#thegymternet

[flatley-fever]

Read this as McKayla Maroney at first and freaked out for just a sec...

[tsukthepain]

My thoughts on Gymnastike.

Alright, I’ll finally speak on the matter. 

1. Pretty much everything that has been said against Gymnastike is true, but what makes this even more infuriating is gymnastike prides itself on bringing unprecedented coverage of the sport to the masses (for an outrageous fee, of course). Apparently, unprecedented coverage includes gossipy viral stories tinged with the potential of pedophilia. Gymastike has to decide which direction to go in — that of Gym Gossip Message Board or a legitimate and reputable gymnastics site. 

2. Mckayla has already denied the legitimacy of the photos, and the gymternet has sleuthed out the fact that if the photos were real, Maroney would have been underage in the shots. Is this what Gymnastike was referring to when saying sometimes breaking news can be uncomfortable? Aside from the wrongness of even reporting this on a gymnastics site, gymnastike should not have included a link to the original source, which allegedly featured the explicit photos. Let’s not forget the vague victim shaming within the article itself. As if it is wrong for a girl to take pictures of herself. Hacking and sharing private documents and photos is not a victimless crime regardless of who or what is depicted.   

3. As if all of the above wasn’t reason enough, the article should have been removed an apology should have been issued once Mckayla herself discredited the validity of the photos. The fact that the article still remains on the front page of gymnastike is reprehensible. 

4. Does gymnastike even know its own audience? Is that direct link the kind of thing they want aspiring gymnasts to see (or more likely to be important: is this the kind of thing they want the parents paying for their child’s subscription to see)?

5. Finally, Rick at gymnastics coaching urges the gymternet to not hold all of gymnastike responsible. Aka don’t totally boycott the website. While it is true that not every contributing member should be held with their feet to the fire, this isn’t the first time gymnastike has been in trouble. From buying out the rebroadcast rights for NCAA (dick move, but understandable in terms of business), to hiding the majority of its formerly free content behind a significantly huge paywall, to plagiarizing other websites and stories, to getting simple facts wrong, to claiming “breaking news exclusives” to stories already well known across the gymternet…Gymnastike has been circling the drain. Now, with the publication of the Maroney story and a direct link to the explicit content, I can safely say Gymnastike has slipped all the way down to the sewers. Yes, I support the boycott of Gymnastike.