From Broadway Reddit: Be more chill "fans" are harassing Gerard Canonico and his loved ones- Page 2

[BroadwayNoob]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 12:30am

So, how are all these kids affording to see BMC? Teenagers or these kids 11-15don't work and do their parents know what's going on with this unacceptable behavior? My niece and nephew are 13& 15and live in the metro area and never heard of BMC and I know they don't act like this way. Can someone explain to this 43 year old why this is happening? I just don't get it!? Rapid ferocious fans...I find it disturbing that this show is coming to BWAY! WTF is "shipping culture" I have never heard of this...I even asked some colleagues -friends at the gym and they had no clue?"

Parents see that the kid likes the show, and buys the kid a ticket for a birthday/holiday. Or maybe they saved up the money on their own. And honestly, it's really easy for kids to hide stuff. Even if they weren't necessarily hiding it, why would their parents know what they're commenting/doing to other people unless they were directly contacted about it.

 

Shipping people emerged as like a thing when I was in 6th grade, which was 5 years ago. It's really just a kid thing that doesn't leave the Tumblr/Instagram fan accounts. I don't expect parents to know what's going on.

 

Overall though, I am noticing parents becoming more and more oblivious to their child's online presence. I participate in another niche hobby that has people in it of a variety of ages. Someone appeared one day and started harassing a lot of instagram accounts, calling people horrible names, saying their pictures were terrible, stealing other peoples photos, etc. It went on for a good week until one day she just disappeared. A few days later I got a DM from her mom apologizing, saying how she was 12 and autistic and she'll do a better job of monitoring her account. But a week or so later, she came back and started harassing people again, and her mom had to make another apology. I don't understand how someone with an autistic and unpredictable child can just let them run amuck on the internet like that. I'm starting to sound like an old lady lol

 

 

[Elegance101]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 12:45am

This behavior is disgusting and I want to hear the performers say it. I understand the idea of not talking about it to not give it attention, but some of these kids need harsh reprimanding that they’re not getting from their parents. I’m appalled that theatre fans are getting to this point and I’m honestly just sorry for the performers. It no longer seems enjoyable to have fans or supporters. I’m not excited for more of these stories once BMC hits Broadway.

[yesraccoons]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 12:48am

This is obviously awful but I don’t think it was right of him to post the person’s phone number. They’re likely young and are dumb and totally out of line but as the adult he could’ve made a statement and not shown the number.

[iwuldwf]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 2:09am

This is insane. The stage door situation when it transfers is going to be awful.

Updated On: 9/12/18 at 02:09 AM

[dramamama611]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 5:48am

The term shipping may be relatively new, but the concept is not. I remember it happening during the original run of Spring Awakening.

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 7:02am

I remember when we were using ship as a verb back in the early days of Harry Potter fandom, pre-2000.

The trend that I find interesting and that I’ve seen a lot is the insistence that everyone is gay, even if they’ve never publicly said so (and even if they are involved in a heterosexual relationship). It doesn’t surprise me that this harassment stemmed from that belief.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 7:22am

Or that just the fact of BEING gay is somehow cool.  Or cooler.   Which maybe comes from "proving" how ok teens are about sexuality?   

 

I dunno.  We are raising a ****load of self-centered monsters.

[theaterwiz414]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 7:33am

...Oh my goodness. This is making me nervous to see the show on Saturday. This is what happens when your target audience is preteens-teenagers, people who identify as "stans" and go back in a persons social media and overanalyze every. little. thing. they've ever posted. This is ridiculous! I hope this was reported to the police. I'm also very nervous for these actors. God, these people need to grow up. 

[LuPita2]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 8:20am

I agree that the cast needs to speak on this matter.  These awful people will listen to them, who are the opposite of fans by the way.  A fan does not go out of their way to make cast members lives harder, in any way.  What a shame.  

[ScottyDoesn'tKnow2]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 10:23am

As toxic and horrific as this incident is, especially as it came after the whole Ethan Slater situation with that scary fan and the way Ben Platt has been treated, I think Broadway is finally reaching the point that cast members of TV shows, popular movie franchises, YouTube celebrities, and creators of popular books series are already way too familiar with. Animated shows like Rick & Morty and Steven Universe and My Little Pony among many many other shows have had their incidents with toxic fans overtaking the majority of normal people to the point where their behavior becomes synonymous with that fandom. Tumblr, Twitter, and other social media outlets have made it a lot worse when usually these people would just be confined to the dark corners of the web, virtually ignored unless they are bothering people on a discussion board, and if they do something that invades people's privacy, it would be handled offline. Now, these things tend to be handled both online and offline as it can be used to expose certain bad behavior among the fandom, make others aware to be mindful of their actions, AND educate them about proper behavior.

Usually these things hit a critical mass, and then when a big controversy like this happens, the community of fans will self-police and then things calm down the toxic people move on to their new passion and start that cycle elsewhere. Usually for toxic fans, it's not even about the show or the people involved, it's just a conduit for them to act on their worse impulses.

I don't think this is a generational thing either. I do believe social media has just made it easier for these people to get together and form some sort of group, one that they probably would not be invited to join in real life in their own reality-based community, and be King/Queen bee. Then they encourage the worst in each other. Some of the worst online behavior and trolling I've seen are not just from teens/pre-teens but from grown-butt adults and older people who actually start harassing or making inappropriate comments on celebrities' Twitter or Instagram posts.

Updated On: 9/12/18 at 10:23 AM

[NOLAguy]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 10:24am

Sorry if this isn't the right place, but just brought this back to my memory.  If not the correct forum, y'all don't need to answer! lol. What ever happened to that Spongebob girl a few months back who was stalking, seeing the show without her parent's permission, etc.?  I    remember stagedooring for shows I    loved when I    was young, and thought "have I    ever crossed a line when stagedooring/"fanning," etc.?  Luckily the answer to this is no, but something needs to be down.   Too much emotional, mental, and even legal ramifications from actions like this. 

[Kad]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 11:49am

greenifyme2 said: "First and foremost, this is not ok.

But- the cast are adults and need to react as such. I certainly don't answer any phone calls from numbers I don't recognize, does anyone else? Taking it to social media only fuels the flames of the attention-seekers. Don't feed the trolls, just ignore them."

The last couple of years of news should demonstrate "Ignore the trolls" doesn't work- in many cases, it just emboldens them to keep pushing the envelope.

 

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 11:55am

If not that, then this: https://www.theverge.com/2018/7/12/17561768/dont-feed-the-trolls-online-harassment-abuse

"The premise of “don’t feed the trolls” implies that if you ignore a troll, they will inevitably get bored or say, “Oh, you didn’t nibble at my bait? Good play, sir!” and tip their cap and go on their way. Ask anyone who has dealt with persistent harassment online, especially women: this is not usually what happens."

Updated On: 9/12/18 at 11:55 AM

[ScottyDoesn'tKnow2]

Posted: 9/12/18 at 1:12pm

LizzieCurry said: "If not that, then this: https://www.theverge.com/2018/7/12/17561768/dont-feed-the-trolls-online-harassment-abuse

"The premise of “don’t feed the trolls” implies that if you ignore a troll, they will inevitably get bored or say, “Oh, you didn’t nibble at my bait? Good play, sir!” and tip their cap and go on their way. Ask anyone who has dealt with persistent harassment online, especially women: this is not usually what happens.""

That was an excellent piece. Thank you for sharing it.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 9/13/18 at 11:27am

You're welcome! It's definitely a take that I think needs to be amplified.