This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/oct/16/reddit-violentacrez-gawker-expose
The article has changed 19 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Reddit user Violentacrez fired from job after Gawker exposé | Reddit user Violentacrez fired from job after Gawker exposé |
| (about 11 hours later) | |
| The Reddit user whose identity was revealed in an extensive Gawker exposé has revealed that he was fired from his job at the weekend. | The Reddit user whose identity was revealed in an extensive Gawker exposé has revealed that he was fired from his job at the weekend. |
| Michael Brutsch, a 49-year-old programmer from Texas, said on Reddit that he had been told not to return to work after Gawker revealed that he was Violentacrez, a prolific user linked to posts filled with racism, misogyny and incest. | Michael Brutsch, a 49-year-old programmer from Texas, said on Reddit that he had been told not to return to work after Gawker revealed that he was Violentacrez, a prolific user linked to posts filled with racism, misogyny and incest. |
| As Violentacrez, Brutsch set up more than a hundred sub-forums (called sub-reddits) where users could share links and images of underage girls, rape fantasy and upskirt photos. Brutsch shut down his Violentacrez username after Gawker reporter Adrian Chen told him he knew his identity. He has since returned to the site with the new handle mbrutsch. | As Violentacrez, Brutsch set up more than a hundred sub-forums (called sub-reddits) where users could share links and images of underage girls, rape fantasy and upskirt photos. Brutsch shut down his Violentacrez username after Gawker reporter Adrian Chen told him he knew his identity. He has since returned to the site with the new handle mbrutsch. |
| Under that username, Brutsch said that he had warned his boss of the article before receiving a call Saturday telling him to not return to the office. | Under that username, Brutsch said that he had warned his boss of the article before receiving a call Saturday telling him to not return to the office. |
| Brutsch wrote: "All my remote access has been disabled, my health insurance and FSA were cancelled immediately (so they had to drag someone in over the weekend to do that). At this point, if any of the dozens of death threats I've gotten were to make good on their promises, at least my wife would have the insurance." | Brutsch wrote: "All my remote access has been disabled, my health insurance and FSA were cancelled immediately (so they had to drag someone in over the weekend to do that). At this point, if any of the dozens of death threats I've gotten were to make good on their promises, at least my wife would have the insurance." |
| His supporters on Reddit launched a campaign to donate money to the newly unemployed Brutsch and he released his email address on Reddit so supporters could donate money to his PayPal account. | His supporters on Reddit launched a campaign to donate money to the newly unemployed Brutsch and he released his email address on Reddit so supporters could donate money to his PayPal account. |
| AJ Daulerio, Gawker's editor-in-chief, who took over in January this year, said the site now does more long-form, original reporting of the type that exposed Brutsch. He said the site allocates one person to the snarky click-bait stories that made it famous, giving other writers more time to work on original stories. | AJ Daulerio, Gawker's editor-in-chief, who took over in January this year, said the site now does more long-form, original reporting of the type that exposed Brutsch. He said the site allocates one person to the snarky click-bait stories that made it famous, giving other writers more time to work on original stories. |
| "This way if we can stabilize the traffic elsewhere and have the rest of the team occupied with these longer, reported pieces it'll hopefully make a better, more literate Gawker," Daulerio told the Guardian. | "This way if we can stabilize the traffic elsewhere and have the rest of the team occupied with these longer, reported pieces it'll hopefully make a better, more literate Gawker," Daulerio told the Guardian. |
| Some members of the Reddit and Gawker communities believe Chen's piece was a deliberate attack by Gawker against Reddit. Before Chen's piece was published, Daulerio received emails from Redditors who claimed they would boycott Gawker if the piece came out. | Some members of the Reddit and Gawker communities believe Chen's piece was a deliberate attack by Gawker against Reddit. Before Chen's piece was published, Daulerio received emails from Redditors who claimed they would boycott Gawker if the piece came out. |
| "I never really saw it as a Gawker versus Reddit thing," Daulerio said. "Chen did a great story and that should pretty much stand on its own and I think that's how most people took it." | "I never really saw it as a Gawker versus Reddit thing," Daulerio said. "Chen did a great story and that should pretty much stand on its own and I think that's how most people took it." |
