Bits of information, passing along fiber optic cables, are changing our lives. According to Nicholas Negroponte in "Being Digital", binary numbers, 0 and 1, are to the electronic world as atoms are to the material world. A bit "is the smallest atomic element in the DNA of information. It is a state of being: on or off, true or false, up or down, in or out, black or white" (Negroponte, 14). This binary language is also the language of science. We look at problems and research them to decide whether something is right or wrong, null or significant. Scientific method constrains us to this either/or approach.
A dichotomous approach, however, does not tell the whole story when we look at human behaviour from a sociological perspective. People are multi-faceted and behave differently in different situations (Blumer, 147). We propose to study computer mediated communication - communication in a binary medium - in a non-binary way.
We look at the issue of gender differences in CMC, and ask a binary question: Is the internet an environment that is hostile to women or is it an empowering environment? What we find is not a simple yes or no, hostile or empowering, answer.
Advances in technology in recent years have allowed widespread access to a medium that had been the preserve of 'nerds'. Sociologists study the effects of computer technology on society, and heatedly debate its future impact on our lives. Neil Postman writes that technology, "creates a culture without a moral foundation. It undermines certain mental processes and social relations that make human life worth living" (Postman, xii). On the other hand, Nicholas Negroponte writes that, "Digital technology can be a natural force drawing people into greater world harmony" (Negroponte, 230). The cumulative effect of technology on our society is more likely to have both positive and negative effects. Whichever way it goes, one thing is sure; technology is having a major impact on our lives each day.
The ways in which we work, study, communicate, and form communities, are changing rapidly and affect each of us directly. Technological advances that allow immediate transfer of information and "money" around the globe are changing our ideas of ourselves as individuals connected to, and affected by a macro environment yet experiencing life on a micro level. Our sense of ourselves must change in response to our changing world. "As products of ongoing community life, people's identities are also fundamentally linked to the identities and activities of their associates, as well as their own worldviews, other senses of self, and their own activities" (Prus, 398).
As these changes are happening, we wonder about their effects on one aspect of identity - gender. If, as Prus thinks, our identities are linked to how we live our daily lives, and if, the way we live our daily lives is changing rapidly, is there an opportunity to address the inequalities of gender in the burgeoning environment of the Internet, or will virtual communities simply re-create all aspects of real life society?
MacKinnon, in his article "Virtual Rape" suggests that, since gender is a social construct, "The relationship of these constructions is not and does not have to be analogous in virtual reality because virtual reality presents an opportunity for social reordering". He outlines how the social constructionist approach allows for a reformulation of the construction of "women-as-property to women-as-propertied". This speaks to the world wide exclusion of women from ownership of property. Development statistics show that, although women produce over 50% of the world's agricultural produce, they own only 1% of the land. MacKinnon's discussion of an incident of rape in cyberspace suggests that, in order to be constructed in virtual reality, real life constructs of rape as "an assault on the consciousness or mind rather than the body" must be transported. He suggests that theorists can, at this juncture of the real world with the virtual world, change the meanings attached to social constructs.
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Ferris makes the case that gender is socially constructed, in large part through language. Previously identified aspects of gendered communication include: more interruption of women by men than vice-versa; men reject topics raised by women while women will discuss topics raised by men; men use more commands and more slang and swearing. Women, on the other hand, are more likely to pose statements as questions, and use more hedges and politeness markers. "Women use conversation primarily for negotiating and expressing relationships, while men use it as display. Men want to establish control, while women want to maintain interaction. (Ferris, 1996)" Ferris looks for these effects on-line and finds that they are not only reproduced, but sometimes exacerbated. At the same time, she suggests that safe spaces for women are being created in cyberspace. Women-only groups like Webgrrls, although still the exception, encourage networking and mentoring among women - aspects of communication that would work to empower them.
Any study of gender, whether in real life, or in cyberspace, must take into account the nature of the differences being studied. In this vein, study of mixed gender, on-line communities may not reflect gender differences as such. For example, if men's communication is more aggressive, including swearing, and women's is more relationship building, then it is possible that a study of a mixed gender discussion group would not reflect these differences. Women who are more interested in relationship building would probably avoid these sites. However, women who do participate are still women and may be quite willing to participate in aggressive language including swearing and flaming.
