Comments on: More on #AmazonFAIL: Hackers, misogyny, homophobia and you

By: deanna zandt

deanna zandt — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 14:35:28 +0000

Mhoram, I know that there are discussions elsewhere about this, but let me say: just because BoingBoing and a few other geeky blogs are strongly-profeminist, does not mean that there are not severe problems in geek culture. I’ve been a nerd since day one, got my first computer (TI-99/4A! \m/) when I was eight, and have been swimming in it ever since.

A great reference for this is the absolutely incredible, fun-to-read anthology “She’s Such a Geek.” I’d love it if dude-geeks everywhere picked it up and then — overtly, clearly, vehemently — joined in on the work to eliminate the toxicity of geek culture. Obviously I didn’t get into the nuances of it for this piece, but I’d love to keep discussing…

By: Mhoram

Mhoram — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 14:15:40 +0000

“Geek culture is one of the last vestiges of an overtly sexist and toxic environment for anyone who’s not a straight guy, most likely white and middle-class”

- This may be one of the most naive and ignorant single statements I’ve read in a long time.

That said, good luck ferreting out what actually happened here. A nice scandal and a nice pushback will hopefully make Amazon not assume they can push feminists around.

By: Amazon Update and General Reflections « Onward, upward, thruward

Amazon Update and General Reflections « Onward, upward, thruward — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 00:16:36 +0000

[...] Deanna Zandt offers a broader view: More on #AmazonFAIL: Hackers, misogyny, homophobia and you [...]

By: AmazonFAIL: Update on Feminist, LGBT Books Removed from Sale Rankings | Our Bodies Our Blog

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 23:42:13 +0000

[...] #2: Deanna posted a follow-up. Filed at 2:31 pm in Books, Feminism & Gender, [...]

By: Jessica Freely

Jessica Freely — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 22:02:21 +0000

Great post. Thank you for putting all of this in its broader context.

By: deanna zandt

deanna zandt — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 21:57:17 +0000

Sierra, totally agree that there is the wider problem brought up by people like Craig. It's more the massive delisting over a holiday weekend that seems kooky to me, not that a corporate entity would deem content that's off the beaten path as inappropriate... that in of itself is extremely problematic and worthy of a whole 'nother post.

By: .pomegranate.

.pomegranate. — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 21:53:16 +0000

Thank you for this insightful reflection. However, I wonder what evidence there is that this actually was a flag-as-inappropriate attack? Amazon sent more than one author statements to the effect that this was an internal policy, and if you check out Dear Author’s analysis (http://dearauthor.com/wordpress/2009/04/12/amazon-possibly-using-category-metadata-to-filter-rankings/), it seems pretty likely (to me, at least) that this whole debacle stems from a poor, misguided, lazy, and/or regressive attempt to block so-called adult materials based on their category metadata. Based on Amazon’s statements, as well as the sheer number of books that have lost their rankings in a relatively short period of time, I think it makes more sense that this would be coming from within Amazon rather than without.

That said, the fact that even a single or small group of sad, possibly homophobic, clearly sex-phobic policymakers at Amazon thought they could get away with quietly stripping authors of their sales speaks volumes about wider cultural intolerance. I’m waiting to hear more from Amazon – though I anticipate we’ll only hear more excuses – but I’m with you that this is the kind of thing that will keep me busy for days to come.

By: Sierra Dafoe

Sierra Dafoe — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 21:52:57 +0000

Deanna, I would find it so much easier to entertain this possibility if Amazon hadn’t responded to early complaints by authors whose books were being de-listed with a stock answer that (and I’m paraphrasing) “your book has been deemed adult and we’re de-ranking adult books so they won’t appear in search engines.”

Unless they’re Kindle editions, of course. As of right now, my print books are missing, even if you search by author and title, but my Kindle editions are easily found.

I’m not even particularly upset about *my* books — when I first discovered this, all of mine were still showing, and I was nevertheless furious.

To see the actual text of Amazon’s reply to at least one author, click here. It makes it very hard to believe that Amazon’s just a victim, here.

By: Aspen Baker

Aspen Baker — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 21:28:04 +0000

I so appreciate this Deanna. Please keep helping us think critically about how our worlds collide and what it all means.