I don’t think I have ever been so unsurprised by an email in my life. To put it in context, I have to first explain that a producer from an NPR-affiliated radio station contacted me about the Hugo Awards.
As I’m sure you’re aware WorldCon is about to start…. As we’ve been researching and thinking about this event we discovered that in addition to the celebration, learning and networking there’s also a bit of identity politics controversy surrounding the Hugo award. As the conference unfolds we want to host a conversation with members of the Sci-Fi community and how they view the events. Our hope is to get a sense of what’s at stake and why it’s important. We really value having a diversity of perspectives on this issue.
I’d like to talk with you, by phone, today or tomorrow for about
15 minutes. This way we can make sure we’re a good fit and develop some
potential talking points for what we could discuss
during the show.
I had a few minutes to kill, so despite knowing how it was going to turn out, I called him back and we had a short, friendly conversation. He was genuinely curious about what was, to him, quite clearly an alien perspective. And I had to laugh when I got this the next day.
Thank you for sharing your time with us yesterday. I wanted to follow up and let you know that we found some folks who will make a better fit for this conversation and consequently we won’t be needing you as a confirmed guest tomorrow.
You don’t say. Anyhow, radio and television producers, this is why I keep telling you that I’m not interested in appearing on your show. See, I know the drill. I’ve turned down three other interview requests in the last day alone; keep this in mind if you’re wondering why various pieces on the Alt-Right often appear to ignore certain individuals you think merit mention. Sure, sometimes it’s because they’re playing the old “we don’t want to give them a platform” game. But more often, of late, it’s because we don’t see any point in talking to them and playing the token villain’s role.
That doesn’t mean I won’t talk to you all, though. Everyone is invited to the No Award 2016 Party, which will kick off 15 minutes before the Hugo Awards start at 8 PM Central tomorrow night. Special guests to be announced later as they let me know if they’ll be able to attend.
Speaking of the Hugo Awards, as the VFM are everywhere around the globe pursuing the shadowy will of their SDL, we have been culturally enriched by several reports from the Worldcon, including this one.
Here is a picture of Rape Rape in the wild. I was stunned by two or three things:
- Con attendees are mostly old farts.
- They look even more unhealthy than the average crowd in a WalMart on EBT night.
- GRRM is a close approximation of the average male attendee.