Amazon Twitch: Inappropriate Behavior? Shocking
October 19, 2020
Gamers are stereotypically portrayed as immature, racist, sexist, and antisocial males. There is truth behind this stereotype, because many gamers are immature, racist, sexist, and antisocial males, but it does not speak for the entire community. The problem with this gamer “archetype” is that the industry does not fall from from this image.
The newest gaming company to be called out for inappropriate behavior is video streaming platform Twitch. GamesIndustry.biz has the scoop on Twitch’s poor behavior in the article: “Twitch Staff Call The Company Out On Sexual Assault, Racism, More.”
The Twitch CEO Emmett Shear denounced inappropriate behavior and demanded industry wide change. Despite this supportive bravado, Shear’s company has its own share of poor actions. GamesIndustry.biz interviewed former Twitch employees for the article on the condition they remain anonymous. The stories at Twitch echo many toxic workplace stories, but one of the saddest recollections comes from a former HR representative:
“ ‘I’d seen many people go to HR and HR ultimately would not resolve things in favor of the complainant,’ they said. ‘They weren’t a source of support for employees. If anything, they just worked to minimize the complaining person and their complaint. They were always in favor of and working for the person with the most power.’”
Since Twitch began as Justin.tv, abusive behavior has run rampant. Women were not the only victims, ethnic minorities were frequent targets as were LGTBQA members. The problem resides in the typical bro culture atmosphere, where misogyny and racism are deemed as okay. Victim blaming is another aspect of Twitch’s toxic workplace as well as the demand to make more money.
Most, if not all, of these incidents were KOed, because Twitch did not want to lose face or revenue opportunities. Many of the perpetrators were leaders or held important company roles, so they could get away with anything. The company as a whole is a black mark on the gaming industry, but individual employees demonstrated humanity:
“It should be noted that several people we talked to spoke highly of Twitch staffers helping vulnerable co-workers, streamers, or viewers, but all were seen to be acting as individuals going above and beyond rather than acting at the behest of the company or in their role as Twitch employees.”
Twitch’s company culture might have changed since its beginning, but many of the perpetrators still hold leadership roles.
Things might be changing slowly in Silicon Valley as people demand accountability and better work environments. In the meantime, potential victims please do what you can to stay safe. Twitch is Amazon after all.
Whitney Grace, October 19, 2020
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