If you've been following the South by Southwest canceled panels / GamerGate story you may know that SXSW Interactive on Tuesday issues a brief statement basically saying "Stay tuned" as the festival works behind the scenes to fix a gigantic public-relations mess.
Now, according to a Re/code story citing unnamed sources, the festival has reinstated one of the two canceled panels ("Level Up," not the more GamerGate-affiliated "SavePoint" panel) and is planning a full-day event focused around the topic of online harassment, likely with the involvement of BuzzFeed and Vox Media, two media companies threatening to abandon the festival if the panels were not reinstated.
Whether this all happens remains to be seen, but we do know based on off-the-record reports that the SXSW Programming Committee was contacted on Tuesday about the situation and that the festival has been working behind the scenes to reach agreements it hopes will please the SXSW community at large.
In other updates, the American-Statesman confirmed today that Austin Police Department has been involved with the threat investigation and is waiting on more information from the festival.
Separately, popular advertising consultant Cindy Gallop apparently called on advertisers to boycott SXSW over the panel issue at The 3% Conference on Tuesday.
About the Author