This leads to the problem of "essentializing". Generalizing human behaviour is fraught with pitfalls, especially in terms of gender. When we go looking for evidence to support our hypotheses, we run the risk of perpetuating gender stereotypes. Women can easily be essentialized as a category. We are caring, more interested in relationships than in tasks (Savicki Lingenfelter and Kelley), more prone to apologize, (Ferris). Likewise, men are stereotyped as aggressive, swearing, displaying braggarts. Surely the truth lies somewhere in the middle.
Women often tread lightly when exploring the internet. Although the practice of flaming can work to prevent a woman from participating fully, other forms of harrassment are more terrifying. Brail, in an essay on harrassment on the internet, describes her experience of being terrorized by a hacker. She compares the internet to the wild west, where lawless cowboys victimize more civilized folks. Several discussion groups were visited and bear out her contention that women are disadvantaged by their need "to jump through a hoop of sexual inuendo and anti-feminist backlash just to participate" (Cherny and Weise, 149). One of us, a woman, generally confines herself to "lurking" or to women-only groups.
Internet users tend not to be reflective of the general population of an area in that certain groups within various populations are more heavily represented than are others. This holds true for gender. Male internet users still tend to outnumber female users. A recent study conducted by the Graphics, Visualization and Usability Centre at the Georgia Institute of Technology highlight these differences as they pertain to users of the World Wide Web component of the Internet. The October 1997 study suggests that approximately 61.51 % of World Wide Web users are male, 38.49% are female (GVU Oct. 1997). In general, the gender gap which has existed from the time of the inception of the Internet appears to be narrowing. The gender gap narrows further when American users are isolated. It appears that 59.46 % of American users are male; 40.54 are female (GVU Oct. 1997). This differs from the European results where males represent the greatest proportion of World Wide Web users. Though similar statistics detailing participation demographics of the other Internet components are unavailable, it is highly probable that they would be similar in nature to the World Wide Web study in that the majority of their users would also be male. Though these findings may appear somewhat trivial in nature, they have serious consequences. Gender inequality on the "Net" may help to provide acceptance for gender based hostility, sexist attitudes and harassing behaviours.
Gender Differences in Participation in Specific Settings
It is impossible to provide a coherent general overview of all of the various forms that CMC can take. We are limited to describing the various structures within which interaction occurs. Structure seems to be the only certainty in this environment. However, even this certainty is confounded by the development of increasingly sophisticated computer related technological innovations and personal factors which differ from user to user. Typologies of users and interaction patterns quickly become irrelevant in the expanding universe of the Internet. Thus, our only substantial glimpse into the realm of Internet based interaction comes from personal experience and case studies. These "glimpses" do suggest that gender differences are very much present in Computer Mediated Communication and that they have not been left behind in the realm of real life. Gender differences in expression, and communication style seem to be relatively common across the various components of the Internet.
Herring's study of several discussion lists suggests that there are several persistent differences which exist between communication styles and ethics employed by men and women. Herring found that male participants were more likely to employ an "adversarial style" in constructing their postings than were female participants. Male participants also tended to post more often, post lengthier messages, engage in self promotion and use confrontational or authoritarian stylistic techniques, including sarcasm. Female participants, by contrast, tended to exhibit higher levels of "supportiveness and attenuation." They were more likely to thank and express appreciation for others, apologize, express doubt, use "hedging" techniques, ask questions and suggest things rather than to aggressively promote their own opinions. Herring notes that these stylistic difference have often led to male dominance within the lists. This dominance, in turn, has led to the trivialization of women's participation within those lists. Herring suggests that these differences are related to differences in ethical approaches to appropriate forms of behaviour. Men are seen as being more apt to regard aggressive behaviours in a positive light and to use them in overt ways when challenged. These differences in behaviour and participation have a number of implications, the first and foremost of which is the diminishment of women's participation. Many women surveyed by Herring suggested that they would rather avoid the types of confrontational situations that arose between male members on the lists. Fear of hostility and verbal attack may help to construct a negative view of list participation and decrease the likelihood of active participation and expression. Thus, many females may refrain from expressing themselves in order to avoid conflict (Herring 1994).
