Recently, Brenna Smith, a former colleague and friend, co-authored her first big news story for USA Today, featuring stories of January 6th riot suspects who crowdfund their defense lawyers. Conservative pundits and their friends on the left used this opportunity to attack her and send a mob of vicious trolls her way.
Here are some choice bits:
Our intern just published her first story with us and this is the vitriol she’s been met with. Just insane. Here’s the piece — it’s great and so is Brenna https://t.co/wTvnLxlrWi pic.twitter.com/tW28WcatJp
— Brett Murphy (@BrettMmurphy) March 28, 2021
Male journalists who shared a byline with Brenna were not subject to these attacks.
The story Brenna was covering is important and nuanced and deserves many more passes — for example, when crowdfunding platforms ban certain people for raising money for defense funds, is it a slippery slope situation? What about addressing the fact that all sorts of people have to essentially “buy” a fair trial in our country? — but what we got instead was a hate campaign against a young reporter.
In the wake of this, there has been pushback from other journalists and media figures, arguing that these trials by fire are necessary for anyone who wants to be in the profession.
I could see where they were coming from — somewhat. I consider myself to be very tough, in spite of having dealt with everything from a physical assault on the job that had long-lasting repercussions to being targeted and blackmailed by foreign security services. I like to think that these experiences have made me a better writer and person, simply because I was able to overcome them and to continue doing what I do.
On the other hand — and please keep in mind that this is a mental health column, and mental health is a huge factor in dealing with harassment — what are we really saying when we attempt to normalize this treatment of female journalists?
There is a pernicious and silly idea that online threats and harassment somehow don’t escalate into real life attacks. We know that this is not the case.
We also know that online harassment can and does impact your health and ability to do your job. In the wake of the most recent attacks against me, I have missed deadlines. While my coping strategies — including lifting and leaning hard on my friends — have been healthy for the most part, I am also unable to eat when very stressed, which can lead to severe stomach pains and even fainting spells. Social media breaks have been very helpful, but the idea that I’ll a) have to go back eventually and b) that I depend on social media to get commissions and promote my work has remained an issue.
The nasty truth here is that American society expects women journalists to be valkyries and boss bitches, then points and laughs when they buckle under a disproportionate amount of hatred and resentment. If you’re a man who thinks I’m lying about the “disproportionate” part, please set up a burner account with a stereotypically feminine name and avatar, then engage angry men on hot button issues. Let me know how quickly they call you ugly or tell you they want to “hate fuck” you.
Being a journalist means telling stories, but it also means bothering people. Some are good at it and others not so much, but it is women in particular who are held to impossible standards in the industry. It’s one of the reasons I have consciously elected to no longer do reporting in particular. I am tired. I’ve been tired for years. And I must prioritize my health and my role as a mother — I don’t have a choice, especially when you consider how precarious my work and the work of my colleagues can be.
There is a difference between criticism, as in, “Hey! I think your story could’ve really used a contribution from a criminal justice expert!” and outright hate, as in, “Hey! I don’t consider you a person! You’re a fat fucking evil pig!”
People who don’t see this difference are being deliberately obtuse.
I don’t have answers as to how to combat this type of abuse at this time. Obviously, the fact that none of these trolls are really anonymous is something they should be occasionally reminded of (I’m saying this as a person who is very good at investigating people online, if I may say so). But that’s only the beginning.
None of us are perfect in the ways we conduct ourselves online. I’ll be the first to say that I’m not. Being online can be impersonal and, let’s face it, this can result in us dehumanizing one another.
But if you want to talk about what it means to be “tough” as a journalist in the United States today, consider this: sometimes, the “tough” thing to do is to not harass someone just because you dislike them or disagree with them. Tough people are in control of themselves. It’s the weak who are not.
Think about that the next time you tell a woman in this field that she should simply “toughen up.”
Image credit: Gino Crescoli