Misogyny is defined as hatred of women and entrenched prejudice against women. Misogyny is used to harass women in various ways online. It is not just celebrities who are victimized, it is also happening to ordinary women around the world.
The first way is to cause direct reputational damage to women such as slut-shaming, revenge porn, circulating rape videos for extortion or shaming and malicious impersonation.
The second is to threaten and intimidate women out of the public debate. Women journalists and bloggers are regularly threatened with rape and death threats on social media for being politically outspoken. The Australian feminist campaigner Caitlin Roper, who herself has been a victim of intense online misogynistic harassment, discussed all the different ways eloquently in an article she wrote for OHPI.
OHPI stands against all misogynistic speech made online particularly on social media. In particular, we campaign against rape jokes, threats and intimidation, revenge porn, slut-shaming, cyber-mobbing a woman to push her out of the discussion. You can access the reports and briefings published by OHPI on the subject here.
We also share external resource materials on the subject with our supporters on Facebook. These include research findings, news and opinion articles, and resources on how to combat online misogyny.
Below is a list of all the articles shared by us on Facebook on the subject of misogyny. You can read the articles and the discussions that followed the posts.
Please report all instances of online misogyny from Facebook, Twitter and YouTube on our online hate reporting tool fightagainsthate.com, which is supported by Collective Shout, an Australian grassroots organization campaigning against the objectification of women and sexualisation of girls in media, advertising and popular culture. We share this data with government agencies, other NGOs and academics to inform and strengthen their policies, campaigns and research.
To further understand the subject, take a look at our video briefing here.
Facebook must hand over ‘revenge porn’ ID, Dutch court rules
A Dutch court has ordered Facebook to hand over the identity of the person who posted a revenge porn video of a woman. And here’s the clincher: the order says that if the details have been erased from the system, as Facebook claims, then it must allow an independent third party to investigate whether it has the information or not.
We are glad that institutions around the world are forcing Facebook to own up to its responsibilities towards its users.
You can access the Facebook post here.
John Oliver Takes on Revenge Porn on ‘Last Week Tonight’
John Oliver – the inimitable US comedian – took on the subject of online harassment of women in the latest episode of Last Week tonight.
The video, unfortunately, cannot be seen but here’s an article that discusses the points he made about women’s experiences online.
You can access the Facebook post here.
Rape threats and cyberhate? Vote no to the new digital divide
This article, by academic Emma A Jane, puts the entire debate on social media and women into perspective. Social media is the space we use to debate our politics. Jane calls it “digital citizenship”. That is definitely what Ford was doing. But if in response women are sent rape threats and cyberhate, it pushes them out of this important debate about their rights within this society. It must stop.
You can access the Facebook post here.
It’s Too Easy for Trolls to Game Twitter’s Anti-Abuse Tools
A Study by a group called Women Action Media reveal some of the problems people face when reporting harassment to Twitter. Some of them, we have already pointed out before.
Here’s some issues they observed:
– Tweet and delete: People who tweet harassing messages and then delete it, so no web address can be found to report.
– dog piling: lots of accounts harassing a person simultaneously.
– False filing and reporting trolling: people putting false reports
Twitter has been working on improving its responses to harassment. We recently compiled the steps it has been taking to fight the problem (some of which address the problems discussed above), but of course there is still a long way to go.
You can access the Facebook post here.
Under the Bridge: The Troll Issue
In this article, Brianna Wu, the head of development of game designing company Giant Spacekat, discusses why the law enforcement needs to take online threats of violence more seriously. As she says:
“Tech journalist Peter Cohen quite correctly called the actions of Gamergate “emotional terrorism,” the idea being to intimidate, bully and silence anyone speaking out for diversity in games until they quit.” You can access our Facebook post here.
Online, Black Writers Confront Racist Backlash
The Internet has been abuzz with stories of online misogyny faced by feminist writers. This article suggests that black writers receive similar racist abuse when they write on issues of race.
You can access the Facebook post here.
6 Social Media Accounts That Are Fighting Misogyny And Online Harassment
Online misogyny is rampant on social media. Here are six social media accounts that are fighting misogyny and online harassment.
You can access the Facebook post here.
Online harassment is a form of violence
An interesting article on how online harassment constitutes violence.The article brings to attention the fact that technology is being used to stalk, harass and abuse individuals, and that it constitutes a form of violence.
The article has been written by Jenny Ostini and Susan Hopkins who teach at the University of Southern Queensland.
OHPI is a harm prevention charity that combats online hate, including cyberbullying, serious trolling, online misogyny, racism, religious vilification, homophobia and more. You can follow our Facebook discussion here.
Tweeting Troll-Free Is A Form Of Male Privilege, And Alex Blank Millard Just Proved It
Are women, who speak out on subjects of social justice, harassed and trolled more than men on Twitter? This experiment proves that they are:
To understand how online misogyny operates, read this article by Australian feminist Caitlin Roper written for OHPI.
