Slashdot Mirror


Running For Congress, Brianna Wu Criticizes The FBI's GamerGate Report (venturebeat.com)

An anonymous reader shares this update about programmer/game developer Brianna Wu as well as the FBI's recently-released report on their GamerGate investigation:Wu has officially unveiled the web site for her campaign for a seat in the U.S. Congress, and says if elected she'll confront the FBI over their "appalling failure" when investigating members of the controversial GamerGate coalition. "Wu catalogued more than 180 death threats that she said she received because she spoke out against sexism in the game industry and #GamerGate misogyny," according to VentureBeat, which quotes Wu as saying "only a fraction of a fraction of the information we gave them was ever looked into."

The article says the FBI did investigate -- even asking Google to "preserve records" for several email addresses and YouTube accounts, and making a similar request to Microsoft. And the FBI also interviewed one minor who admitted to making at least 40 threatening phone calls, but after turning over that information learned that the state of Massachusetts had declined to prosecute. In the end the FBI's 173-page report ultimately concluded that there were no actionable leads.

Wu's response? "All this report does for me is show how little the FBI cared about the investigation."

31 of 760 comments (clear)

  1. Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by ravenshrike · · Score: 4, Insightful

    No, you unimportant half-melted snowflake, the world does not revolve around you and yours.

    1. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Why not? That's what the democrats do. You don't agree with them? You must be a racist, xenophobic, sexist piece of shit.

    2. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by ArmoredDragon · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I think the FBI should investigate the times where Wu was caught red handed creating fake accounts to harass himself.

      Besides, even if 10% of the shit claimed by Wu wasn't made up, trolling is hardly worth spending actual money to investigate.

    3. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I think you just proved his point. You dont agree with him, so you automatically label him as a bigoted asshole.

    4. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by ravenshrike · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Death threats on the internet are about as credible as Baghdad Bob was during the invasion of Iraq. The FBI looked into them, and determined their credibility was at said level, reported the one person who repeatedly harassed her and presumably handed over their evidence of such to the appropriate authorities, and then dropped the issue because they did their jobs. But for our special snowflake this isn't good enough. She needs that extra special law enforcement appeasement. It's certainly not the FBI's problem that Massachusetts declined to prosecute.

    5. Re: Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by NeoTechni · · Score: 5, Informative

      If anything, this report proves that's what SHE did. Falsely accusing people for years, and she's running for Congress specifically to subvert due process against her victims

    6. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by HornWumpus · · Score: 4, Insightful

      When someone calls you 'bigot' for criticizing a philosophy you know they are _full of shit_.

      Philosophies held are exactly the kind of thing you can judge a person or group on. Skip the name calling and defend it or shut up.

      --
      John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
    7. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by ArmoredDragon · · Score: 4, Insightful

      And "bigotry" isn't limited to racism.

      Bigotry has nothing to do with racism. Bigotry is intolerance of an opinion. In fact, calling people racist because you don't like their opinions is bigotry.

    8. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by geekpowa · · Score: 4, Interesting

      The insinuation is that this was done in a clandestine fashion with intent to deceive and overstate the threat. The rebuttal I linked above says that intent is clearly sarcasm/exasperation. Nothing was hidden. The original argument that this was done with intent to deceive is weak as piss.

      On a side note, spent 15 mins flipping through the FBI file linked to the original slashdot story. Some seriously juvenile and purille rubbish there. Allthough the death threats, the ones I read at least, where too over the top to be credible, what is definitely present is a visceral hatred and anger and a quite possibly genuine wish for harm. Apalling: I challenge anyone who thinks that can endure that sort of abuse and remain unaffected by it.

    9. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by goose-incarnated · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I didn't call anyone a racist, and trying to redefine a word to shortcut actually have to deal with what someone said is, apart from anything else, intellectually lazy

      You've called lots of people racist in the past, including me, a black man. Assigning unrelated traits into a single collection like you did may not be you calling someone racist, but you're certainly implying it.

      At least have the courage to directly call someone out instead of loosely chaining booleans together with a vague conditional.

      --
      I'm a minority race. Save your vitriol for white people.
    10. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by 91degrees · · Score: 4, Insightful

      If the criticism is something along the lines of "While the 5 pillars of Islam are laudible, I feel that they do not adequately compensate for the rather outdated attitudes towards gender equality still held by a disproportionate number of Muslims" I'll largely agree with this. If it's "that woman with a burka might be working for the enemy because all Muslims may want to destroy our way of life" then I'll probably consider you a bigot.

    11. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by Opportunist · · Score: 4, Insightful

      This.

