3 Responses to “Kate Harding Voted For Clinton. These Were Not Her Reasons Why.”

1. Dianne Writes:
   April 16th, 2008 at 10:51 am

   Ok, I admit it. Her #10 makes me want to vote Clinton.

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2. Kate Harding Writes:
   April 17th, 2008 at 6:12 am

   Thanks for the link!

   Small correction: I know there are Obama supporters other than Jeff among the Shakesville contributors, and most have not endorsed a candidate at all (including Liss–or at least, she hasn’t endorsed one since Edwards).

   You’re welcome to call me a pro-Clinton blogger, but Shakesville is not a pro-Clinton blog; it’s a progressive blog where several contributors have chosen to keep a close eye on how sexism is affecting Clinton’s campaign. It’s also a blog where the likes of Ann Coulter and Michelle Malkin are defended against sexist (or transphobic or racist) attacks; liking the victim is not a prerequisite for calling out sexism.

   I do happen to like Clinton, and the Obama supporters on the contributors’ list are all respectful of her and her supporters, which is pretty rare in the blogosphere these days. But there are 23 contributors, and afaik, only two of us (Quixote and me) have said we officially support Clinton. So it makes me sad that we’re automatically identified as a pro-Clinton blog just because two of us have written in support of Clinton, and others (including two who have stressed time and again that they are not backing Clinton) are committed to covering the sexism and misogyny that have attended every moment of her campaign. It sure seems to me like the latter should be a major concern of progressive blogs, regardless of which candidate anyone supports.

   (Note: I’m not terribly upset that you put it that way. I’m upset that the state of the so-called progressive blogosphere is such that anyone who points out blatant sexism directed at HRC is accused–and I do mean accused–of supporting her, and is therefore regarded as untrustworthy.)

   This comment was written by Kate Harding.
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3. Ampersand Writes:
   April 17th, 2008 at 10:54 am

   Hey, Kate.

   Just to be clear (and maybe there’s no need for me to clarify this), I am certainly not identifying Shakesville as a pro-Clinton blog because several of the posters “are committed to covering the sexism and misogyny that have attended every moment of her campaign.” I’ve written posts objecting to anti-Clinton misogyny, and I certainly wouldn’t say I’m a pro-Clinton blogger!

   I agree, every progressive blogger who isn’t ignoring the election entirely (which is a reasonable position) should be objecting to the anti-Clinton sexism, and the anti-Obama racism.

   However, I don’t believe what determines whether a blog is “pro-Clinton” or “pro-Obama” is the “official” position of the blog is. Pre-walkout, there were many people claiming that Kos wasn’t a pro-Obama blog, because no official blog endorsement had been made. Very few Clinton supporters found that claim credible, and neither did I. (Edited to add:) Of course, I’m not saying Shakesville is anywhere near as extreme as a lot of Kos is, but a similar principle applies. (end edit)

   For me as a blog reader, what matters less than “official” endorsements are the tone of the posts and the environment that is fostered in comments. And, in Shakesville threads that comment on the primary election, the tone of most posts and comments — including comments made by some of the most prominent Shakesville bloggers — are strongly anti-Obama and pro-Clinton.

   (In my view, posts matter more than comments; but comments count for something in judging what a blog’s about, especially in comment threads in which the bloggers are personally staking out views).

   Just to be clear, that doesn’t mean that I don’t love Shakesville, or that I’m going to stop being a fan of your blogging. I don’t even mean this as a criticism; there’s nothing wrong with being a pro-Clinton blog.

   This comment was written by Ampersand.
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