Re:Slate Star Codex and Silicon Valley’s War Against the Media
by joshuamorton on Thursday July 09, 2020 @02:13PM
(#23783227)
> Even when a subject's legal name is known, the NYT regularly uses a pen name or pseudonym to protect their identity. Here are some examples:
I don't think using the examples of performing artists is a good one. Vermin and the Drag queens don't use pseudonyms to protect their identities any more than Beyonce (a stage name that is a part of her legal name, as in SSC's case) or Lady Gaga (a stage name) use those names for "protection" or privacy. They aren't really, they're branding.
In fact, from the draq queen article you cite:
> “I started a big fuss,” said Sister Roma, whose legal name is Michael Williams. “Then Facebook called me and offered to organize a meeting.”
It's a direct counterexample.
- Virgil Texas, co-host of the Chapo Trap House podcast: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/29/us/politics/bernie-sander...
- Vermin Supreme, performance artist: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/30/us/politics/libertarians-...
- Drag queens such as Lil Miss Hot Mess, Sister Roma, and Heklina: https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/25/fashion/drag-performers-f...
- Baseball statistician Tom Tango: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/29/magazine/why-are-some-new...
- Gay niche erotica writer Chuck Tingle: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/22/opinion/chuck-tingles-int...
- A Canadian who traveled to Syria to fight for ISIS: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/20/podcasts/caliphate-transc...
- A random person: https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/25/nyregion/commodes-if-not-...
> A second person who checked out the women’s restroom — and who asked not to be identified because she has always wanted to be an anonymous source — reported her findings by email...
- Jeremiah Moss: https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/05/nyregion/a-cranky-blogger...
> Mr. Moss, which is not his real name — more on that to come — took part in a doomed attempt to save the Café Edison, a beloved Times Square coffee shop whose landlord was looking to replace it with a classier establishment. ... A therapist and a writer, he says he is worried that clients might object to his activism.
"A therapist and a writer", hmmm... who else fits that description? Oh right, Scott Alexander!