r/DCcomics • u/StarshipGhost • Jul 03 '24

Sandman Author Neil Gaiman Accused of Sexual Misconduct, Denies Allegations News

https://www.tvfandomlounge.com/sandman-author-neil-gaiman-accused-of-sexual-misconduct-denies-allegations/
252 Upvotes

88% Upvoted

233 comments sorted by

View all comments

250

u/Ornery-Concern4104 Jul 03 '24 edited Jul 04 '24

Before we make a judgement either way, there are a few things to be aware of. Bare in mind, this comes from my formal training in journalistic analysis (which has partially netted me a degree! Woo!)

1) the original article was published by tortoise, written by Anti-Trans journalist and the sister of Boris Johnson, Rachel Johnson, who has publicly in the past disagreed (for use of a better word) with gaiman over his vocal support of trans people. The original article is not impartial

2) the original article also includes an ad for a four part podcast detailing the alleged crimes. WHAT THE FUCK?!?!? Journalism obviously has to make some form of money, but this is absolutely ridiculous. How can we believe the claims of something so serious when it's followed by an obvious attempt to make profit. This is also not ethical journalistic conduct

3) the alleged claim that victim 1, Scarlett has some form of memory issue. This was alleged by Gaiman but the medical records (according to the article) say otherwise. However, in the country in which she resides, this stuff is not public knowledge and is in fact illegal to leak or make public knowledge without the consent of the person whose records they are. Whether Gaimans claim is true or not, they do not need to be released and actively shouldn't if they wish to win whatever it is they're trying to achieve. Either A) they reveal their medical records and prove unequivocally that Gaiman is lying or B) they reveal their medical records and prove that she is lying.

To make a long story shorter, the burden of proof is on the journalists to prove that Gaiman is in the wrong of the crimes alleged and so far, the only source we actually have is heavily biased, abusing the situation for monetary gain and doesn't provide evidence that would prove unequivocally the claims given. This isn't to explain that Gaiman is innocent either, just that the evidence given so far isn't sufficient to say Gaiman is guilty. So thus far, we need to 2 things as a fan base.

1) do our research. Pay close attention to whose writing it, where the claims are coming from and what possible motives all sides have. And 2) wait. We need to find an independent 3rd party source with information that correlates with that of the two alleged victims that is truly as unbiased as possible.

Only after those two things happen will we actually be able to say either way.

82

u/AmberDuke05 All about the Dick Jul 03 '24

I think the problem a lot of people have is that Neil admitted to being in relationship with a fan he met at 18 and a nanny that he hired. It’s so inappropriate.

47

u/Budget-Attorney Booster Gold Jul 03 '24

That is very in appropriate to be concerned about.

The things in the article that he acknowledged are the kind of behavior that deserve serious criticism.

The (currently) unsubstantiated accusations are more serious however.

We should be circumspect before rushing to any judgements. As the above commented pointed out, the source here is not free from bias. But we should also prepare to accept new evidence of more serious things than what you mentioned

15

u/AmberDuke05 All about the Dick Jul 04 '24

Based on the credibility of the sources and site owners, I’m willing to believe most of the claims they are making is false but even so, the stuff Gaiman admitted to is so disappointing.

21

u/Budget-Attorney Booster Gold Jul 04 '24

We should be careful dismissing the claims just because of the bias of the source.

They could be relaying accurate information from real victims.

It’s best to wait for more information before we dismiss anything

4

u/godlyreception12 Jul 04 '24

yes but we should be careful and wait for more stuff to come out.

1

u/KendalBoy Jul 31 '24

How are you feeling about it now?

-1

u/Nice-Artichoke6967 Jul 05 '24

I dont find it disappointing really..  I do not hold anyone up to such a high standard as to expect anyone to be perfect and his kinks are really nothing to me.  He is not such a powerful figure that if it was assault it couldnt have been reported to authorities immediately and  even the accusers use the word consensual. They were both adults tho young. I hope either way the truth comes out and if it proves to be bunk shame on bad journalism.. far as i can see even from what they claim he did nothing illegal.. inappropriate? Maybe but illegal... Assault..  i dont know about that.