      I actually had to look it up. And I would indeed consider myself an avid gamer. Actually, currently it's likely I spend more time playing games than working (if that's possible). And I haven't heard about it until recently, and I looked it up ... and I don't get it. No, honestly, I don't get it. What the fuck is this about? Someone left someone and now someone wrote an article about a game but didn't report about the game but let his (or her, I don't care) hurt feelings get in the way.

      That's it? For real? That's what people get worked up about?

      Don't get me wrong, of course, losing someone and being hurt matters to the person who it happens to, but why the FUCK should I give half a shit about it? "But journalism and integrity..." BULLSHIT! Does anyone still read "journalist" articles about games? Half of them are paid ads anyway, the other half is worded in a way that reeks worse of copy/paste than the average answer from a tech supporter. If you care for other people's opinions on games, read reviews from other players on Steam.

      Aside of that, PLEASE educate me why this is even a thing? If anything, it reminds me that adding "-gate" to any topic only means "we want to blow this out of proportion or else nobody gives a shit because it's not worth giving one".

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    12. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by goose-incarnated · · Score: 4, Insightful

      That's the point. They failed to gather the evidence themselves, which would have made it most robust.

      TBH, those IRC logs would not have changed much. Assume that they did have those logs, it still wouldn't turn Wu's lies about being chased from her home (and further lies about reporting it) into truths.

      And once again, those logs may have not been credible anyway, hence they were ignored. You are making the assumption that those logs were credible.

      --
      I'm a minority race. Save your vitriol for white people.
    13. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by Mashiki · · Score: 4, Informative

      Does anyone still read "journalist" articles about games? Half of them are paid ads anyway, the other half is worded in a way that reeks worse of copy/paste than the average answer from a tech supporter. If you care for other people's opinions on games, read reviews from other players on Steam.

      That's why it happened in the first place. Because people had enough, and it exploded when the media decided to double down and pull out the "gamers are dead" articles. Then rounded that out with mass censorship on any discussion of it. The comment graveyards on reddit are still around, some are huge 25k+ deleted comments? 5k+ here or there on it? Yep. The gamejournopros leaks. The "writers" shilling for their friends/buddies shit and not disclosing it? Those same writers being in a gigantic circle jerk of undisclosed payments from various people in the indie industry as well. Keep in mind that this wasn't the start, this had been building since the days of Kane and Lynch and the Dorito Pope.

      The icing on the cake was simply all the bullshit that sites like polygon, kotaku, rps, and so on have tried to push. Things like "GTAV is sexist" or why your vidya makes you a violent killer. Along with the big "vidya is sexist" so we need to create a safe space for the special snowflakes, and you need to give them special concessions because they're special. Which kinda goes against the entire "git gud" line(aka merit is all that matters) that gaming is built around. If anything it's simply exposed that the above mentioned sites are cancerous identity politics engines. And even media like the BBC or NPR have no problems pushing that same line of reasoning as long as it gets them what they want.

      --
      Om, nomnomnom...
    14. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by elrous0 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Complaining about these words is just the new "politically correct". An effort to rework the language into a kind of newspeak where criticism of your views is impossible because the words needed to describe them are banned.

      A truly hilarious criticism coming from an SJW, considering the fact that SJW's are the most serious threat to free speech in the country right now. I dare say you forfeited any right to cite Orwell the second you started trying to ban conservatives from speaking at college campuses across the country, campaigning to have people fired from their jobs for having opinions that didn't jibe with yours, and passing laws that jail people who refuse to use made-up pronouns. Sorry, no moral high ground there for you, snowflake.

      --
      SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    15. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by someone1234 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The moment you speak to his boss with the intent of causing him harm, is the moment your free opinion transforms to a tool of destructing the livelihood of another human. Same as hate speech inciting someone else to take action against you. Same as doccing people. These actions are beyond free speech. They are not for declaring an opinion, they goal is to cause harm to another human.

      --
      Patents Drive Free Software as Hurricanes Drive Construction Industry
    16. Re: Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by Attila+Dimedici · · Score: 4, Insightful

      You need to work on reading comprehension. The OP is claiming that she is running for Congress so that, if she wins, she can use the powers of that office to punish those who have offended her, whether or not their offense is a violation of the law.

      NOTE: I do not have an opinion on whether the OP is right or not, but Brianna Wu's tactics during the Gamergate situation resembled those of people in other situations who created fake attacks on themselves...that does not mean they are not true, just that she was either behind those tactics, or she provoked them in order to garner publicity for herself rather than seeking to actually address the problem she claimed to be protesting.

