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@CadeMetz, @puiwingtam, @nytimes:
I'm writing in response to the article doxxing @slatestarcodex.
You had an opportunity to do Better. I'm curious why you didn't take it.
I'm writing in response to the article doxxing @slatestarcodex.
You had an opportunity to do Better. I'm curious why you didn't take it.
Writing a profile on @slatestarcodex was a fine decision. Highlighting the fact that they were one of the first people to get COVID-19 right is newsworthy and commendable.
This was also an opportunity to highlight the value of free inquiry and honest engagement with ideas, even if they're scary.
I can't fathom a message that's more needed in 2020 than that. I can't imagine a better example of that than @slatestarcodex's writing and community.
I can't fathom a message that's more needed in 2020 than that. I can't imagine a better example of that than @slatestarcodex's writing and community.
I also can't imagine a better source for this message than the @nytimes. You are the old guard, and @slatestarcodex is the new.
And, let's be frank here, your own record for standing up for the ideals of free speech and open inquiry could use some rehabilitation.
And, let's be frank here, your own record for standing up for the ideals of free speech and open inquiry could use some rehabilitation.
It's also impossible to ignore the fact that the @nytimes is the old model, too. @slatestarcodex runs a free blog where he thinks out loud, and follows those thoughts wherever they lead.
Which is part of why he was semi-anonymous. Because you can't afford to pursue that level of open inquiry on today's climate unless you're independently wealthy enough to survive a cancel mob.
Instead, you chose to doxx him.
Instead of taking the best action, you took one of the worst.
Instead of championing the cause of free inquiry and intellectual honesty, you chose to put a man's life in jeopardy.
Instead of taking the best action, you took one of the worst.
Instead of championing the cause of free inquiry and intellectual honesty, you chose to put a man's life in jeopardy.
You have to know that doxxing @slatestarcodex is not something done lightly, particularly in today's political climate.
You had to know he had reasons for staying anonymous.
You had to know, with an audience as large as yours, that someone was likely to escalate matters.
You had to know he had reasons for staying anonymous.
You had to know, with an audience as large as yours, that someone was likely to escalate matters.
And for what? What price was worth putting a man's life and livelihood in danger?
Do you have a staunch commitment to not reporting on semi anonymous public figures? Clearly no.
Do you feel this information is vital enough that the public must know, even with the risk? Why?
Do you have a staunch commitment to not reporting on semi anonymous public figures? Clearly no.
Do you feel this information is vital enough that the public must know, even with the risk? Why?
Was this simple careless incompetence? Did you not realize the ramifications of your actions? I can't imagine you -- or anyone -- being that incompetent.
Was this just one more skirmish in the years-long culture war this country has been embroiled in?
Was this just one more skirmish in the years-long culture war this country has been embroiled in?
Were you striking a blow for the blue church, and it's values of conformity, groupthink, and authoritarianism? Was this a surgical strike against New Media? Was this an example to all those who think out loud, in public?
Was this a defense of a business model that is well past it's prime? Were you willing to put @slatestarcodex in danger because he isn't part of your political tribe?
I have difficulty accepting this answer, because of how unpleasantly cynical it is.
I have difficulty accepting this answer, because of how unpleasantly cynical it is.
But I'm unable to dismiss that explanation.
I want to believe that you mean well. That you value life even when it thinks differently than you, that you are not habitually cavalier with the power you wield even when putting lives at risk.
I want to believe that you mean well. That you value life even when it thinks differently than you, that you are not habitually cavalier with the power you wield even when putting lives at risk.
But frankly, your actions do not support this.
So, I'm asking you:
Turn away from this path. Choose a better one.
Publish the article, but do not doxx @slatestarcodex. Issue him, and us, a humble apology and a full explanation of the circumstances.
So, I'm asking you:
Turn away from this path. Choose a better one.
Publish the article, but do not doxx @slatestarcodex. Issue him, and us, a humble apology and a full explanation of the circumstances.
Make it absolutely clear that you are not engaging in vigilante journalism, and that you value having an open marketplace of ideas.
