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University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
Former Frat Boy Hides Behind First Amendment For Slanderous Site

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That_little_attention_whore
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
wow. that site is BRUTAL. Then again, I went to a really tiny college so everyone was able to spread vicious rumors face to face, so it seems kind of unnecessary. And, actually, it's probably useless at a big school too. What are the odds of someone at a place like UT Austin or Ohio State even knowing who the hell the people they talk about even ARE? In essence, the site seems to serve no real purpose except to give people a chance to be an asshole in a completely anonymous way. If you need to do that, go start an account on /b/

I actually checked out the topics on my alma mater's site (yeah, teeny little Claremont McKenna is on there) and the topics included the prerequisite "cutest freshman guy" "cutest freshman girl" and "biggest bitch" but also "joe biden" "sarah palin" and the all-important topic "who's going to win IM waterpolo" Good to know CMC is as I left it - a bunch of dorks.
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Vivien Smith-Smythe-Smith
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
Shit, even Gossip Girl doesn't use real names, people!
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alouette
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
Thank god for tiny liberal-arts colleges!
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ObtuseIntolerant
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
The Russell Brand School of "humor"...be a jerk, and tell other people they are tightasses when they don't enjoy your funtimes.
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SomeAuthorGirl
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
1) I am really glad that this chapter of my life took place in the 90's, when the internets were very slow and no such thing existed to capture my antics.

2) My heart is breaking for the women who've posted in this thread who are still at school.

3) I think it's sick and possibly illegal.

4) That said, young people today need to think seriously about their future careers and what is "out there" about them.

I am really sad right now.
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SarahMC
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
I had not been to the site until 5 minutes ago. Lots of rape stories on there, huh.
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onestrawplz
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
Someone put me on this site on Oct. 16th, saying "onestrawplz is the most annoying ugly piece of shit on this campus.... how the fuck did she even get in here????"

I'm suspecting it's my former roommate, but you never know. This shit is hurtful, yo. College is for adults, leave the kiddy antics at home/high school.
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Anne is Spiderman
10/30/08

@onestrawplz: I am so sorry that happened to you. Hope you're feeling better now.
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hellosunshine
10/30/08

@LizbethAnne: @onestrawplz:

Oh honey, I'm sorry :( I'm thanking my lucky stars I graduated three years ago. My sorority gets dragged through the mud, and it sucks seeing individual sisters' names on there sometimes. I've only checked it twice, as it's just awful.
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onestrawplz
10/30/08

@LizbethAnne: @hellodarling! lurves FPOTUS Obama!: I JUST found out, seeing the site mentioned here made me curious, so i checked and my full name is there. First and last. I mean I realize it could be worse, but I just hate the fact that people can go around spreading gossip and rumors on an anonymous forum. And I'm really not the extrovert type, I basically stick to myself and my friends and don't really do anything to anyone else, so I have no idea who I've bothered enough that they would go and make a post about me.

But thanks a lot for your support. The site's creator should be punched in the balls.
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murielmercurial
10/30/08

@onestrawplz: Ugh, that is so hurtful and I am so sorry that happened to you. And you are right- when I was a kid I always imagined college to be the place where intelligent people discuss the world. But then I went to college and learned it's just an extension of high school, nothing but bitchiness, bratyness, gossiping and social climbing. It's so sad how people cannot let go of the high school attitude.
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onestrawplz
10/30/08

@murielmercurial: Yeah. I mean it's probably due to some inadequacy in their own lives that they have to resort to things like this. I got to a high ranking school but I'm sick of the attitudes that some people have. It's like, we all went through high school, and sure it was probably boring, but you're in New York City now. Find a hobby.
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rinchik
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
So, I'm a student at Tufts University and every December we have Naked Quad Run, where students (mostly intoxicated) get naked and do laps around the Academic Quad before finals. One day I asked my friend if he was going to be running NQR, and he said "Definitely not!" I asked why, and then I realized: "Because when you finally run for office, you don't want a picture surfacing anywhere?" He laughed and said, "Exactly."

