There is No Undo Button
Yesterday Loncon 3 announced that they had invited Jonathan Ross to be Hugo MC. Who is Jonathan Ross? He's a TV presenter cut from the same sort of cloth as Howard Stern - the same sort of puerile boy's club humor, "outrageous" boundary pushing (and the inevitable apology when it goes too far), and the casual sexism that seems to think "I'd fuck her" is a compliment.
Unsurprisingly, the internet kicked off a shitstorm of complaint (and some rather unfortunate badgering of Ross on twitter) and eventually he resigned from the position which Loncon 3 regretfully accepted. Which leaves us in an unfinished place - Loncon 3 has made no statements (other than a tin-eared "thank you for your feedback.")
Loncon 3 is already very heavy on the male guests of honor (five of the seven). I know people working on the programming and I'm hopeful that there won't be a repeat of WFC where panel parity wasn't considered and most panels were filled with white dudes. But this GOH list has always left a bitter taste in my mouth. Not because any of the guests are unworthy, but because it is so very white dudeish and that helps set the focus for the con.
I don't know Ross and I have no idea if his public persona is mainly shtick and in person he is perfectly pleasant and charming, and helps old ladies across the street. I also don't care. Inviting Ross to be the MC of the Hugos is a tacit approval of his performances by the con.
It says to me that Loncon 3 finds that sort of boy's club humor and casual sexism acceptable. It also says to me that Loncon 3 is not taking its code of conduct seriously because if they were, they would know that many people would not feel welcome with him as a prominent guest.
Unfortunately, for a long time that sort of attitude was business as usual for the science fiction community, and there's a vocal group of people who complain that people who don't like that sort of attitude are too sensitive. It has only been a couple of weeks since the last dustup that was rife with sexism, which is why I think Loncon 3 needs to make a statement.
I would like believe the regret in Loncon 3's acceptance of Ross's resignation was pro forma politeness. I want to believe Loncon 3 takes seriously the idea that all people attending the convention are entitled to be treated with respect, not just the straight white men. Ross as MC of the Hugos does not square with that idea.
I keep saying Loncon 3 as if it were a monolith. It's not, and I understand this decision was taken by only a few people. fjm resigned from the committee over the selection of Ross. Everyone I know who is working on Loncon is good people and I expect the ones who I don't know are also good people, and many people were probably unhappy. However, when the con puts on its official face and makes a decision like this, the whole organization is tarnished and quite a lot of good work was undone yesterday.
Unsurprisingly, the internet kicked off a shitstorm of complaint (and some rather unfortunate badgering of Ross on twitter) and eventually he resigned from the position which Loncon 3 regretfully accepted. Which leaves us in an unfinished place - Loncon 3 has made no statements (other than a tin-eared "thank you for your feedback.")
Loncon 3 is already very heavy on the male guests of honor (five of the seven). I know people working on the programming and I'm hopeful that there won't be a repeat of WFC where panel parity wasn't considered and most panels were filled with white dudes. But this GOH list has always left a bitter taste in my mouth. Not because any of the guests are unworthy, but because it is so very white dudeish and that helps set the focus for the con.
I don't know Ross and I have no idea if his public persona is mainly shtick and in person he is perfectly pleasant and charming, and helps old ladies across the street. I also don't care. Inviting Ross to be the MC of the Hugos is a tacit approval of his performances by the con.
It says to me that Loncon 3 finds that sort of boy's club humor and casual sexism acceptable. It also says to me that Loncon 3 is not taking its code of conduct seriously because if they were, they would know that many people would not feel welcome with him as a prominent guest.
Unfortunately, for a long time that sort of attitude was business as usual for the science fiction community, and there's a vocal group of people who complain that people who don't like that sort of attitude are too sensitive. It has only been a couple of weeks since the last dustup that was rife with sexism, which is why I think Loncon 3 needs to make a statement.
I would like believe the regret in Loncon 3's acceptance of Ross's resignation was pro forma politeness. I want to believe Loncon 3 takes seriously the idea that all people attending the convention are entitled to be treated with respect, not just the straight white men. Ross as MC of the Hugos does not square with that idea.
I keep saying Loncon 3 as if it were a monolith. It's not, and I understand this decision was taken by only a few people. fjm resigned from the committee over the selection of Ross. Everyone I know who is working on Loncon is good people and I expect the ones who I don't know are also good people, and many people were probably unhappy. However, when the con puts on its official face and makes a decision like this, the whole organization is tarnished and quite a lot of good work was undone yesterday.