The creator of the short-lived and notorious “Shitty Men In Media” spreadsheet has finally come forward, in the wake of rumours about a forthcoming Harpers article that was slated to out her without her consent.
https://twitter.com/MoiraDonegan/status/951291580610240514
Moira Donegan, an American writer, has claimed that she was the original creator of the document in a feature written for The Cut.
The spreadsheet, which was a private Google document that was nevertheless shared by hundreds of women in its short lifespan, collected allegations of misconduct against more than 70 men, ranging from unwanted drunk text messages to sexual assault and rape. Women in the industry anonymously added their stories, building, Donegan says, a concrete and accessible version of the “whisper network” that exists among women in all industries.
https://twitter.com/helenadonahue/status/951310110910853120
Donegan took the list down after about 12 hours, saying:
I can’t pretend that the spreadsheet didn’t frighten me. As the stories accumulated and it became clear that many, many more women were using the document than I had ever imagined, I realised that I had created something that had grown rapidly beyond my control. I was overwhelmed and scared.
But the list had already been obtained by Buzzfeed and published on Reddit, and was followed with a “slew of think pieces” that condemned the list, often citing the potential for false allegations to be made.
However, in the essay published this afternoon, Donegan makes clear the importance of creating a resource to protect women from serial offenders – even though it has left her exposed to doxxing and other threats.
Donegan says she chose to reveal her identity after Harpers fact-checkers called her about the forthcoming article, written by Katie Roiphe. As rumours began to circulate about whether this article would out the then-anonymous list creator, a kind of “I’m Spartacus” cry went up on Twitter, with a number of women claiming to be the one who’d started it all – in hopes that Donegan would remain protected.
https://twitter.com/dtortorici/status/950811611178110976
2/
✅ She will get death threats to the point she will have to leave her home
✅ Same with rape threats
✅ Everything she’s ever done in her career will be poured over in attempt to get her fired
✅ Her family will be threatened. If she has kids, they’ll be threatened too— Brianna Wu (@BriannaWu) January 9, 2018
3/ Worst of all, this will NEVER END for her. Gamergate was almost four years ago, and I’m still dealing with it.
It is journalistically indefensible to put her in danger. There is no public interest.
You will end up a cautionary tale in a journalism textbook if you publish.
— Brianna Wu (@BriannaWu) January 9, 2018
Donegan says she still “[doesn’t] know what kind of future awaits me now that I’ve stopped hiding“; she says she lost her job in the days following the publication of the list. Considering the outpouring of support for her now, though, things may not be so dire for her.
Hats off to you @MoiraDonegan for your good intentions to protect and help other women. @Harpers should face all our wrath, and Kate Roiphe, who is consistently anti-women. I am sorry for how this all played out – you have my and many others’ support. https://t.co/j5p2AaUSNy
— Amy Siskind 🏳️🌈 (@Amy_Siskind) January 11, 2018
https://twitter.com/MorganJerkins/status/951303912254066688
Do yourself a favour and read the whole essay. It’s fascinating and shocking and, in this climate, absolutely vital.