Cherny found comparable interaction patterns in her study of the JaysHouseMOO. She estimated membership to be comprised of "roughly 3/4 regularly active male characters and 1/4 regularly active female characters (Cherny 1994)." She noticed a number of consistent patterns in interaction within her study sample. Female participants were more likely to show physical affection, in the forms of hugs and whuggles, than were male participants. Male participants were found to use more violent imagery in their interaction than did female participants. This violent imagery involved such actions as killing and consuming other characters. These actions were a representation of criticism. Although this setting does not appear to have as serious a tone to it as does Herrings discussion lists, the gender differences are significant. They reflect the same types of trends in interaction that Herring identifies, though they appear to be of a much weaker nature. Women again appear to be much more supportive of others, though in this situation that support finds expression through simulated physical action and "emotes." The more confrontational male style identified by Herring is also present, though to a much lesser degree. Confrontation in this environment takes the form of killing, consuming and unwanted affectionate action (Cherny 1994). However, the MOO environment appears to be a much more closely knit one, thus the chance for negative experiences seems greatly reduced.
Other anecdotal reports also illustrate the ways in which men and women participate differently in computer mediated environments. It is not uncommon to hear of women being harassed by persistent men while logged onto bulletin board systems. Harassment may take many forms within computer mediated environments. It may come in the form of persistent invitations to chat, or in annoying or suggestive e-mail messages (Campbell 1994). It would appear that many of the features that plague male-female interaction in real life have been carried over into the Internet environment.
There is no single specific pattern to on-line interaction, especially in regard to the worldwide web. New users may stumble their way through page after page without feeling any real connection to the material and presented identities they encounter. "Newbie" status, and a lack of in-depth knowledge of the working of the various components presents many difficulties for new users who find it necessary to re-invent themselves in this new environment to become something more than a nameless, substanceless, invisible entity.
There are several ways to create a presence on the Internet. The usual means of doing so involves various types of on-line participation and communication. Users may interact with others in a variety of ways using a variety of different CMC mediums. Newcomers may decide to join a newsgroup, apply for application to mailing list, create an on-line identity within a MUD environment, seek out an interesting IRC channel or mount a personal web page. All of these efforts represent viable ways of establishing oneself within the Internet and form the foundation upon which Internet based relationships are formed.
However, the nature of one's experience within the Internet setting varies greatly. It is extremely unlikely than any two individuals will experience the Internet in a similar manner. Not only do experiences differ between individuals, they also often differ between genders.
The anonymity of the Internet does not protect women from the discrimination and harassment that they face "in real life." Sexist and discriminating attitudes have been carried over into the realm of the Internet. These attitudes are particularly dangerous to new female users who may find themselves surrounded by a barrage of indecent requests, suggestive remarks and discriminating attitudes. While discriminatory and derogatory material may have little impact in the more passive arenas of Internet expression, they may have a much greater impact in the realm of active exchange (including IRC chatting, and MUD roleplaying). These negative encounters may serve to set the tone for the new user's perception of the Internet environment, thus discouraging further participation. Those who encounter negative situations may begin to view the Internet as hostile and unwelcoming.
Again, it is necessary to note that this type of experience is not common to all women who have attempted to explore the various facets of the Internet. Many are able to successfully negotiate their way into supportive and meaningful interaction with others. There are also many new groups which have established a presence on the Internet with the purpose of countering anti-feminist sentiment. Various on-line webzines and directories have been established to help provide women with access to "friendly" environments. New gender oriented communities have been developed. Their membership requirements and moderated nature attempt to prevent the infiltration of hostile entities and give women the opportunity to communicate and form ties with others.
A Closer Look at Interaction within Computer Mediated Environments
Interaction within an Internet based setting differs in many ways from that experienced in a real life setting. Interaction within the various Computer Mediated Communication mediums is largely text based, though some developments in graphical representation have been made, and can be both synchronous and asynchronous in nature. The individual within the Internet is a construct of words and language. Nearly everything is mediated by the individuals ability to manipulate language, as there are few other cues which provide insight into actions and remarks made within the various CMC based environments. It would seem that the physical concept of gender would become irrelevant within a text based context. The anonymity of words, and their distinctive separation from the physical presence of their user gives rise to the potential for gender-less interaction. Yet, gender remains a central feature of interaction in CMC environments. The relevance of gender has not been lost.