You can access the Facebook post here.
6 Cheap Ways People Dismiss #Feminism – And How To Hold Your Ground When They Do
This article highlights some of the techniques used by those who try to dismiss feminism and what you can say to defend yourself if they’re willing to listen.
You can access the Facebook post here.
12-Year-Old Madeline Messer Wants To Know “Why Do The Most Popular Game Apps Make Me Pay To Play As A Girl?”
We’ve discussed issues of misogyny in online communities a number of times in the past. This article looks at institutional sexism in the game industry from a different perspective, that of a 12 year old girl. The author, a student in the 6th grade, questions why in many games a girl can’t play the game as a girl character rather than as a boy character.
From our perspective at the Online Hate Prevention Institute, even more alarming is her discovery regarding the huge premium often charged to girls when girl characters are available. This fosters an online environment with a clear message that girls are not welcome, and certainly not equal. This environment of exclusion can have a lasting impact.
You can access the Facebook post here.
Interviews with the trolls: ‘We go after women because they are easier to hurt’
Why do people troll? This article speaks to a few trolls to find out the answer and different themes emerge. But what ties different trolls together is their apparent lack of empathy towards others. You can read our Facebook discussion here.
Reddit tackles ‘revenge porn’ and celebrity nudes
Reddit takes action to stamp out revenge porn and nude celebrity photos. It is not perfect but we applaud their stand.
We applaud Reddit’s move. Using social media platforms to shame and harass women is a form of online misogyny, which we condemn. Women should feel safe and secure in digital spaces.
You can access the Facebook post here.
TrollBusters app takes on those seeking to silence women writers
TrollBusters is a new app to identify trolls targeting and harassing women. For our Facebook discussion go here.
What happened when I confronted my cruellest troll
A recent article in the Guardian “What happened when I confronted my cruellest troll” described trolling as gratuitous online cruelty.
“Trolling is recreational abuse – usually anonymous – intended to waste the subject’s time or get a rise out of them or frustrate or frighten them into silence. Sometimes it’s relatively innocuous (like asking contrarian questions just to start an argument) or juvenile (like making fun of my weight or my intelligence), but – particularly when the subject is a young woman – it frequently crosses the line into bona fide, dangerous stalking and harassment.” You can read our Facebook discussion here.
What is the role of anonymity in spreading extreme thoughts and behaviour? A research on online misogyny on anonymous college online boards find that while anonymous message boards are not directly responsible for sexist culture they have become an important part of a larger system that normalizes misogyny. For students who contribute to and frequent the boards, sexist language becomes commonplace, shaping group styles and mapping the contours of acceptable rhetoric. You can follow our Facebook discussion here.
20 Examples Of Online Misogyny That Will Horrify You
Buzzfeed provides us with 20 horrifying examples of online misogyny.
Such harassment increases manifold if you are a vocal woman campaigner on any issue. Heaven help you, if you are a vocal feminist. Last week, to mark International Woman’s day, Australian feminist campaigner Catilin Roper shared with us the intense sexist hate online campaign she has been subjected to because of her views. Read it here
You can access the Facebook post here.
Silicon Valley sexism: why it matters that the internet is made by men, for men
Is there is a systemic reason behind misogyny on social media? This article suggests so. As the tech industry is overwhelmingly male, the social media platforms are built without taking into account online experiences of women. Hence they do not have enough inbuilt safeguards against the sort of gendered and sexualised harassment women generally face on social media.
You can access the Facebook post here.
Feminist writers are so besieged by online abuse that some have begun to retire
Online and social media have given feminist writers a platform to get their voices heard. Unfortunately, as this article discusses, it has also made them the recipient of constant abuse, threats and harassment. The psychological ramifications of such “incessant, violent, sneering, sexualized hatred” is leading to many feminists considering early retirement.
You can access the Facebook post here.
Sexists and racists are resorting to online sabotage. But they still won’t win
Trolls are attempting to create disharmony among the progressives through hashtags and stolen identities. Guardian reports. You can read our Facebook discussion here.
Being pimped out online by misogynist harassers will not stop me from speaking out
“These threats are criminal. They are designed to erode any sense of safety and security and to keep women in our preferred place. As Anita Sarkeesian from Feminist Frequency observed, Elliot Rodger used the Internet to make threats preceding his violent killing spree. How many other men, including unstable ones, feel supported if not justified in their hateful attitudes by an online culture of misogyny?”
An Australian blogger and women’s rights activist shares her personal experience of being harassed, threatened and impersonated online.
You can access the Facebook post here.
This is what happens when you try to ‘ban misogyny’ on a major Web site
Fark.com, a major online community, is cracking down on instances of abusive language towards women.
Here are the things that won’t be acceptable:
– Rape jokes
– Calling women as a group “whores” or “sluts” or similar demeaning terminology
– Jokes suggesting that a woman who suffered a crime was somehow asking for it.