| In response to the exposé, numerous Reddit forums censored Chen's article because it violated their rule on identifying site users. Reddit administrator Erik Martin told Buzzfeed the ban was a mistake and lifted it. | In response to the exposé, numerous Reddit forums censored Chen's article because it violated their rule on identifying site users. Reddit administrator Erik Martin told Buzzfeed the ban was a mistake and lifted it. |
| "We're always adjusting our approach, we're always following the lead of our users and community, and we always have to adjust things," Martin said. "We're also trying to maintain this as we want Reddit to be as open a platform as possible. " | "We're always adjusting our approach, we're always following the lead of our users and community, and we always have to adjust things," Martin said. "We're also trying to maintain this as we want Reddit to be as open a platform as possible. " |
| Users who posts links to, or related to, the article are still being banned by moderators in some subreddits and the politics forum has decided to ban all Gawker content. | Users who posts links to, or related to, the article are still being banned by moderators in some subreddits and the politics forum has decided to ban all Gawker content. |
| Daulerio said he was unfazed by the boycotts. "It's fine, it's perfectly fine," he said. | Daulerio said he was unfazed by the boycotts. "It's fine, it's perfectly fine," he said. |
| Reddit did not respond to requests for comment. | Reddit did not respond to requests for comment. |
| The exposé, and resulting ban on Gawker content in some sub-forums, has reignited the debate on internet anonymity and Reddit's freedom to post what it wants. The sharing site has five rules, two pertaining to content: | The exposé, and resulting ban on Gawker content in some sub-forums, has reignited the debate on internet anonymity and Reddit's freedom to post what it wants. The sharing site has five rules, two pertaining to content: |
| • Don't post personal information. • No child pornography or sexually suggestive content featuring minors. | • Don't post personal information. • No child pornography or sexually suggestive content featuring minors. |
| Reddit was pushed to remove its r/jailbait forum which hosted pictures of underage girls in September 2011 and later the r/Photobucket forum which hosted pictures taken from compromised accounts on the photo-sharing site Photobucket. | Reddit was pushed to remove its r/jailbait forum which hosted pictures of underage girls in September 2011 and later the r/Photobucket forum which hosted pictures taken from compromised accounts on the photo-sharing site Photobucket. |
| The site is designed to give users anonymity as a way of promoting free speech, but this has lead to exploitative and racist postings in some darker corners of the site. Some of those corners were frequented by Violentacrez, who created or moderated sub-forums including Chokeabitch, Misogyny and Hitler. | The site is designed to give users anonymity as a way of promoting free speech, but this has lead to exploitative and racist postings in some darker corners of the site. Some of those corners were frequented by Violentacrez, who created or moderated sub-forums including Chokeabitch, Misogyny and Hitler. |
| Brutsch responded to comments on Reddit on Tuesday and expressed his views on anonymity in one post: "Anonymity can be used as an enabler. It can also, as in the case of Mexican bloggers covering the cartels, be used in the opposite direction. It is not in and of itself the problem." | Brutsch responded to comments on Reddit on Tuesday and expressed his views on anonymity in one post: "Anonymity can be used as an enabler. It can also, as in the case of Mexican bloggers covering the cartels, be used in the opposite direction. It is not in and of itself the problem." |
| Brutsch said he was not available to talk to the Guardian because he was preparing for an interview on CNN on Tuesday evening. A CNN spokesperson said he would not be on the show Tuesday evening because of presidential debate coverage but may appear later in the week. The Anderson Cooper show has run a number of stories about Reddit. | Brutsch said he was not available to talk to the Guardian because he was preparing for an interview on CNN on Tuesday evening. A CNN spokesperson said he would not be on the show Tuesday evening because of presidential debate coverage but may appear later in the week. The Anderson Cooper show has run a number of stories about Reddit. |
| Comments | |
| 15 comments, displaying first | |
| 16 October 2012 10:56PM | |
| Witch hunt anyone? | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 16 October 2012 11:37PM | |
| 49? | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 16 October 2012 11:58PM | |
| "His supporters on Reddit launched a campaign to donate money to the newly unemployed Brutsch and he released his email address on Reddit so supporters could donate money to his PayPal account." | |
| It's too bad I'm unable to kick-over his virtual tip jar. Yes, that's a mean thing to write, but what can I say? This low-life seems to bring out the worst in people - a role that he embraces and revels in. | |
