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Disturbing Activity on Twitter - a Rant
Jan. 2nd, 2019 02:09 pmFirst, apologies, apologies - looks like I haven't been on this site for over a year. When LJs shut down I hurriedly imported my blog over to DreamWidth, checked that everything was there, and promptly forgot about this blog. So, again, my apologies for being inactive.
The reason I'm writing today is about the new Doctor Who, and specifically the new female actor, yes, female actor, who is now playing the Doctor - Jodie Whittaker. I have now watched her entire season and I love her. Jodie brings an enthusiasm, excitement, and sheer joy to the role. She loves travelling and having new experiences out there in the Big Wide Universe - and she enjoys showing her "fam" the universe. It's noteworthy too that Graham, Ryan, and Yaz aren't her "companions" or "assistants" but her family. This isn't a war-torn angsty Doctor who needs someone to "stop" them - but someone who has found a new love of life.
But every so often on Twitter, usually in response to an official Tweet from the BBC, or one of the actors, or anything rather official, the haters come out. These fanboys hate Jodie because she's a woman - and they are pretty loud in saying so, that is, until you challenge them, and suddenly, it's "I don't like the writing". "I don't like the companions", etc., all these excuses that they use to justify their so-called opinion, when they originally started with the "but only a man can play the Doctor" argument. Most didn't watch Jodie's episodes, or at least the entire season.
The most disturbing thing is the complete unwillingness to accept any evidence to the contrary. For example, this time around I had two men claiming that the show's ratings tanked when Jodie became the Doctor. That is a lie. There is no other way to put it. It is an untruth. I posted two, out of the dozen or more articles I found with a simple Google search, that discussed the show's high ratings, ratings that were higher than the previous three seasons, and I was told I was wrong. Now these are well-documented sources, that I provided links to - and I was told I was wrong.
And then the multiple messages (8-10 or more at a time) turned in to a personal attack. And of course, the two guys acted like I was the one at fault. That I was the one who couldn't handle a discussion without trying to make some kind of "liberal agenda" point. And worse - in terms of name calling, attacks, bringing up completely off topic "arguments" about why the two guys were right and I (a mere woman) was wrong.
I finally blocked the guys who were attacking me.
But here's the thing. This is why women get upset. Especially on-line. First, if a man had said, "sorry you're wrong, Jodie Whittaker got fine ratings as the Doctor, and here's five articles to prove it", it would have been accepted. Maybe said guys would have continued to argue about the character, producer or writers, and maybe not - but they would have accepted the fact about ratings and moved on. Because I was a woman, and I defended my knowledge with facts - I was told I was wrong. Apparently, I was wrong because women can't ever be right. That's what gets to me. And if I provide even more bona fides, such as my long history in, well, in this case, Doctor Who fandom, not only is that ignored but I was actually told that I was insulting New Who fans. Um, I'm telling you I've watched Doctor Who since 1977, I've seen all thirteen (fourteen including the War Doctor, and the non-canonical Peter Cushing films, and animated "films") and I have the entire series on DVD as a fact. As information that I know what I'm talking about. But, noooo - that means I'm "insulting" New Who fans and "disrespecting" them (the very words this guy used on Twitter). Yet if I was male he'd have no doubt been impressed by my background and knowledge. So it's frustrating.
To be fair, I've met some great people on Twitter. Of both genders. Celebrities and common-folk. People just discovering Doctor Who and people who have been there since the beginning. I've defended Twitter's easy block and reporting features. But at the same time, I'm frustrated when anyone decides they can't accept facts (or practical experience) because of the gender of the person who presents the information.
The reason I'm writing today is about the new Doctor Who, and specifically the new female actor, yes, female actor, who is now playing the Doctor - Jodie Whittaker. I have now watched her entire season and I love her. Jodie brings an enthusiasm, excitement, and sheer joy to the role. She loves travelling and having new experiences out there in the Big Wide Universe - and she enjoys showing her "fam" the universe. It's noteworthy too that Graham, Ryan, and Yaz aren't her "companions" or "assistants" but her family. This isn't a war-torn angsty Doctor who needs someone to "stop" them - but someone who has found a new love of life.
But every so often on Twitter, usually in response to an official Tweet from the BBC, or one of the actors, or anything rather official, the haters come out. These fanboys hate Jodie because she's a woman - and they are pretty loud in saying so, that is, until you challenge them, and suddenly, it's "I don't like the writing". "I don't like the companions", etc., all these excuses that they use to justify their so-called opinion, when they originally started with the "but only a man can play the Doctor" argument. Most didn't watch Jodie's episodes, or at least the entire season.
The most disturbing thing is the complete unwillingness to accept any evidence to the contrary. For example, this time around I had two men claiming that the show's ratings tanked when Jodie became the Doctor. That is a lie. There is no other way to put it. It is an untruth. I posted two, out of the dozen or more articles I found with a simple Google search, that discussed the show's high ratings, ratings that were higher than the previous three seasons, and I was told I was wrong. Now these are well-documented sources, that I provided links to - and I was told I was wrong.
And then the multiple messages (8-10 or more at a time) turned in to a personal attack. And of course, the two guys acted like I was the one at fault. That I was the one who couldn't handle a discussion without trying to make some kind of "liberal agenda" point. And worse - in terms of name calling, attacks, bringing up completely off topic "arguments" about why the two guys were right and I (a mere woman) was wrong.
I finally blocked the guys who were attacking me.
But here's the thing. This is why women get upset. Especially on-line. First, if a man had said, "sorry you're wrong, Jodie Whittaker got fine ratings as the Doctor, and here's five articles to prove it", it would have been accepted. Maybe said guys would have continued to argue about the character, producer or writers, and maybe not - but they would have accepted the fact about ratings and moved on. Because I was a woman, and I defended my knowledge with facts - I was told I was wrong. Apparently, I was wrong because women can't ever be right. That's what gets to me. And if I provide even more bona fides, such as my long history in, well, in this case, Doctor Who fandom, not only is that ignored but I was actually told that I was insulting New Who fans. Um, I'm telling you I've watched Doctor Who since 1977, I've seen all thirteen (fourteen including the War Doctor, and the non-canonical Peter Cushing films, and animated "films") and I have the entire series on DVD as a fact. As information that I know what I'm talking about. But, noooo - that means I'm "insulting" New Who fans and "disrespecting" them (the very words this guy used on Twitter). Yet if I was male he'd have no doubt been impressed by my background and knowledge. So it's frustrating.
To be fair, I've met some great people on Twitter. Of both genders. Celebrities and common-folk. People just discovering Doctor Who and people who have been there since the beginning. I've defended Twitter's easy block and reporting features. But at the same time, I'm frustrated when anyone decides they can't accept facts (or practical experience) because of the gender of the person who presents the information.
