[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)