| Another commentator, AuntieEm, summed up the situation best: "This is just an example of free speech working two ways. Michael Brutsch gets to publish photos of unsuspecting women and brag about having sex with his teenage step-daughter and we get to say what we think of him because of it. No prosecution, just a bit of real-world judgement." | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 12:09AM | |
| He deserved what he got. Imagine having to work in the next cubicle from that creep, working to screw people with usurious pay-day loans; this sleazy business is still stand-up enough to fire his ass. | |
| Free speech has nothing to do with it. He is perfectly free to be a racist, to brag about sex with his under-aged step-daughter, etc. Just as his employer is perfectly free to fire him for being disgusting. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 1:58AM | |
| The self-pitying mofo who has no remorse for his own disgusting behaviour will probably sell his "story" to some bottom-feeding tabloid. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 3:34AM | |
| waaahhh waaaaahhh waaaahhhh people are judging me by the contents of my character waaaahhh wahhhh waaaaahhhh call me a whhhaaaaammmmbulance | |
| Amazing how a 49 year old doesn't understand how the concept of Free Speech works. The First Amendment only protects you from government persecution for the things you say. Anyone else can fire you, discriminate against you, ban you or ostracize you. Get over it. Being a mega creep is not a protected class of person, like being gay or disabled is. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 3:36AM | |
| I think you'll find he believes that it is 4+9, or 13, which is about how old he really is. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 4:49AM | |
| i would think that at least of few of the reddit users would be a wee bit upset that brutsch offered to be a mole for chen within reddit. | |
| whilst the website may guarantee/promise anonymity, nothing in the real world does. he left a trail of bread loaves rather than crumbs to enable his identity to be found out. | |
| he comes across as a braggart in the interview, when he's not whinging and begging to not be outed. he is a coward who thought he could get away with all sorts of despicable behaviour. he is an idiot who deserves whatever he gets, other than donated money from those who feel they are protecting something precious, ie freedom of speech, when they are merely making him feel somehow vindicated for being a horrible, manipulative degenerate of a man. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 7:05AM | |
| What does Paypal think about offering services to a man who promoted the posting of exploitative photos of non-consenting underage girls? | |
| Just wondered, given the fact that they had no qualms about suspending services to Wikileaks. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 7:43AM | |
| Maybe he could move back in with his mother. | |
| Regardless of the ongoing debate/reddit-gawker spat... anyone who thinks it is OK to repost illegal and offensive images in order to stimulate a debate on free speech either needs proper help or should be locked up. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 10:09AM | |
| Good. He's a complete twat. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 10:26AM | |
| All journo's should hang their heads in shame. Whilst his views were disgusting he didnt break a law and ultimately showed us how hypocritical the world is. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 10:34AM | |
| What was that famous quote? "I don't agree with what you say so I'm going to bully you until you stop saying it"? | |
| From what I understand after reading the Gawker expose, he didn't do anything illegal. What someone does in their private life, however offensive, is their own business. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 10:45AM | |
| What someone does in their private life, however offensive, is their own business. | |
| Maybe he should have thought of that before violating the privacy of women and girls who had the temerity to post photos of themselves on their own social media sites or, horror of horrors, go into public spaces while looking nice. What he did wasn't illegal - which is why he isn't facing legal sanction. It was, however, of dubious morality. It's not as though he needed his anonymity to expose government or corporate misdeeds, he's a nasty little creep who received the start of his more than justified comeuppance. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| 17 October 2012 10:47AM | |
| Gods know I'm not defending Brutsch it's weird, perverted and disgusting what he did however if Gawker and Adrian Chen were the paragons of virtue they're making themselves out to be why did they not go to the police? What if they've singled out the wrong guy? (I'm not saying they have as the evidence seems overwhelming.) What if someone does make good on these death threats? | |
| Why has no one pointed out Gawker is the same website who have a stalking page to track celebrities? Chen has and always will have a crusader like fever against reddit. Certain Reddit moderators will always sit a rant on about free speech as a defence and ultimately I feel like no one comes out looking good. I say this as someone who happily browses some subreddit's. | |