It is sad that an online community has to spell out that this is offensive speech and should not be tolerated. On the other hand, we are happy that they recognise this as hate speech against women and are taking a public stand against it.
You can access the Facebook post here.
Sports Media Misogyny: What Is Fans’ Problem With Female Commentators?
The hyper masculine nature of sports environment (which includes players, coaches, sporting bodies and fans) has lately been in the news over racism and homophobia allegations, thanks to the soccer World Cup and Ian Thorpe’s coming out as gay.
Now this article from Mashable discusses the particularly vile forms of misogyny endured by female sports commentators on social media.
You can access the Facebook post here.
Laurie Penny on web misogyny: It’s time to end the culture of online misogyny
Many people think that online misogyny is just a harmless bit of fun.
But in this article, a woman journalist gives a low down on how threatening, vile and intimidating online misogyny can get.
Does it sound like just some harmless bit of fun? Would such words uttered in an offline environment be deemed “fun”? They would be considered unacceptable. Yet, they flourish unchecked online in the name of free speech and freedom of the Internet.
You can access the Facebook post here
EOM Website Is Up and Running Again
End Online Misogyny – a useful site for women tackling cyber-misogyny including being stalked, harassed or abused online.
You can access the Facebook post here
Bruce slams internet ‘misogyny’
A BBC presenter on online misogyny Newsreader Fiona Bruce has hit out at the “large number of men” making misogynistic comments online.
The 50 year old Antiques Roadshow presenter shuns social media because of the vitriolic abuse that she has seen unleashed on fellow female celebrities.
You can access the Facebook post here
Monica Lewinsky gives a TED Talk on #Cyberbullying. She uses her own experience to discuss the cruelty of online shaming and public humiliation and calls for higher emphasis on empathy and compassion.
As she says. “Online we have a compassion deficit and an empathy crisis.” We agree. You can follow our Facebook discussion here.
The Unsafety Net: How Social Media Turned Against Women
The Atlantic Monthly does an expansive article on how under the banner of free speech, companies like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube have been host to rape videos and revenge porn—which makes female users feel anything but free.
Facebook has tightened its rules on rape videos, rape jokes and fake profiles since. But social media platforms still remain remarkably unsafe zones for women. You can follow our Facebook discussion here.
Geek Speak: Laura Track, author of West Coast LEAF’s #CyberMisogyny report
A Canadian organisation has released an in-depth report on cyber-misogyny: #CyberMisogyny: Using and Strengthening Canadian Legal Responses to Gendered Hate and Harassment Online.
The report looks at the following problems: revenge porn, non-consensual sharing of intimate images among youth, child sexual exploitation, cyberstalking, and gender-based hate speech online. Let us come up with 10 recommendations on how cyberspace can be made a safer place for women.
You can access the Facebook post here
Quora’s misogyny problem: A cautionary tale
Quora’s trolls-gone-wild state is a perfect example of why user based websites need to change the way they think about targeted users – finds this article, quoting several examples from the website.
We couldn’t agree more with this author. User-based websites have a responsibility towards their users. They should not allow abuse, harassment and threats to specific target groups go unchecked.
You can access the Facebook post here
Violence against women is fuelled by online misogyny
The recent shooting in Santa Barbara brought the PUA or Pick Up Artist communities into highlight – sites where men discuss how to trick women into the bed or rail and rant against women, particularly self-identifying feminists, or indulge in slut-shaming and rape jokes.
Do the moderators of these websites have a responsibility in fomenting hate that lead to such tragedies? Our question applies to every discussion board and social media that allows people to interact and build communities. Do they have a responsibility towards what gets discussed on their forums?
You can access the Facebook post here
Stroud student speaks out against trolling
A Stroud student has shared her findings after conducting an investigation into trolling on Twitter “The 266 article study found 65% of all comments expressed violence and abuse” #misogyny #online.
A target of the abuse on twitter was Hopkins, a female tabloid columnist and reality TV star, who shot to fame after appearing on BBC 1 show The Apprentice.
You can access the Facebook post here
Is misogyny worse now than before the internet?
Five feminists discuss if internet has made misogyny worse, or simply become more obvious.
You can access the Facebook post here
Blurred Lines: the New Battle of the Sexes; The Good Wife – TV review
A BBC documentary looks at the online world and misogyny. As guardian reports: “Is it still true, in the age of the internet, that “women have very little idea of how much men hate them”? Or is everything online just empty posturing, meaningless banter? Can you safely make a remark, compose, distribute or receive a sexist image, or sing a song at the Oscars about actresses’ boobs ironically? Are women attacked because they are equal and therefore fair game or is it a mark of their continued vulnerability?”
You can access the Facebook post here
Monica Lewinsky’s return to public life is brave. Are we brave enough for her?
Should misogyny have place online? One of the earliest victims of online misogyny, Monica Lewinski speaks out.
You can access the Facebook post here