      --
      The truth is that all men having power ought to be mistrusted. James Madison
    17. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by inhuman_4 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I'm not an SJW

      Good god man you must be joking. You're not just any SJW, you are the SJW. You're easily the most famous SJW on slashdot. I knew even before clinking on the story that half of the comments would be you flame warring with someone. Even on stories that aren't political you're waging a culture war, your old sig was something like "SJW: Someone I disagree with and by the way I'm an idiot" and now your new sig is anti-GamerGate. I don't know if maybe you don't know what a SJW is, or you do and just don't like the label. But you fit the mold to a T. If you honestly don't think you're a SJW I suggest you go back are re-read some of your own comments because the pattern of aggressive social justice advocacy is plain for all to see.

    18. Re:Malignant narcissist upset, news at 11. by lgw · · Score: 4, Informative

      We had this conversation once. I remember digging up about 12 quotes from you that were SJW chapter-and-verse. It's just weird that you deny this.

      --
      Socialism: a lie told by totalitarians and believed by fools.
  2. An Inanimate Carbon Rod 2018! by Noishkel · · Score: 4, Insightful

    ... would be a better choice than Wu ever could have been. Even if she hadn't got fully blown victim narrative as a way of life.

  3. Self sacrifice? by stratzvyda · · Score: 5, Informative

    Wasn't he caught harassing himself on his own game developer account on steam?

  4. Re; ..."he thinks?" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Pronouns-ment....

    "HE" who?
    Brianna Wu?
    If Wu it be...
    then she -not- he.

    If he not Wu...
    then who?

    thanks for your attention
    to grammatical convention

    so please, would you
    say just who (Wu?)
    "HE"
    might be?

  5. Re:No one gives a fuck by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Hillary lost, get over it. You have to own your guy's fuck-ups, now.

    This is the sorest bunch of winners ever. I've never seen people who's canddates win, and they're angrier than before the election.

    --
    The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
  6. Sign of the times by PopeRatzo · · Score: 4, Funny

    I wonder where Brianna Wu got the strange notion that an internet troll could run for office and possibly win.

    --
    You are welcome on my lawn.
  7. Re:"Actionable leads" by _KiTA_ · · Score: 5, Informative

    There were plenty of "actionable leads" in the report, but either the FBI or one of the more local DA's all just refused to prosecute. Several people admitted to doing it (death threats), but "promised not to do it again". I don't know anything about this woman, but the report says that the FBI simply failed.

    That is the EXACT opposite of what the report says. They weren't actionable leads. That's why they weren't acted upon.

    In fact, this report pretty much exonerates GamerGate and proves exactly what we've been saying all along. There may have been "death threats," but they weren't actually threats of harm, and they were mostly sent by idiots from the chans or other young kids. In fact, the only one they had to do any major investigative work on was the false flag targeting MrRepzion. Others, like the one Antia used to steal from that college, were outright hoaxes.

    Oh, and mentioned on page 163 is that Brianna got harassed by about 40 phone calls. The only GamerGate chat Brianna has ever been in is GamerGhazi's mod chat. (Before they banned her for being a batshit insane loser.) In other words, that was a Social Justice Warrior harassing Brianna because Brianna is such an insufferable idiot that even the more asinine of the regressive left can't stand her.

  8. GamerGate's discussion about this. by _KiTA_ · · Score: 5, Informative

    Some Gamergate threads about it:

    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...

    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...
    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...
    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...
    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...
    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...
    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...
    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...
    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...
    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...
    https://www.reddit.com/r/Kotak...

    The new narrative from the Regressive Left is "Waah, the FBI didn't do enough work to find the harassment we KNOW simply MUST be there."

    The reality is the FBI investigated GamerGate and exonerated us. The harassment was either kids being stupid, obvious 4chan memes, or strangely enough True Blood fans getting pissed.

    Turns out it actually is about ethics in games journalism. (But really is about a Culture War in Gaming that the Left has soundly lost.)

  9. Re:No one gives a fuck by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 4, Interesting

    You think conservatives won ?

    I think that a process that modern day crypto-conservatives used to their advantage since the early 1990's, and went nuts over for the last 8 years got out of their control. Republicans own both the house and senate, and most of the state Governments, they also have a Republican president. Sounds to me like they won really big.

    Conservatives value process and playing by the rules, the use of reason to prove our point.

    Conservatives, perhaps. Crypto-conservatives, the present day version no, they do not.

