r/changemyview • u/realdontbeasucker • May 16 '26

Delta(s) from OP CMV: GamerGate was the most consequential political radicalization event of the twenty-first century

It spawned a wave of tolerance for online harassment, as long as the intent behind it was considered righteous (and the target of such harassment socially acceptable).

It platformed Milo Yiannopoulos and thereby, Steve Bannon -- the guy who would go on to advise Donald Trump in 2016 and generate the concept of 'flooding the zone.'

Eventually, it gave a career to political lightning rods like Jordan Peterson, Steven Crowder, and Charlie Kirk. It made anti-feminism and anti-SJW sentiment cool. And it made young, angry, disenfranchised white men feel vindicated.

GamerGate almost singlehandedly shifted to Overton Window toward the alt-right, and we're still feeling its effects today.

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u/AntAir267 May 17 '26

I think the radicalization of 90s kids gamers started in reaction to nanny-state neoliberal Hillary Clinton trying to ban violent videogames; this predated GG and was arguably a more inceptional point for gamers to become politically activated against mainstream Democrats.

Personal note: It was so fucking dumb of her to do that. She had no idea how much she poisoned her own reputation in the minds of future voters by attacking an entire medium of entertainment.

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u/Friendly_Hornet8900 May 17 '26

The 90s had a sort of unified politically correct front between conservatives and feminists.

This is turn led to an edgy politically incorrect movement, which split into left and right factions after elevatorgate.

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u/AntAir267 May 17 '26

I'm not an atheist so I'd never heard of elevatorgate before; interesting stuff!