This past year, a reporter at a local newspaper came and filmed NQR, at an angle such that you can see people's asses but no faces or fronts. She posted it online. There was a huge uproar at Tufts, with people protesting that they had been violated.

Now, I've run NQR, and I've even done it sober, but I recognize that I have no right to complain when something I do before the eyes of humanity gets attention. OWN YOUR ACTIONS, PEOPLE. Why is your morally reprehensible behavior okay when you're in your bubble, but all of a sudden it's a problem when more people are given access to it? If you're gunning to be the future U.S. Ambassador to Tunisia, you should already realize that certain types of behavior may be troubling to your employers. I feel like people should act in a way they can always stand by. (It's like this girl I'm acquainted with that was outed for being a slut, who had anal sex with every guy in some frat at her school, on a late night college radio show. That is fucked up and mean for them to bring up, but like, if she was uncomfortable with people finding that out, why do it in the first place?...whatever. that's my musing, take it or leave it :) )
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Jessi Ramsey
10/30/08

@rinchik: So if someone goes on JC and writes " so and so has herpes", the person who has just had their private business posted on the internet has to own it? What if it isn't even true? This isn't a picture posted on Facebook, it's an anonymous forum where people are encouraged to write the nastiest shit about others.

The hell is with all the victim blaming today?
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Penny_Esq
10/30/08

@rinchik: On what planet does one have to be okay with people finding out about their sexual practices? I mean, really? If I have sex with someone, I expect it to stay between myself and that dude, and probably his close friends and mine. I don't expect nor consent, by virtue of banging him, to that fact being broadcast or otherwise made public. It has nothing to do with shame and everything to do with privacy.
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Cerridwen
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
I am so over the "I can post whatever I want on the internet because it's a public forum and I am anonymous." People just spew vitriol all over the place and humiliate not only women but men, too, expecting that "If you don't like it, you can go somewhere else" is a sufficient excuse for being a total jerk. Just because we have a lot more freedom to articulate whatever wherever we want doesn't mean it is ok to act like an asshole publicly. And this kind of site not only condones but encourages this trend.

Also, I am equally disgusted by the fact that it is mostly used as an excuse to tear down women (by both men and women themselves). Shaming women by calling them "whores," snarking on their bodies, spreading vicious lies...it's all facilitated and made easier by this kind of a site.
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noxiousbeast
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
Thank you for finally posting on this crap! I emailed ya'll about it, and another truly heinous site a while back.

I wrote a seminar paper on this bullshiz. Truly horrifying stuff, and the implications for women are far, far worse than men. Women are "whores," where men are simply "players."

Sadly it is 100% legal. Unless you can get Congress to revise the Communications Decency Act, sites that commercialize defamation will continue to proliferate. If anyone wants to try to get Congress to revise the CDA, hit me up. I've already got a proposal handy.
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Penny_Esq
10/30/08

@noxiousbeast: Out of curiosity, how would you revise the CDA? It's always been difficult for us to balance our interest in free speech with our interest in protecting our citizens, but we have tended to err on the side of speech, generally speaking - e.g., Branzburg, marketplace of ideas and all that. (I'm not trying to challenge you, I'm actually really interested. This is the kind of law I wish I were practicing.)
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Penny_Esq
10/30/08

@Penny_Esq: mad as a sack of badgers: Sorry, that would be Brandenburg. The Ohio KKK one, not the confidential source one.
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noxiousbeast
10/30/08

@Penny_Esq: mad as a sack of badgers: That's the problem, right?! I'm actually at work and the jist of my proposal is too long for a brief comment. But i can message you later if you'd like! =)
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Penny_Esq
10/30/08