    I don't want to get in a tit-for -tat battle, but here is one of your leaders, Mitch McConnel, on the previous occupant's nomination for the Supreme court, and the REpublican Congress refuesd to even consider the previous occupat's nomination. Tell me the process, and playing by the rules, and the use of reason that just saying "NO" is. However, rest assured that Mitch is aghast that any opposition to your Republican leader Donald Trump, the duly elected president of teh United States of America, the candidate who set Republican Conservative Records in the number of votes cast for him in the primaries, in addition to teh record set, had almost twice the votes of the nearest competitior Ted Cruz.

    sorry fellow, Donald Trump is exactly the representative of the Republican party. He is the man ovrwhemlingly wanted by Republicans.

    And here is the issue I have with the present day Republicans. After overwhelmingly supporting this guy, you won't own what he is. You might not like it, but you are part of what got hiim there, congratulations, you must be proud of the ultimte culmination of your hard work

    Not that you'll own it. It isn't in the crypto-conservative's psyche. You'll have some excuse.

    And before you accuse me of being a liberal - I'm not. I'm a Goldwater conservative, I believe in paying attention to the budget, but once set, paying the bills (present day cons like to "starve the beast". I believe in compromise to do the law (don't even get me started), I believe that th eGovernment needs to stay out of our bedrooms and private life, and I believe in separation of religion and state - and for the same reason my boy Barry did, and I quote from a speech of his in 1981:

    "There is no position on which people are so immovable as their religious beliefs. There is no more powerful ally one can claim in a debate than Jesus Christ, or God, or Allah, or whatever one calls this supreme being. But like any powerful weapon, the use of God's name on one's behalf should be used sparingly. The religious factions that are growing throughout our land are not using their religious clout with wisdom. They are trying to force government leaders into following their position 100 percent. If you disagree with these religious groups on a particular moral issue, they complain, they threaten you with a loss of money or votes or both. I'm frankly sick and tired of the political preachers across this country telling me as a citizen that if I want to be a moral person, I must believe in 'A,' 'B,' 'C,' and 'D.' Just who do they think they are? And from where do they presume to claim the right to dictate their moral beliefs to me? And I am even more angry as a legislator who must endure the threats of every religious group who thinks it has some God-granted right to control my vote on every roll call in the Senate. I am warning them today: I will fight them every step of the way if they try to dictate their moral convictions to all Americans in the name of 'conservatism.' "

    This is what your party has become. What Barry warned against has become reality to the point that you elected the exact opposite of wht you preach as your vlues because you hate anyone who doesn't toe the party line, and Trump was infinitely preferable to a godammed stinking Democrat. The next several years are going to be interesting. Will the Republicans reform the country into some sort of totalitarian government, accepting every fiat your president signs, or will we have civil war number two, or will you just inherit the wind. Gonna be exciting fer sure!

    --
    The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
  10. Meanwhile... by Z80a · · Score: 4, Insightful

    One day of typical work of Roberta Williams was more important for gaming than the whole life of this prick.

    1. Re:Meanwhile... by Mashiki · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Funny thing on that. You know that the usual social justice clique likes to scrub her out of history because she likes to make things that cater to her audience. Much like how they like to scrub Mari Shimazaki who was the artist and character designer for so many AAA games, and how she not only likes "sexy female characters" but has no problems designing male ones to pander or give fan service. Or they like to complain about manga's which have a very high level of female storyboard writers or lead-artists/illustrators.

      --
      Om, nomnomnom...
  11. Re:"Actionable leads" by _KiTA_ · · Score: 5, Interesting

    To be fair, 99.9999% of the SJWs screeching about the FBI not deciding to send in jack booted thugs to arrest anyone with a Twitter account who has ever criticized Saint Anita or BatWu never even opened the PDF once. The narrative is "the FBI didn't do their jobs" and they're relying on confirmation bias to uphold it.

  12. Re:"She fought the alt-right and won" by 91degrees · · Score: 5, Informative

    Presumably she fought against gamergate (is that the alt-right?),

    Tricky to say. A lot of GG members seem pretty broadly left wing. They dislike the extremists who focus on identity politics though, and are more likely to see Republicans as people with political opinions they strongly disagree with, rather than evil.

    As such it seemed like a reasonable alliance from the point of view of right wingers (including the alt-right) who are staunchly opposed to the identity politics extremists; and they can broadly get on board with a message of "journalistic ethics".

    did she win?

    Also hard to say. A lot of gamergaters say that all they wanted was disclosure of personal interest in articles. In this case GG won, but Wu wasn't opposed to that. I'm not sure what her view of GG's goal was. Presumably to prevent the number of female programmers going up to 8%... Not sure she's won here.