[zdw]

I don't think this is limited just to video games, comics, and such - a lot of TV and sporting events are full of "beautiful people" often wearing less/tighter things than they ought to be wearing.

How is this different/worse than having cheerleaders on the side of a football field? Or Baywatch?

Not that I'm defending poor or sexist behavior, but singling out "nerds" as being the worst troglodytes out there seems a bit much.

[orangecat]

a lot of TV and sporting events are full of "beautiful people" often wearing less/tighter things than they ought to be wearing.

"Ought"? The feminist position is that women should be able to express themselves however they want. And it turns out that given the choice, many women actually do want to wear revealing outfits. Exhibit A: Halloween.

[pyre]

Halloween is a bad choice to prove anything. Using your logic, I could prove that most people would prefer if our standard wardrobes were a choice between zombies, pirates or ninjas.

I saw someone with a really great Two-Face costume this Halloween. Does this mean that that person would rather spend their entire life in a Two-Face costume?

[philwelch]

From a sociological perspective, it's different in that gaming and comic fandom are low-status.

[Anechoic]

> How is this different/worse than having cheerleaders on the side of a football field? Or Baywatch?

It's not, but (as mentioned in the article) football fans and Baywatch viewers aren't generally holding up their communities as beacons of meritocracy while nerd communities frequently do.

[steve19]

Footballers, cheerleaders and hollywood are held up as a meritocracy.

[Anechoic]

I wrote "football fans and Baywatch viewers aren't generally holding up their communities," IOW I was referring to fan/viewers, not the players, cheerleaders & actors/actresses themselves.

(and I count myself as a rabid NFL fan)