@noxiousbeast: Yes, that would be fantastic! Thanks!
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MegSpencer
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
My school isn't on here, but it's still disgusting. Blech. It does make me think that it will be interesting how politics looks when people who are now young start running for office. It's pretty hard to keep dirt hidden these days. I wonder if people will grow a thicker skin when it's possible to find drunken pictures of just about anyone.
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MegSpencer
10/30/08

@MegSpencer: When I say thicker skin, I don't mean people not being upset about crap like JuicyCampus, I mean voters not making such a big deal about who did coke 40 years ago.
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LaFemme
10/30/08

@MegSpencer: The truly die-hard at these schools (I am an alum...) are REALLY vigilant about what they allow on the internet. Like, vacate a building because they smell pot or forbid people from taking pictures at all at parties. Or know they need to be cautious. The problem with sites like this (or facebook pictures, even if you aren't tagged, they are up there) is that you have no control over what other people post about you. Which REALLY bothers me. I think in the future, people will just become more forgiving. Hell, even look at the change in attitude from Clinton to Bush to Obama. No one is trying to pull the whole "I never inhaled crap"
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kerald
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
My school just got added to the site, and there's been a strong sabotage movement. For example, when you look at a "Biggest Sluts" post, there might be a paragraph about the migration habits of tiger sharks or the wikipedia article for something completely random. And people have added "Favorite Bible Quotes" and "Favorite Types of Juice" as posting topics. Hilarious, and makes me proud to go here.
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LadyNo Fondles Sweaters
10/30/08

@kerald: That's awesome! What a great way to subvert this awful site!
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luxamnesiac
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
My alma mater blocked it from campus, but anyone off campus can still read it and post to it. Luckily, once it was banned, two off campus housemates posted stupid stuff about each other (Sam is a communist! etc), but some of the stuff is really mean for such a small school (~1300 students).
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onestrawplz
10/30/08

@luxamnesiac: Oh, that's a good idea, blocking it from campus. I should see if I can bring that up to anyone. I'll ask my RA. This shit is out of control.
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PinkSoxHat
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
Holy craptastic shit. I just checked my alma mater's page. Most of it was posts about "don't use this, we're better than this, whatever happened to our sense of community?" But one post was titled "Who are the dykes/fags? Come out so we can throw you out." Thank god 99% of the replies were along the lines of "What the fuck is wrong with you?"
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Scarlett3
10/30/08

In reply to University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"
I might get ripped apart for this, but I don't really see the issue. People gossip anyways, what difference does it make if its moved to an internet medium (obviously this would be a problem if it stops you from getting a job but, but given what he states about privacy). I don't know, I'm just not all that shocked or outraged.
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CollegeBookworm
10/30/08

@Scarlett3: But isn't there a difference between a few people sitting in a room gossip and putting it on the Internet? As of right now JuicyCampus is apparently not tracked by search engines- I tested it with a friend of mine and nothing came up. But what if it is later tracked by search engines? What happens when my friend is looking for a job after she graduates and when the potential employer googles her, they get a JC post calling her the "best dominatrix" on campus?
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LadyNo Fondles Sweaters
10/30/08

@Scarlett3: I agree with Lizbeth, the difference is accountability. Also, after I have whispered, "Jane's a skank!" those words are gone. Not so on an online forum. They are out there for all the world to read. They stick.
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Ratinski
10/30/08

@Scarlett3: Well, think of it this way. You've been branded a drunken slut who slept with the whole damn football team on a site that can be seen by a large group of people (current students, faculty, alumni). Then you apply to your dream job, and someone there who went to your school checks you on on JuicyCampus. You were qualified, you interviewed well, but quite possibly you got rejected because of postings on an anonymous site. And unlike Facebook, where you may have been stupid enough to post the pictures yourself, this is entirely out of your control. You can't do anything about the fact that some douchebag at your college decided to post bullshit about you.

Still okay with it?
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University Students Want Gossip Site Banned; Site Founder Sez "Get A Sense Of Humor"

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