A week on the web: Pandagate
The BBC walked into another bear trap this week when it named a panda as one of its women ‘faces of the year’ - the perfect conditions for a Twitter storm…
- What is it with the BBC and bears? First, there was the ‘faked’ scene in Frozen Planet involving the polar variety (not that it was really faked). Then this week, a panda was included on its women ‘faces of the year 2011’ list - namely Tian Tian (or Sweetie), one of the two giant pandas currently on loan to Edinburgh zoo from China.
This may be the season of good will, but that didn’t stop Twitter getting angry - an anger which has been simmering ever since the announcement of the all-male Sports Personality of the Year shortlist.
First #spofty, now #pandagate - beginning to think the bbc doesn't take my sex seriously. Get a grip & stop dismissing women so lightly
Re #pandagate -casual, humourous sexism, however trivial +ineffectual, is still sexism. It's so persistent because it's considered trivial..
Perhaps women are angry about #pandagate because we get this shit constantly, day in, day out.- It wasn’t long before John Prescott showed his feminist side.
So the BBC couldn't find a woman for Sports Personality of the Year but they could find a panda for a female face of 2011 #pandagate
@johnprescott Oh get a grip. Not the first time they had an animal for men or women's pages. Bandwagon jumping like usual #pandagate- It’s certainly not the first time. Last year it was Peppa Pig, proving you don’t even need to be human to make the cut, and an animal appeared on the men’s list in 2009 in the shape of a very large fish.
I'd hazard a guess that this is the first time someone has attempted to placate a group of feminists with a carp. #pandagate- Good thing hardly anyone noticed that Benson the carp is, in fact, a she.
- Benson (fish) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Benson (1984 - July 2009)[1] was "Britain's biggest and best-loved" common carp.[2][3] Benson's pop...
- The BBC wasn’t entirely bereft of support.
Re #pandagate BBC is a vast organisation. It makes an error. Worth losing your knickers over? No.
#PandaGate just the latest example of how social media breeds outrage among idiots. Just calm down, have a cup of tea, maybe a biscuit
It's basically an article about who's been in the HEADLINES a lot. Doesn't claim to be anything more. #Pandagate
Think the choice of panda for woman of Dec is sweet and funny, stop taking things seriously! #pandagate
Ladies, please get over yourselves. I'm sure there are much more important issues to be worried about than #pandagate- Arguably, the bigger issue with the list wasn’t the presence of a panda – it’s why the humans were chosen (the women being Gabrielle Giffords, Adele, Eman al-Obeidi, Sarah Burton, Nafissatou Diallo, Jelena Lecic, Princess Charlene, Pauline Pearce, Rebecca Leighton, the Duchess of Alba and Corporal Kelsey de Santi).
Let's not forget the non-panda's on the list include a murder suspect and a fictional lesbian blogger. #pandagate
BBC women of 2011 is mad, regardless of panda -1 wore a dress, another made one, 2 got married & 1 attended a ball #pandagate
The only remotely valid point made on #pandagate was re. the discrepancy between the passive/active participation by men/women on the list.- All perfectly valid points. This is a complex debate.
People are oversimplifying this #pandagate thing. Surely its not a black & white issue.
Will the BBC be picking a pig for one of the 12 Men of the Year, or are they happy to go with Clarkson? #pandagate
