Breaking News: Anita Sarkeesian Makes Shocking Announcement About Feminist Frequency's Future!

Highlights

The organization worked towards achieving equality, providing support to victims of cyberbullying, combating online radicalization, and promoting gender diversity in video games.

While the Games and Online Harassment Hotline is set to shut down in 2023, other organizations such as the Coalition Against Online Violence persist in their efforts to pursue similar objectives.

Feminist Frequency, the nonprofit organization founded and led by Anita Sarkeesian, will be ending its operations in 2024. However, the YouTube channel will continue to release limited content moving forward. Since its establishment in 2009, alongside the launch of its YouTube channel, Feminist Frequency has garnered over 213,000 subscribers.

For the past 14 years, Feminist Frequency has dedicated itself to bringing attention to discrimination and injustices within the gaming industry. Additionally, the organization has provided support to victims of cyber bullying and other concerning issues. It has also actively opposed online radicalization in the aftermath of the Gamergate controversy, while advocating for greater representation of women in video games.

Sarkeesian announced on August 1 that Feminist Frequency will be closing its doors in early 2024 due to burnout and exhaustion. Despite pervasive harassment and extremism in the gaming industry, Sarkeesian believes that Feminist Frequency has made a difference and brought about change. She acknowledges that the fight for equality is ongoing. Consequently, the Games and Online Harassment Hotline, launched by Feminist Frequency in August 2020, will cease operations on September 30, 2023. The project's head, Jae Lin, will continue operating ReSpec, an accountability support space. The Feminist Frequency Radio podcast will also continue without Sarkeesian, with co-host Kat Spada taking over.

The nonprofit's well-known example of feminist gaming media criticism was the Tropes vs. Women in Video Games series, which ran for four years until 2017. This project consisted of 18 episodes that criticized tropes like the damsel in distress and women being treated as rewards, among other issues. The final episode focused on the prevalence of female sidekicks with limited agency, including Ashley Graham from Resident Evil 4.

Sarkeesian suggested that followers of Feminist Frequency seeking to continue supporting its mission should explore organizations like the Coalition Against Online Violence, Right to Be (formerly Hollaback), and Take This, as they all work towards similar goals. Although the nonprofit's closure is a setback in the fight for equal representation and fair treatment of women in the gaming industry, it is undeniable that awareness of these issues has significantly increased since the inception of Feminist Frequency. Even US Congress members are now addressing gaming harassment.