I don't understand what you mean. You're hoping the Sad Puppies succeed in overtaking the Hugos because you would see this as a reflection of the culture?
I'm seeing a bunch of conservative old men who are resisting change because it takes them out of the top spot. I would call it "hacking" specifically because it's changing the awards to reflect a minority position, not the general culture.
Yep. Campaigning and networking to get your side picked is as old as dirt. It's not like anyone calls the presidential campaigns cheating. With some new players on the field, it's about time that the people in the top spot have to fight to keep their position.
That's voting culture for just about anything people care about. It's time it came to the Hugo awards.
I would call it "hacking" specifically because it's changing the awards to reflect a minority position, not the general culture.
A minority position in what? People who vote for the Hugo awards or people who like science fiction? I don't think the Hugo awards are actually indicative of what the SF fans across the board enjoys and any upcoming "minority" position is only a minority in sway and power, not actual numbers.
If you can rally and network and actually win, then I see it as SF fans realizing they have voices in their community that matter.
I'd agree with you, except the Sad Puppies thing is a clear attempt at manipulating the vote in an effort to conduct what I'd consider a culture war. You might say it's just gaming the system and thus acceptable, but I find the goal to be despicable. Partly because it's an attempt at stifling diversity, and partly because people doing it are voting in terms of furthering an agenda instead of recognizing absolute quality.
To be clear, I don't really care for Sad Puppies. Their very name says they want to flaunt themselves as the pitiful underdogs to gather votes, and I don't really buy into that.
But I cannot refute the need to fight against the complacency around the voting for one of the biggest SF awards. It'll be hard to make this some sort of two-party system like US politics, but once it's shown that the award winners aren't all old white men conservatives, it will open up the awards to any writer with a large enough and dedicated fan base.
Sometimes a ~war~ is what's needed to overthrow an ~outdated tyrant~.
I don't understand what you mean. You're hoping the Sad Puppies succeed in overtaking the Hugos because you would see this as a reflection of the culture?
I'm seeing a bunch of conservative old men who are resisting change because it takes them out of the top spot. I would call it "hacking" specifically because it's changing the awards to reflect a minority position, not the general culture.
Yep. Campaigning and networking to get your side picked is as old as dirt. It's not like anyone calls the presidential campaigns cheating. With some new players on the field, it's about time that the people in the top spot have to fight to keep their position.
That's voting culture for just about anything people care about. It's time it came to the Hugo awards.
A minority position in what? People who vote for the Hugo awards or people who like science fiction? I don't think the Hugo awards are actually indicative of what the SF fans across the board enjoys and any upcoming "minority" position is only a minority in sway and power, not actual numbers.
If you can rally and network and actually win, then I see it as SF fans realizing they have voices in their community that matter.
I'd agree with you, except the Sad Puppies thing is a clear attempt at manipulating the vote in an effort to conduct what I'd consider a culture war. You might say it's just gaming the system and thus acceptable, but I find the goal to be despicable. Partly because it's an attempt at stifling diversity, and partly because people doing it are voting in terms of furthering an agenda instead of recognizing absolute quality.
To be clear, I don't really care for Sad Puppies. Their very name says they want to flaunt themselves as the pitiful underdogs to gather votes, and I don't really buy into that.
But I cannot refute the need to fight against the complacency around the voting for one of the biggest SF awards. It'll be hard to make this some sort of two-party system like US politics, but once it's shown that the award winners aren't all old white men conservatives, it will open up the awards to any writer with a large enough and dedicated fan base.
Sometimes a ~war~ is what's needed to overthrow an ~outdated tyrant~.