The Virtual Community: A Potentially Safe Haven or an Imaginary Construct?
The concept of community has often been poorly defined. Community has been used to refer to a wide variety of conglomerations and relationships in the physical world. Hagedorn defines community in the following terms:
an identifiable self conscious group with shared common interests. Communities may or may not have a territorial base, and they may vary in their level of self sufficiency...(Hagedorn 1994, p. 677) |
Community seems to refer primarily to relations of commonality between persons and objects, and only rather imprecisely to the site of such community. What is important is a holding in-common of qualities, properties, identities or ideas... (Wilbur 1997, pp.8) |
This leads us to question the nature of relationships that are constructed and maintained within CMC environments. Howard Rheingold, through his experience with the BBS community known as "the WELL," was able to construct a definition of community as it applies to CMC based communication:
Virtual Communities are social aggregations that emerge from the Net when enough people carry on those public discussions long enough, with sufficient human feeling, to form webs of personal relationships in cyberspace (Rheingold 1993, p.5) |
If we accept the notion that "community" can transcend physical existence, we must then look more closely at the range of forms that "community" may assume in a CMC based environment like the Internet. Communities or social networks may arise in any situation where individuals participate on a consistent basis with others. Kumiko Aoki suggests that Internet communities can be classified into 3 broadly defined categories. Internet communities may:
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Once we have accepted the notion of the existence of online communities, it is necessary to try to understand why individuals come together to form relationships with others with whom they may have no real physical contact or assurance of truthfulness. What is it that attracts individuals and entices them to participate in newsgroups, mailing lists, bulletin board systems, IRC and other various forms of the internet? It would not be unreasonable to assume that the source of attraction lies within the novelty of being able to turn on the computer to use it as a tool to connect with someone else to engage in the exchange of information and social conversation:
| People in virtual communities use words on screens to exchange pleasantries and argue, engage in intellectual discourse, conduct commerce, exchange knowledge, share emotional support, make plans, brainstorm, gossip, feud, fall in love, find friends, and lose them, play games, flirt, create a little high art and a lot of idle talk...(Rheingold 1993, p.3) |
People in virtual communities use words on screens to exchange pleasantries and argue, engage in intellectual discourse, conduct commerce, exchange knowledge, share emotional support, make plans, brainstorm, gossip, feud, fall in love, find friends, and lose them, play games, flirt, create a little high art and a lot of idle talk...(Rheingold 1993, p.3)
Thus, there is a wide variety of opportunities for interaction within Internet based communities. People enter these communities, or create new ones, on the basis of interest. Social networks are formed as more and more individuals find their way into the group. Interaction with others may serve as a source of social support. Individuals who share common interests come together to interact. Their mutual interest acts to reinforce that particular feature of their identity. The community acts as a source for social reinforcement and support.
It is necessary to keep in mind that communities differ in nature from the various forms of interaction of which they are comprised. Interaction, in its simplest forms, does not involve commitment to a given identity or interest. Community participation and social networks do require some form of commitment to an identity and to others who share in that identity.
The text based environment also allows individuals who may feel reluctant to engage in real life interaction to meet with others in a somewhat less threatening environment (Parks 1996). It is believed that shy individuals, or those with a master status that interferes with real life interaction may be aided by the text based nature of internet exchange. It is often believed that gender is negated by the nature of text based exchange. However, this notion has been disproved in a number of cases. Gender remains a defining component of identity regardless of the medium of exchange.
Community, then, represents the opportunity for involvement which may preclude hostile interaction and may serve as a source for support and empowerment of its members.
Women's Communities: Reaching Out On-line
Community development on the World Wide Web is a relatively new phenomenon. As the nature of the World Wide Web continues to change, so do the related opportunities for expression. Web pages now often serve as the home base for several interactive groups. These Web pages may have on-line CMC facilities like chat rooms or message boards, or they may serve as a reference point to other forms of Internet based communication. Many of these new communities are theme or interest oriented in nature. Individuals who share common interests may gain access to others who share those interests through these communities, thereby eliminating much of the searching and inside knowledge which was once necessary in the various other forms of CMC. Some of these new communities have a specifically female orientation and serve as the means through which new female web users can establish relationships with others with a somewhat lesser degree of risk.
