Blocked and Reported Episode 206: Plot Twist (with Leigh Stein)
Mar 9, 2024
Scandals in sci-fi, fantasy, and poetry worlds discussed with a focus on Hugo Awards drama, AI in books, and controversies. Western sci-fi fandom reactions to Chinese community allegations examined. Conversations on censorship at Hugo Awards and social media platforms. Insights on poetry in academia, AI-generated chapbooks, and the evolving landscape of poetry in the digital age.
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Episode notes
Sad Puppies Hugo Voting Chaos
- The Sad Puppies controversy at the Hugo Awards involved coordinated voting to push conservative sci-fi nominations.
- This led to categories with no winners when voters selected "none of the above" in protest.
Cultural Misunderstandings in Voting
- The Hugo Awards voting for 2023 in Chengdu, China, raised suspicion due to an unusually large number of mail-in ballots.
- Cultural differences in address and email formats caused Western fans to misinterpret legitimate votes as suspicious.
Hugo Awards Self-Censorship Revealed
- The Hugo Awards subcommittee censored several works preemptively over fears of political sensitivity involving China.
- This self-censorship was more about avoiding potential issues than direct government pressure.