Transgender streamer Steph FerociouslySteph Loehr of Twitch Security Council believes that white heterosexual men have an advantage in communicating in game voice chat, therefore, advocates to get rid of this function. A scandal erupted around the statement: the platform was accused of a controversial personnel policy, and the girl of racism.
May 14 Twitch announced on the establishment of a Security Advisory Council, including Ferociously Steph. According to the announcement, the tasks of a member of the new council include advising users on the creation of new Twitch policies, protecting the interests of users facing harassment, and other functions.
Profile of FerociouslySteph in the announcement. Source: blog.twitch.tv
During a personal broadcast, FerociouslySteph stated that voice chat in games is not inclusive, as not everyone can use it comfortably. In her opinion, white heterosexual men are less at risk if they join in a conversation in an online game, and her voice is often ridiculed. This question is a girl raised back in 2018, but then she had fewer tools to disseminate this opinion among Twitch users.
May 15th streamer translated chat on your channel in the “only for subscribers” mode, saying that now viewers will have to pay $ 5 to chat. On Twitter, FerociouslySteph wrote about increasing competitiveness through voice chat they say mostly people “with the voice of a white hetero-man.”
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–“Oh yes, people with the voice of a white heterosexual man think that voice chat is very important for competitive games. Tell me more about how to solve systematic misogyny, and everything will be fine, lol. ”
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FerociouslySteph is not only a transgender girl: she positions herself as a furry deer. During the broadcasts, she often depicts this animal, and also wears a hoop with artificial horns. Due to controversial videos on her channel, in the comments on reddit, the girl is called a “freak” and wondered if she has a mental illness.
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An active debate arose in the network – some users felt that FerociouslySteph insulted white men with their statements. Upper Echelon Gaming blogger wrote that Twitch made a mistake by inviting a stag girl to an advisory board.
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–“It looks like Twitch did her best not to take the advice seriously, recruiting people who hate most of the platform’s demographic audience.”
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Twitch declined to respond to user complaints. In a commentary on the Newsweek portal, a platform spokesman said it was providing support to board members.
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–“Unfortunately, the member of the advisory board is being harassed. The safety of board members is our top priority, and we have taken preventive measures to ensure it. We are in close contact with each member and are working hard to provide them with any support they may need. ”
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Earlier, a developer from Riot Games complained about sexist abuse in voice chat in Valorant. You can read more about this. here.
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