Talkcity, a Web based organization, has created one such site which is devoted to encouraging positive experiences for female participants. This group entitled "Women On-Line World Wide," describes itself as:
A multifaceted meeting place for women. The community forms around personal and professional development of each individual through exchanging ideas, becoming comfortable with new technology, and networking with others. (WOW) |
Communal activities range from regularly scheduled chats to the use of message boards to discuss a variety of issues that are relevant to the community. The types of issues up for discussion are very diverse in nature and range from such topics as recipe exchanges to violence against women, cybersafety, computers and technology, relationships, sexuality and family related matters (WOW). Chats are scheduled on a daily basis and a synopsis of their intent and potential content is provided. These chats, like the message boards, are moderated by hosting members to ensure minimal disruption from negative or hostile interlopers. This kind of protective environment may serve to insulate female participants from the hostility existing elsewhere on the Internet, and may also serve to provide participants with a social support network which offsets the effects of negative encounters elsewhere . This network does so by providing the opportunity to discuss these experiences and by providing reinforcement.
In general, however, it is likely that this type of on-line community is the exception rather than the norm. Many, if not most, on-line communities are ones in which participants of both genders interact. In such situations there are fewer buffers to prevent the expression of discriminatory, or sexist attitudes, and hostility. Participation in these groups, like those previously discussed, is voluntary in nature and is often linked to a particular interest. It is this type of community that is of particular interest to this paper. The interaction in these CMC environments is more likely to be reflective of real life.
In consideration of the above issues, we have chosen a specific, virtual community as an example - the online tattooing community (OTC).
The Online Tattoo Community: A Case Study
It is difficult to ascertain the exact origins of tattooing, since virtually every part of the world contains cultures which practice this custom of body decoration. After travelling to the Polynesian Islands, European sailors re-introduced the practice to Europe. Tattooing enjoyed a faddish trend among the European nobility; and at the end of the nineteenth century made the transatlantic voyage to North America (Sanders: Tattoo 401). It was in the 1920s, that the practice of the modern tattooing began to show its face. Tattooing was considered a deviant practice, mostly due to the fact that tattooing was unhygienic and tattoos were a symbol of disaffiliation (Sanders: Tattoo 401). During the mid-sixties, tattooing went through a revolution. Tattoo artists were younger and had university and art school training (Sanders: Marks 401). This had a two-fold affect; first, the tattoos were seen as art and second, the clientele of the tattoo studios diversified. More recently, the number of people becoming tattooed has increased significantly; one group which shows the most significant increase is women (Williams).
The Tattooing Community and Gender
Considering that women becoming tattooed is increasing significantly, the question is: What kind of impact does this on the on the traditionally male centred tattooing community? Since the increase of tattooed women more or less coincides with the creation of the OTC, would this community reflect the characteristics of the offline community and dominant society; or would it take on the characteristics of an egalitarian community which is "empowering" for women or is it "hostile" to women? This is the central question with which this case study will concern itself.
A Brief History of the Online Tattooing Community
E-mail was the first widely used application on the Internet, although simple interaction through this format does not necessarily lead to the creation of community, it is a start. In all likelihood, some of these conversations held through E-mail were discussing tattooing. The first inklings of a community was created here.
Developing from E-mail was the creation of mailing lists. One of the first and only mailing lists devoted to tattooing culture was "Modern Primitives". The ability of people to contact each other through this mailing list was another step towards community. The members of this list felt that they were interacting with each other because of their need for "common goods", and a place where they could communicate without the fear of stigmatization.
