[News] Yahoo sports blogger (Harrison Monney) fired over social media impropriety

[Dion]

On Friday Wyshynski announced the firing of writer Harrison Mooney over social media impropriety. Two weeks ago, Mooney was embroiled in controversy over claims of sexual harassment over texts and Twitter DMs. Sharks blogger Jen Ramos

The offending tweet that got him fired..



http://network.yardbarker.com/nhl/ar...favorites_head

Sharks blogger Jen Ramos talks about Mooney as a sexual harraser and how it affects women who try to make a go in the hockey world.

By now, I'm probably infamous in hockey twitter as the woman who started the string of tweets that exposed Harrison Mooney as a serial sexual harasser. If I'm going to be honest, it's things like that that drove me away from wanting to be a part of hockey fandom. I didn't want to write about hockey anymore, I didn't want to talk about hockey anymore; I just wanted to enjoy the game in peace without fear of harassment.

I've been harassed by two hockey writers by my count, and I know other women have been harassed numerous times, too. Plain and simple: being a hockey fan online isn't a safe space for women. In fact, it's downright frightening at times.

But! Hockey fans come in all forms — intersectionality exists for a reason — and that's good! Telling them to keep quiet when there's an injustice, such as sexual harassment, isn't helping anyone. If one woman speaks up about being harassed, the response shouldn't be to shame her or to harass her even more or to not believe her. Support her, believe her, let her know it's not her fault (because it's not! No one asks to be sexually harassed).

In order to truly enact change, you start with changing the systemic wrong, such as constant harassment. Condoning it only perpetuates the awful cycle that treats women like objects. People who identify as women aren't objects; they're so much more than that. Hell, they're pretty damn good hockey writers, too. Discrediting them because of their gender is such a sophomoric, sexist, misogynistic thing to do. And you don't want to be any of that, do you?

Hockey's a safe space for men, which shouldn't be the case. It should be a safe space for everyone to enjoy a great game.

http://www.fearthefin.com/2014/8/16/...d-ol-boys-club

[Blaster86]

Neat. So she's essentially implying all male hockey fans sexually harass the female ones? Any females here care to corroborate?

[PeteMoss]

Can't pretend to know how it feels for a woman to be 'hit' on like that online by a fellow writer but seems more like a guy who just didn't know how to talk to women than someone with the intention of making anyone uncomfortable.

[Blaster86]

Originally Posted by PeteMoss

Can't pretend to know how it feels for a woman to be 'hit' on like that online by a fellow writer but seems more like a guy who just didn't know how to talk to women than someone with the intention of making anyone uncomfortable.

Did she release the entire chain of messages? I can't seem to find them if they have been.

[cam_wmh]

Canucks fans, being Canucks fans.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by PeteMoss

Can't pretend to know how it feels for a woman to be 'hit' on like that online by a fellow writer but seems more like a guy who just didn't know how to talk to women than someone with the intention of making anyone uncomfortable.

I took Mooney's tweet as a horrible and degrading attempt at making humour. Women should never have to be treated as sexual objects when trying to work in a business mode enviroment. Treat them with respect and dignity.

Frankly i'm glad Mooney was exposed for who he is and that he got fired.

I suspect that more of this goes on and is not reported.

[Jables16]

Originally Posted by Blaster86

Neat. So she's essentially implying all male hockey fans sexually harass the female ones? Any females here care to corroborate?

Did you just nap through the whole "Not all men, yes all women" saga this summer? How can you possibly feel victimized in this instance?

[GGG]

Is that tweet it? Is there more to this conversation or a past history of exchanges?

If it is one single instance of a pick up line over twitter of a person who follows him I dont see it as harrassment.

Or do they work together? Does she work for yahoo as well?

[chockfullofgoodness]

Originally Posted by Dion

I took Mooney's tweet as a horrible and degrading attempt at making humour. Women should never have to be treated as sexual objects when trying to work in a business mode enviroment. Treat them with respect and dignity.

Frankly i'm glad Mooney was exposed for who he is and that he got fired.

I suspect that more of this goes on and is not reported.

So you're saying a guy should be fired over jokingly saying "let's make out"? That's what you're saying, right?

[Freeway]

Remember, nobody's all good or all bad.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by chockfullofgoodness

So you're saying a guy should be fired over jokingly saying "let's make out"? That's what you're saying, right?

His tweet was crude and disrespectful. Be professional when dealing with another blogger who works in the same industry as you. Also, don't assume that the female you are tweeting to will appreciate your comments.

[sempuki]

Originally Posted by chockfullofgoodness

So you're saying a guy should be fired over jokingly saying "let's make out"? That's what you're saying, right?

How many times does it take before you're allowed to say "enough is enough"? How often do you have to put up with it in silence?

[chockfullofgoodness]

Originally Posted by Blaster86

Did she release the entire chain of messages? I can't seem to find them if they have been.

Not that I've seen. It's just a bunch of people wanting someone burned after hearing only one side of the story.

[Blaster86]

Originally Posted by Jables16

How can you possibly feel victimized in this instance?

Because that's how it reads to me, and it bugs me a little. If she was being harassed by the guy then that blows, but it reads like she's saying every woman deals with this and that it's only hockey fans that do it.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by chockfullofgoodness

Not that I've seen. It's just a bunch of people wanting someone burned after hearing only one side of the story.

Mooney's apology

As you likely know by now, I no longer work for Yahoo Sports. I’m saddened and disappointed, just as I was when this ordeal began two weeks ago. But as difficult as it was, and is, it’s led me to an even more difficult realization: I did it to myself.

At times in the past year, I’ve used social media as a way to meet women. Clearly, in my attempts to be funny or interesting during conversations, there have been instances where I made unwelcome comments. I did not intend to be malicious, to harass, or even to give anyone pause, and in each case I was foolish and wrong to assume these interactions would be met with anything besides discomfort. But I know that how things are intended is not as important as how they are received. I would like to apologize to those directly involved.

I’ve always wanted to find ways to make hockey more inclusive — whether of race, sexual orientation, or gender — and I recognize that through my actions, I was working against that cause, and paving the way to be seen as a hypocrite.

To that end, I would also like to publicly and sincerely apologize to the hockey community as a whole. I set a poor example of how to make this an inclusive and safe space for everyone.

http://harrisonmooney.tumblr.com/

[chockfullofgoodness]

Originally Posted by Dion

His tweet was crude and disrespectful. Be professional when dealing with another blogger who works in the same industry as you. Also, don't assume that the female you are tweeting to will appreciate your comments.

I hear you. But there was nothing in that tweet bad enough to get a guy fired, let alone make the news.

[chockfullofgoodness]

Originally Posted by Dion

Mooney's apology



http://harrisonmooney.tumblr.com/

Haha!! I will walk away now. Goodnight, everyone!

[savemedrzaius]

Originally Posted by chockfullofgoodness

I hear you. But there was nothing in that tweet bad enough to get a guy fired, let alone make the news.

It was a series of tweets. I think the other ones were talking about who beautiful her lips were, etc.

His apology seems heartfelt though, so hopefully he gets another chance. Puckdaddy sucks for the most part anyways.

[Caged Great]

I am glad that this happened. People should be respected for their ideas and not belittled and demeaned for something that is irrelevant entirely to what they are doing.

Women have every right not to have to put up with guys bs attitudes.

I'm sure that Mooney is probably mostly a good guy, that made a mistake (I don't know him), but if things like this don't get exposed, and punished, then they will continue. That should be not acceptable.

Inclusiveness of ideas and perspectives is a goal that should be paramount, and not shunned for irrelevancies.

[Dion]

nm