Major feminist here--going on thirty years--and gender wasn't the only issue for me (or any feminist post I read), but it was a key one.
And would it have been as bad had the board been all women doing exactly what FanLib did?
Well, see, there's *no* chance in the world that there would have been an all-woman board because women hit the same kinds of glass ceilings in the media companies as they do elsewhere -- so that's part of a feminist analysis for me as well (let's add race: apparently with one possible exception, they're all white and odds are most are straight--what kind of professional puts his baby on his resume? I teachd technical writing and have a resume assignment and make students take all personal/marital/etc. information off resumes).
The one self identified woman showed that women can be just as clueless and unprofessional as the men on the board; I don't believe having a woman guarantees any sort of quality.
I keep hearing that gender was the only issue for X people--but I haven't seen any of those posts. Care to link me to some?
Because all the ones I've seen started with the insult to basic fan intelligence about copyright, bad marketing, unprofesional communication, and no surprise look it's an all male board trying to make money off a female-oriented base (and if they didn't know fanfiction is primarily female-dominated and has been since the Trek days--I was in Star Trek fandom in the seventies--then they haven't been paying attention to the fandoms they claim to be in). Gender blindness was the added insult to the overall injury.
"I keep hearing that gender was the only issue for X people--but I haven't seen any of those posts. Care to link me to some? " For example, this thread on fanlib's forum. http://www.fanlib.com/posts/list/135/195.page (check the 10 and 11th pages)
I don't said that every fanlib's detractor had played the gender opression card, just that some of them have overused it(or that some of the people who have tryed to interogate the things with this perspective have a behaviour that I don't think better than the one which bother them).
And for the fact that the fanlib's board were made of men, well, why is this something RELATED specifically to fanlib and their business with fandom? You're telling me that it's unfair that women have not a better place in business's world? Or in society in general?No problem, I agree with you. You're telling me that fanlib's business men are dangerous BECAUSE they're men? No, I'm not with you anymore. Trying to made profit with fanfic is dangerous for the fandom, trying to exploit PEOPLE(men and women) without rewarding them is scandalous. Even if fanlib's board were the exceptions to the rules and dominated by women, the problem would be exactly the same for me.
And you have said it yourself, the problem is not limited to gender. But strangely, I did't see the "lifestyle" issue debated with fanlib. I did't see the race issue debated either.I did't see the social class issue debated either.
And yes, fanlib's guys were trully clueless about the fandom they wanted to exploit, I perfectly agree with you about this(and if they know that most of the people in fandom were women, their strategy sounds more ridiculous for me) but I think it's more stupidity than male chauvivism.
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life_wo_fanlib2007-05-25 08:15 pm
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And would it have been as bad had the board been all women doing exactly what FanLib did?
Well, see, there's *no* chance in the world that there would have been an all-woman board because women hit the same kinds of glass ceilings in the media companies as they do elsewhere -- so that's part of a feminist analysis for me as well (let's add race: apparently with one possible exception, they're all white and odds are most are straight--what kind of professional puts his baby on his resume? I teachd technical writing and have a resume assignment and make students take all personal/marital/etc. information off resumes).
The one self identified woman showed that women can be just as clueless and unprofessional as the men on the board; I don't believe having a woman guarantees any sort of quality.
I keep hearing that gender was the only issue for X people--but I haven't seen any of those posts. Care to link me to some?
Because all the ones I've seen started with the insult to basic fan intelligence about copyright, bad marketing, unprofesional communication, and no surprise look it's an all male board trying to make money off a female-oriented base (and if they didn't know fanfiction is primarily female-dominated and has been since the Trek days--I was in Star Trek fandom in the seventies--then they haven't been paying attention to the fandoms they claim to be in). Gender blindness was the added insult to the overall injury.
no subject
For example, this thread on fanlib's forum.
http://www.fanlib.com/posts/list/135/195.page
(check the 10 and 11th pages)
I don't said that every fanlib's detractor had played the gender opression card, just that some of them have overused it(or that some of the people who have tryed to interogate the things with this perspective have a behaviour that I don't think better than the one which bother them).
And for the fact that the fanlib's board were made of men, well, why is this something RELATED specifically to fanlib and their business with fandom?
You're telling me that it's unfair that women have not a better place in business's world? Or in society in general?No problem, I agree with you.
You're telling me that fanlib's business men are dangerous BECAUSE they're men? No, I'm not with you anymore. Trying to made profit with fanfic is dangerous for the fandom, trying to exploit PEOPLE(men and women) without rewarding them is scandalous. Even if fanlib's board were the exceptions to the rules and dominated by women, the problem would be exactly the same for me.
And you have said it yourself, the problem is not limited to gender. But strangely, I did't see the "lifestyle" issue debated with fanlib. I did't see the race issue debated either.I did't see the social class issue debated either.
And yes, fanlib's guys were trully clueless about the fandom they wanted to exploit, I perfectly agree with you about this(and if they know that most of the people in fandom were women, their strategy sounds more ridiculous for me) but I think it's more stupidity than male chauvivism.