that many people would find overly broad (Reason has touched on this many times). In addition, self-reporting statistics are one of the least accurate ways of collecting data (an entire generation of nutritional science is bunk largely because of this too). I'm not going to pretend there is an easy way to collect this kind of data, however. Regardless, thanks for the thoughts. Now I'll go back to ignoring gamergate (but not cancel culture, which is at the heart of this and many other horrific patterns online)

CTE

Great episode! Very insightful.

Omar Rosa

I think you dodged a lot of the big topics here, but i would also say you both deserve credit for how tactfully you navigated the conversation. At the very least, I think I have a good idea of where you both stand.

sean McGuire

Funny how you guys decide to make this episode on GameGate because just yesterday I decided to do research and try to understand what it is/was because I actually didn’t know about it. I was in my 3rd year of College so I was fully focused on that and didn’t have time for internet drama at the time. love this episode. Keep up the good work guys! 👍🏽

Jeff Caseres

Colin, While I don't disagree with you that suicide is a personal choice others can be a motiviating factor in that decision. Zoe Quinn isn't innocent. All she does is attempt to destroy anything in her path because our society has made it that once accused you are guilty.

Johnny Rosado

As I've gotten older I've tried to let go of feeling like I have any authority or impact on what people deserve. Does anyone really, truly get what they deserve, really? I mean how do you even make that determination in a way that satisfies everyone? Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying codes of law are worthless (even if they too have often throughout history sided on my own spectrum of injustice), and I think it's ultimately the only system in place that can reasonably determine consequences, but people can't even come to a consensus on how to deal with consequence and action within their political circles. It all just feels like noise. I really do think we need to accept that twitter isn't a neutral platform, or the modern town square. It's feels designed to feed off the addicting nature of gossip and conflict as fuel to its engine, to keep people hooked off the misconception that it's just where honest discussion happens in the 21st century arbitrarily. Obviously its the responsibility of people to not to act unreasonable or malicious regardless of the space their in, but social experiments can impact people en masse, from their world views to their relationships to those around them.

Travis Johnson

I got to see Chappelle perform before the special came out on Broadway. Had the time of my life, he even did a one hour q&a after his set. As for GG, the official subreddit, kotakuinaction, was where they got together to discuss things. Nowadays people just point out what they consider bullshit by media outlets, and just laugh at how they are a blanket term thrown over everything bad that happens by the media.

Kenneth Oms

Great episode guys :) Funny, this is being uploaded one day after Contrapoints got cancelled by her own audience, they will even do it to their own the second they sort of kinda step out of line. It is getting ridiculous

Good episode! When I worked in local TV, I made some random reference to evolution and we got A LOT of calls demanding I be fired. But Twitter isn't real life and I have yet to encounter one of these people in public, and I have lived in very red and blue parts of the country.

Steven Beynon

In terms of the GamerGate situation, I think what really struct a cord with me at the time and still does is how much the video game industry and outlets would benefit from hiring traditional journalists that aren’t fans. The goal shouldn’t be to get someone that loves games, but someone that understands journalistic principles and reports the stories in a timely, relevant and informative manner. GamerGate IMO highlighted how little people truly understand what journalistic integrity is and how little they care about being good journalist in the game industry. Your qualifications for working at some of these professional outlets shouldn’t be I beat all the Zelda’s in one weekend.

Cameron O'Neill

The public is much smarter than the media. Cancel culture is a very vocal minority that is magnified by social media. I have no idea how you fix it, but I have faith in the majority of people being smart enough to see through all the BS.

James Galos

I upgraded to the $5 tier just to hear this episode right now! Today my lunch hour will be a little longer...

Gabriel Duque

Fridays are great again!

Joey Finelli

Dear Cream Cheese Colin and Cool whip Chris, keep flexing on the haters. As always, stay creamy.

Cheese Technology

I'm glad you guys are discussing this. That game dev who killed himself recently over accusations is just one more example of how toxic this all is.

Forrest Hunter