| Link to this comment: | |
| Turn autoplay off | |
| Turn autoplay on | |
| Please activate cookies in order to turn autoplay off | |
| Edition: UK | |
| About us | |
| Today's paper | |
| Subscribe | |
| Michael Brutsch, a 49-year-old programmer from Texas, uses Reddit to say he has been told not to return to work | |
| The Reddit user whose identity was revealed in an extensive Gawker exposé has revealed that he was fired from his job at the weekend. | |
| Michael Brutsch, a 49-year-old programmer from Texas, said on Reddit that he had been told not to return to work after Gawker revealed that he was Violentacrez, a prolific user linked to posts filled with racism, misogyny and incest. | |
| As Violentacrez, Brutsch set up more than a hundred sub-forums (called sub-reddits) where users could share links and images of underage girls, rape fantasy and upskirt photos. Brutsch shut down his Violentacrez username after Gawker reporter Adrian Chen told him he knew his identity. He has since returned to the site with the new handle mbrutsch. | |
| Under that username, Brutsch said that he had warned his boss of the article before receiving a call Saturday telling him to not return to the office. | |
| Brutsch wrote: "All my remote access has been disabled, my health insurance and FSA were cancelled immediately (so they had to drag someone in over the weekend to do that). At this point, if any of the dozens of death threats I've gotten were to make good on their promises, at least my wife would have the insurance." | |
| His supporters on Reddit launched a campaign to donate money to the newly unemployed Brutsch and he released his email address on Reddit so supporters could donate money to his PayPal account. | |
| AJ Daulerio, Gawker's editor-in-chief, who took over in January this year, said the site now does more long-form, original reporting of the type that exposed Brutsch. He said the site allocates one person to the snarky click-bait stories that made it famous, giving other writers more time to work on original stories. | |
| "This way if we can stabilize the traffic elsewhere and have the rest of the team occupied with these longer, reported pieces it'll hopefully make a better, more literate Gawker," Daulerio told the Guardian. | |
| Some members of the Reddit and Gawker communities believe Chen's piece was a deliberate attack by Gawker against Reddit. Before Chen's piece was published, Daulerio received emails from Redditors who claimed they would boycott Gawker if the piece came out. | |
| "I never really saw it as a Gawker versus Reddit thing," Daulerio said. "Chen did a great story and that should pretty much stand on its own and I think that's how most people took it." | |
| In response to the exposé, numerous Reddit forums censored Chen's article because it violated their rule on identifying site users. Reddit administrator Erik Martin told Buzzfeed the ban was a mistake and lifted it. | |
| "We're always adjusting our approach, we're always following the lead of our users and community, and we always have to adjust things," Martin said. "We're also trying to maintain this as we want Reddit to be as open a platform as possible. " | |
| Users who posts links to, or related to, the article are still being banned by moderators in some subreddits and the politics forum has decided to ban all Gawker content. | |
| Daulerio said he was unfazed by the boycotts. "It's fine, it's perfectly fine," he said. | |
| Reddit did not respond to requests for comment. | |
| The exposé, and resulting ban on Gawker content in some sub-forums, has reignited the debate on internet anonymity and Reddit's freedom to post what it wants. The sharing site has five rules, two pertaining to content: | |
| • Don't post personal information. • No child pornography or sexually suggestive content featuring minors. | |
| Reddit was pushed to remove its r/jailbait forum which hosted pictures of underage girls in September 2011 and later the r/Photobucket forum which hosted pictures taken from compromised accounts on the photo-sharing site Photobucket. | |
| The site is designed to give users anonymity as a way of promoting free speech, but this has lead to exploitative and racist postings in some darker corners of the site. Some of those corners were frequented by Violentacrez, who created or moderated sub-forums including Chokeabitch, Misogyny and Hitler. | |
| Brutsch responded to comments on Reddit on Tuesday and expressed his views on anonymity in one post: "Anonymity can be used as an enabler. It can also, as in the case of Mexican bloggers covering the cartels, be used in the opposite direction. It is not in and of itself the problem." | |
| Brutsch said he was not available to talk to the Guardian because he was preparing for an interview on CNN on Tuesday evening. A CNN spokesperson said he would not be on the show Tuesday evening because of presidential debate coverage but may appear later in the week. The Anderson Cooper show has run a number of stories about Reddit. |