A ZINE ABOUT GENDER BIAS ON TWITCH.TV
gen•der i•den•ti•ty /`jendər īden(t)ədē/ A concept of self as male, female, both, or neither; can be the same or different from their sex assigned at birth.
bi•as /`bīəs/ Prejudice in favor for or against a person or group compared with another, usually in an unfair way.
RECEIVING COMMENTS While streamers of any gender identity can receive harmful and derogatory comments on Twitch. tv, research shows that streamers who are femaleidentifying receive a disproportionate amount of sexualizing comments compared to those who are male-identifying. Men tend to receive more comments regarding their gameplay while women and trans streamers receive more about their appearance or gender identity.
THE RESEARCH In order to gain feedback from Twitch.tv’s target demographic, a survey of 157 people of varying gender identities was conducted. The research showed that if participants hadn’t personally received derogatory comments regarding their gender identity, they witnessed it happening to others.
Numbers in parenthesis represent excessive use of a singular term that can distort results.
EFFECTS ON LGBTQIA+ STREAMERS It may seem like gender bias can be narrowed down to what cisgender men and women experience, but the issue extends much further towards LGBTQIA+ streamers. Not only are members of the community questioned for their sexuality, but transgender streamers also face a whole different range of derogatory gender-related comments. Their skills are
questioned because of their identity, they’re told to “pick a gender,” and they even receive hate from viewers simply for being trans. It’s important to recognize this in addition because gender identity includes much more than the societal norm of male and female.
It’s no secret that gender bias and sexism are concepts that cannot be erased. However, educating viewers that gender bias is something that exists can help shift their perception.
RAISING AWARENESS Educating people about what gender bias is and how it manifests on Twitch is the first step in reducing negative behaviors on the platform. Not only does it prove that gender bias really does exist, but it also forces users to re-evaluate if they’ve ever witnessed or taken part in sending messages that reference someone’s gender identity negatively.
Awareness is an important part in making users conscious of when biased comments happen. The issue of gender bias can also be combated by teaching viewers the unspoken rules of participating in an online chatroom as well as helping streamers learn how to build a safer community.
THE EASIEST SOLUTION One of the easier solutions to combating gender bias is to teach viewers how they should be acting in an online chatroom. It may seem unnecessary to teach something that should be common sense, but in some cases it’s better to have an explicit outline of these unspoken rules.
1. Respect streamers’ chat rules Streamers clearly list what th
2. Make sure your messages fol (no bullying, sexism, racism, e
3. Keep your messages relevant rather than commenting abou
s before sending a message. hey aren’t comfortable with.
llow Twitch’s official guidelines etc.).
t to what the streamer is doing ut their appearance.
4. If your message isn’t something you’d say to someone in person, you shouldn’t send it online. 5. Don’t say something controversial with intent to starting a hate-charged argument. 6. Treat other users in chat with the same amount of respect you have for the streamer. 7. Don’t ask personal questions; a streamer may be popular but they deserve to have privacy.
MODERATION For users who stream on Twitch, moderation is an incredibly important part of making sure your chat is free of negative comments whether it be related to gender identity or not. Mods help enforce the guidelines you set on your channel and shows viewers that they cannot take advantage of you and ignore your rules.
SEND A MESSAGE It’s also important for streamers to make it clear to their viewers that they don’t accept hateful speech in any form. A streamer’s chat is considered to be a representation of who they are as a person, so enforcing rules and teaching your community the proper way to act is critical.
1. If someone makes you unhappy, then ban them. You don’t need to justify your decisions. 2. You are not obligated to answer every question you receive in chat if you don’t want to. 3. Don’t be afraid to set boundaries. You may be on the internet, but you’re still human. 4. Get to know your viewers outside of stream to help them feel comfortable making friends. 5. Even if someone has been your viewer for a long time, they aren’t immune to the rules. 6. Allowing one viewer to be toxic can end up encouraging other viewers to do the same. 7. Give rule breakers a second chance if you feel like they’ve learned from their mistakes.
Building a strong and safe community for everyone takes time and effort.