Mailing lists were a fine idea for interaction, but this all changed in 1986 when Usenet came along. Usenet allowed the users to continue threads of conversation which meant that subjects of discussion could be continuous. Participants could post a message and also post responses. In November, 1990 Chris Wayne called for a "RFD" (Request for Discussion) now called a "CFC" (Call For Discussion) and in March of the following year rec.arts.bodyart was created. The first newsgroup devoted entirely to non-mainstream body decoration and modification. Wayne explains why he felt the need to create such a newsgroup:
| I wanted it to be apart from the "Primitives" mail list, which included all the different permutations, with focus on the actual art and not necessarily the ritual, and general enough to have a wide appeal still fit into the philosophy of Modern Primitivism. I was looking for acceptance and education, to teach people that it's OK to accept those that are different, and that tattooing is not disgusting. The CFV produced a close vote, but in March 1991, RAB was created. (Wayne, RAB-FAQ ) |
The Web and tattooing is a perfect marriage for two main reasons. Tattooing is both an art and a business. Individuals participate in the online tattooing community by sharing knowledge of the art. For example, pictures, techniques and the symbolism of some designs. Tattoo artists actively participate in the community by providing a forum of discussion of tattooing, in the form of galleries, chats, links to other pages, and by advertising their studios. As the popularity of the Web increased many tattoo studios, saw it as a means to market their product to a vast number of online consumers. However, some in the community felt that,
| the tattoo industry as a whole has been pretty slow in getting up to speed with utilizing the internet. Not all magazines are accessible on line yet. Most suppliers are not online. And the worst is that most Tattoo Convention Organizers aren't online yet, which can make for some really large phone bills. (Bryant, Urban Primitive) |
Collective goods and community
As seen in the previous section, newsgroups such as rec.arts.bodyart was one of the first mediums by which the tattoo community interacted. Although the Web has offered sites which may be more visually and aesthetically pleasing, it is the text based Usenet groups which have been the "backbone" of the online community. Subjects commonly discuss tattooing techniques, myth affirmation and debunking, care of tattoos, announcements of conventions, studio recommendations, personals, and so on. Rheingold explains that groups come together to share "collective goods" (p.127). In the case of the tattooing community this is definitely a factor. Tattooing is a culture which may be stigmatized and therefore the members of this subculture actively seek out an environment that they can feel free from this. Traditionally this came from "hanging out" in tattoo parlors or studios. Newsgroups allow the community to discuss issues pertinent to them in the relative safety of an environment created and maintained by other tattooed people.
E-zines, galleries and commercial studio pages
Newsgroups are prominent for the exchange of collective goods and the interactions within an environment free from stigma. Tattooing which is also a culture based on the "demarkation" of the body with artistic designs, lent itself to a medium that would support a graphical exchange. The development of the Web revolutionized the online tattooing community. Now pictures and tattoo designs could be passed electronically from one member to another. This lead to the development of E-zines, Web galleries, personal pages, and commercial studio pages.
Representation of Women in the Community
What we will attempt to do in this section is to establish the representation of women in the OTC. We have analysed 130 postings to the newsgroup rec.arts.bodyart between September 14-16 and Dec 8-12. For the posts dated September 14-16, we used the Altavista Usenet search engine to find these postings which occurred in chronological order. For the posts from December 8-12 we used the newsreader program Threaded Read News. We counted all postings and made no distinction between original posts and replies to posts. We did not discount multiple posts by people. We made the distinction between males and females based on their names. For those with handles or names that were unisexual or androgenous, I counted them as "unidentifiable". However, assuming that these measures reflect the ratio of my sample then this should not skew our results.
The results of this analysis was not consistent with other surveys conducted in a similar fashion of newsgroups. I found that of 130 posts that 72 were males, 40 were females, and 18 were "unidentifiable". If we discount all "unidentifiable" assuming that they also reflect the pattern of the ratio of males and females then we find that males make up 64.3%, and females 35.7%. Shade reports that the "breakdown of gender usage on the internet is difficult to gauge", at the lower end women’s participation is around 10-15% (Shade). Another survey posted to soc.women reported that of the sample 71% of the postings were from women and 29% were from males (Shade). Other studies report that between 1994 and 1997, women as a percentage of all users of the World Wide Web increased from 5% to 31%, while men dropped from 95% to 69% (Cuneo). Assuming that these studies are accurate it would suggest that female participation in rec.arts.bodyart is more than double the participation reported by Shade, slightly higher than the participation reported by Cuneo, and not surprisingly less than participation in soc.feminism newsgroup.
