Conflict and the Web of Hugo Affiliations

Arguably the Hugos were first "broken" in 2001 when Harry Potter won over George R.R. Martin.



"Eat your heart out, Rowling. Maybe you have billions of dollars and my Hugo, but you don't have readers like these." --George RR Martin



"I would've liked to win that award and I don't think Rowling cares...she didn't send anyone to accept the award, which is annoying." Martin



Martin has certainly had his vindication in years since, though he has yet to win a Hugo (he was up against Spin in 2006, a book I loved).



But Martin's quote points out something very important about the Hugos and fandom: it's about "*these* readers," a particular community.



That community, as seen by nomination numbers, is quite small. "Policing" it is going to be impossible. But its constitution defines fandom.



So what's going on is a very nasty fight over in-group/out-group dynamics. I don't see how you fix that with voting reforms.



So Vox Day is declared OUT by SF fandom, just as Polygon is declared OUT by gaming fandom. (This is analogy, not false equivalence. :P)



The real transgression isn't block voting, but the violation of porous group borders that have previously been left (mostly) alone.



As long as actions were taken by that vaguely constituted group, they were legitimate, even if awards went to mediocrities like Redshirts.



As long as votes were drawn from a pool *within* the group, the outcome was legitimate regardless. This isn't a clique, just a group.



Despite the crowing about last years Hugos from *both* sides (pro and con), it hardly marked a drastic shift in the dominant voting pool



This year, clearly, it did.



I happen to think Ted Chiang is a good writer and John Scalzi is a bad writer. But building fanbases to get either of them Hugos is "legit."



If I tried to vote-brigade in order to give Vladimir Sorokin a Hugo, that would not be considered legit. (I'm tempted.) He's OUT-of-group.



But for all the political whinging on both sides, this is a fight between a couple very small communities arguing over legitimacy & space.



The *only* greater impact the Hugos will have is in how the narrative of this fight is told by the media, not by the actual fight itself.



Consequently I'm tempted to say, "Who cares?" but I lack a sentimental attachment to the Hugos. It's more important for those who have one.



The numbers in play are small enough that the Hugo committee could easily go and start the WorldCon Society of No Homers.



This is very different from gaming, where the people and money involved are significant. Numerically speaking, the Hugos are minuscule.



So you have a status object, the Hugo, which is being gamed by out-group members. What to do? The problem is not with slates or voting.



You either include the out-group members, or you fight to the death. RaceFail ended with the former. This will probably end with the latter.



So I'm inclined to say the Hugos cannot be "saved" on the terms that the in-group wants, because that battle *has already been lost*.



The longstanding community myths around the Hugos were shattered when the nominations came out. Difficult to put that genie back in bottle.



So: it's appropriate to mourn the loss of a meaningful, longterm symbol of an important community...rather than engaging in a stupid fight.



You can try to lock up the Hugos more tightly in the future, but it won't remove this blow to its prestige/legitimacy. Hence why I say myths.



Yes, you can No Award everything, and I probably would were I voting, but the integral community myth is still shattered.



The lesson? It's better if no one outside your community cares about your community. Positive attention begets negative attention.



Any community sufficiently invested with socio-political importance by outside spectators will become a battleground sooner or later.



In-group members can abet this by falling prey to self-importance. "I the hero shall foil this evil villain Vox Day at all costs!"



I recommend against building Vox Day up into the Mule. It's very much what he wants and it will not serve the SF community well.



But if certain egos think that the sanctity of the Hugos mandates a big ol' war against the Axis of Evil, I'm sure I won't dissuade them.

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