Elevatorgate

Rebecca Watson is an American blogger and podcast host. She is the founder of the blog ''Skepchick'' and former co-host of ''The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe'' podcast. She also previously co-hosted the ''Little Atoms'' podcast.

Career

Watson blogs about atheism and feminist politics, and has been particularly active in critiquing the modern atheist movement (sometimes called "New Atheism") from within, especially regarding the lack of attention given to the role of women in the movement. Primarily active online, she was described by ''BuzzFeed'' as "the first major atheist whose rise has occurred on the web".

''Skepchick''

Watson founded the blog ''Skepchick'' in 2005, describing it as "an organization dedicated to promoting skepticism and critical thinking among women around the world". The same year, Watson released ''The Skepchick Calendar'', a pin-up calendar featuring pictures of skeptical women for every month. Proceeds provided the attendance fee for several female applicants to attend the James Randi Educational Foundation's The Amaz!ng Meeting.

Originally the site consisted of a forum and a monthly online magazine, ''Skepchick Magazine'', which was launched in January 2006. In February 2006, Watson created a blog titled ''Memoirs of a Skepchick'', as an addition to the magazine. Eventually the blog, now simply titled ''Skepchick'', became the main site, as Skepchick Magazine was discontinued in July 2006.
''Skepchick'' has a focus on science and skepticism in general rather than atheism in particular. , the site, whose stated goal is "to discuss women's issues from a skeptical standpoint", hosts over 20 bloggers from around the world.

In 2010, ''Skepchick'' partnered with the Women Thinking Free Foundation to host a vaccination drive with the help of the "Hug Me!" campaign at the Dragon*Con convention in Atlanta, Georgia. Public health staff allowed members of the public to receive a TDAP vaccination free of charge, as well as educational literature promoting immunization. In 2011, ''Skepchick'', the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF), and the Women Thinking Free Foundation partnered to offer a similar vaccination clinic at The Amaz!ng Meeting 9 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The site was the 2012 winner of The Ockham Awards for Best Skeptic Blog.

''The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe''

Watson's first appearance on the podcast ''The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe'' was on episode 33 (March 9, 2006), where she was interviewed about her work on ''Skepchick''. She returned on episode 36 (March 29, 2006) as a regular member of the panel. On December 27, 2014, she announced that she had recorded her final show prior to leaving the organization.

Public Radio Talent Quest

In May 2007, Watson entered the Public Radio Talent Quest, a contest aimed to find new public radio hosts. The contest reported receiving more than 1,400 entries. Watson's entries won the popular vote in every round, and she was declared one of three winners who each would receive $10,000 to produce a public radio pilot.

Watson's pilot, ''Curiosity, Aroused'', was an hour-long program focused on science and skepticism. It featured interviews with Richard Saunders of Australian Skeptics and Mystery Investigators, and Richard Wiseman, author of Quirkology and Professor of the Public Understanding of Psychology at the University of Hertfordshire. She also investigated claims of poisonous amounts of lead in lipstick, went on a ghost tour in Boston and visited a Psychic Fair.

Her show was the only one among the three winners not to receive funding by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for being turned into a one-year show.

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Watson speaking at NECSS 2011

The controversy that came to be known as "Elevatorgate" originated with a video Watson made following the June 2011 World Atheist Convention in Dublin, where Watson spoke on a panel, which also included biologist Richard Dawkins, about her experience of being sexualized within the atheist movement on account of her gender. According to Watson, several members of the panel and audience later gathered for drinks in the hotel bar, which Watson left at around , saying she was going to bed. In a vlog posted following her return from the trip, she described how a man from the group, whom she had not spoken to before, followed her into an elevator and, once inside, asked her to go back to his room for coffee. Watson said this proposition being made in the confined space of an elevator made her "incredibly uncomfortable" and advised, "guys, don't do that". She went on to say:

A negative response by the online atheist community to Watson's account of the elevator incident, which was a brief part of a longer video about other topics, soon spread across several websites, including Reddit, and became highly polarized and heated. Writer and biologist PZ Myers wrote a post on his blog ''Pharyngula'' about the incident, and the debate steadily grew to include the overall status of women within the secular movement, with most of the movements's prominent figures offering their opinion on whether the elevator incident was sexual harassment. Religious scholar Stephen LeDrew writes that this discussion attracted "a continuing vitriolic backlash", with commenters online labeling women who spoke up on the subject as "feminazis" and other misogynistic slurs. Watson experienced death threats, with commenters on her blog saying in graphic terms how she should be raped and murdered.

The controversy attracted mainstream media attention when Dawkins joined the debate. Writing in the comments section of ''Pharyngula'', he satirized the supposed indifference of Western feminists to the plight of oppressed Muslim women:

After Dawkins was criticized by multiple commentators, he explained that, in his view, Watson had not suffered any injury, comparing Watson's experience with the annoyance one might feel while riding an elevator with someone chewing gum.

Several commentators argued that this showed Dawkins' insensitivity to gender-related issues such as sexual violence. LeDrew writes that "For the first time since the New Atheism had risen to prominence, awkinsfound himself under attack by many of those who had viewed him as a respected leader". David Allen Green criticized Dawkins for dismissing lesser wrongs because bigger wrongs exist. Steven Tomlins and Lori G. Beaman argue that the incident highlights a schism within atheism over the role of feminism, some saying it should take a prominent place in the movement and others calling it divisive.

Watson said of Dawkins, "to have my concernsand more so the concerns of other women who have survived rape and sexual assaultdismissed thanks to a rich white man comparing them to the plight of women who have been mutilated, is insulting to all of us". She stated that she would no longer buy or endorse his books and lectures, writing:

The result of this exchange led to an extended internet flame war that several reports dubbed "Elevatorgate". In the wake of this and an incident at a Center for Inquiry-sponsored event, where female atheists reported gender bias and inappropriate behavior, organizations including the Richard Dawkins Foundation have reviewed their policies regarding sexual harassment and non-discrimination. Dawkins later apologized, stating, "There should be no rivalry in victimhood, and I'm sorry I once said something similar to American women complaining of harassment, inviting them to contemplate the suffering of Muslim women by comparison", in response to which Watson tweeted, "Richard Dawkins just did the blog-equivalent of coughing into his hand while mumbling 'sorry' to me. Eh, I'll take it."

Personal life

Watson was born in 1980. She grew up in New Jersey and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in communications from Boston University in 2002.

While attending Boston University, Watson worked as a magician. Watson says she "had relatively little serious interest in science" during her high school and college years but became more interested in science after being a magician and meeting with people like James Randi. On July 11, 2009, she and Sid Rodrigues were married in a surprise ceremony during The Amaz!ng Meeting 7.

On April 8, 2011, she announced that she and Rodrigues were separated and seeking a divorce.

Honors

An outer main-belt asteroid discovered on March 22, 2001, by David H. Healy was named 153289 Rebeccawatson in her honor.

See also

* Greta Christina, atheist blogger

References

External links

Skepchick

Teen Skepchick

Rebecca Watson's PRTQ page
with streaming of all her entries and ''Curiosity, Aroused'' pilot

{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Rebecca
People from Brookline, Massachusetts
Living people
American bloggers
American feminists
American women podcasters
American podcasters
American skeptics
Feminist bloggers
American atheism activists
Boston University College of Communication alumni
Place of birth missing (living people)
People from Salem, New Jersey
Critics of creationism
Victims of cyberbullying
1980 births
21st-century American women