Table A – Breakdown of Male, Female and Unidentifiable Posts
| Male | Female | Unidentifiable | Total | |
| Count | 72 posts | 40 posts | 18 posts | 130 posts |
| (not including unidentifiable) | 64.3% | 35.7% | X | 100% |
| (including unidentifiable) | 55.4% | 30.7% | 13.8% | 99.9% |
Some would say that the power and interest of the internet is due to its diversity. There is literally something for everyone. This is also the case with the OTC. The Web has a plethora of pages which are devoted to all things to do with communities. There are pages maintained by tattoo studios which usually contain galleries, links and artist biographies. These sites are devoted all esoteric aspects of tattooing culture. Few of these sites target specifically women, however, there is at least one which does. A site titled: Dawn’s TatZine, which includes a BBS, Book Reviews, Beauty Tips For Tattoos, Stories and Pictures of Women with tattoos, Artist links and directories. Upon downloading the site, the "raison d’etre" is proclaimed underneath the title:
| If you're sick of those tattoo magazines that seem to portray ALL tattooed women as being sleazy, leather-clad chics, then this is the site for you! Don't you think that it's about time that a Tattoo/Fashion magazine was created? I know I do. Now, I'm sure that some skeptics are reading this statement and thinking "Oh, yeah, you're just one of those girls with a tiny little daisy on your hip." You're exactly right about that! Of course I got that tattoo as a joke after my four much larger tattoos (Collopy). |
Once again, We will look at the newsgroup rec.arts.bodyart, since this seems to be the discussion group of choice for many members of this community. At this point we can only report on our qualitative observations. We observed that the overall environment is positive in general. Relative to other newsgroups, "flaming" is minimal. Often posts by men and women are responded to in a positive manner; despite the fact that many of these posts can be repetitive. The following example is a post made on December 6 1997, by a female member. The subject is as follows:
I've been thinking about getting my nipple
pierced for about a year now, but I have some questions..
|
| Nipple piercing Q's - Tiffani 1997/12/06 | |
| Responses: | Ellen 1997/12/06 |
| Cindy 1997/12/06 | |
| Sheri 1997/12/07 |
Although the above example is one in which a female poster has been met with positive reactions from members, this is not to say that there is not hostility and aggression perpetrated against female members according to their perceived gender. The FAQ files for this newsgroup warn of online harassment. Other studies have shown that certain newsgroups have been hostile towards women. They have been subjected to harassment and in some cases sexual assault. In our survey of this community we have found little evidence of this occurrence. Not to say it does not exist, just that it does not seem apparent. However, although there does not seem to be open hostility against women, this community is definitely male-centered.
With respect to male centredness the OTC reflects the male "centricity" of the real life community. There are several indicators of this male dominance. First, looking at newsgroups, the majority of multiple posters, those who seem to dominate the rec.arts.bodyart online discussions are male. Second, most of the Websites devoted to tattooing and tattoo related sites are created and maintained by males. Some exceptions to these are the abovementioned site created and maintained by Dawn Collopy, and the Urban Primitive site. Finally, the misconception that a tattoo labels a female as "sleazy" as Callopy addresses on her site, may bar many females from entering into the OTC. These are all indicators that the OTC is male centred.
Our findings in the online tattooing community echo our initial hypothesis that we would find that computer mediated communication can be both hostile and empowering, depending on the situation. For the most part, the OTC offers women a supportive environment, in which topics concerning, but not exclusive to women are discussed. The evidence from our study of this community does not support the stereotypes of the tattooing community as a male bastion or of virtual communities as hostile to women.
In spite of MacKinnon's contention that society can be re-defined in computer media communication, the internet is an institution of a patriarchal, capitalistic society. As a product of such a society, the internet must reflect its values. Women's roles in the family, the work place, politics and the global economy are defined by their relationships to men and children. Women's roles are peripheral to men's. Men are the centre. A recent report in the Toronto Star showed a photo of the world leaders at the APEC conference in British Columbia, all lined up in leather jackets...all eighteen of them men. Women in the work place in Canada still earn only two thirds the income of men, and that gap widened in the last year. Real power, in terms of money and political influence, is still in the hands of men.
To assume, as MacKinnon does, that the internet can or will change society, is a case of the tail wagging the dog. The internet, like any other institution of society, will reflect the values of the larger society. Real-life women will find safe spaces on the internet, as they do in real life, and take calculated chances venturing into "hostile" territory as their curiosity, and courage allow. Women are not victims. Women resist victimization in real life in the face of unequal power, rape, and even murder by men. Women will resist on the internet as well.
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