A corpus-assisted discourse analysis of linguistic transphobia on Mumsnet

[IwantToRetire]

By Aston Institute for Forensic Linguistics

It has been suggested that the forum-style parenting website Mumsnet is a hub for ‘gender-critical’ feminism, which directly opposes transgender rights, to be practised with little moderation (Livingston, 2018). This presentation reports on the initial stages of a project aiming to investigate that the potential intensification of linguistic transphobia on Mumsnet may lead to further marginalisation of transgender people offline (Powys Maurice, 2021). Though studies of non-linguistic transphobic rhetoric on Mumsnet (e.g., Pedersen, 2022; Mackenzie, 2019), and discourse analyses of other radical online communities (e.g., Krendel, 2020) have both occurred, this project is the first to analyse linguistic transphobia on Mumsnet. It also contributes to existing literature surrounding UK-based ‘gender-critical’ feminism; linguistic transphobia; and radical online community discourses.

The presentation explores the rise of potentially ‘gender-critical’ linguistic transphobia on Mumsnet over time through the corpus linguistic (CL) analysis of the ‘Feminism: Sex & Gender Discussions’ board, using three corpora comprising a fifteen-year timeframe: 2008-2013; 2013-2018; and 2018-2023. As the project is still ongoing, preliminary findings will be presented, namely a comparative overview of trends yielded in frequency analyses. Overall, this presentation provides insights into the growing commonality of potentially ‘gender-critical’ feminist rhetoric on Mumsnet and its effect on increasing transphobic discourse on the site.

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/a-corpus-assisted-discourse-analysis-of-linguistic-transphobia-on-mumsnet-tickets-880795271367?aff=ebdssbdestsearch

(I had just finished my favourite tea time treat of catching up on FWR and was going to get back to the grindstone when this popped up on my feed. So have come back as it is too good not to be shared. Enjoy!)

Aston Uni overall has work to do with helping students

You are correct, and that's all the more reason not to pile on this MSc student.

This seems a very good idea to me.
Could someone suggest a form of words we can all use so that they can't do any more analysis of individual requests?

To be fair I think mumsnet knew scraping was going on in some capacity and tried to proactively do something about it. If you look at the original article this whole debacle is based on in Vice (FFS), it mentions mumsnet servers.

This shitshow reminds me when I did research. I was very against animal testing but debated whether should I use the conclusions gained from others’ research on monkey testing in my discussions. The methods they used were abhorrent but they gave good results I could discuss. The researchers in those studies had to go through lots of due diligence and ethical committees beforehand and stated it in their studies.

We are now the monkeys. Except we didn't know we were and the future consequences of our stories being used against us or in a way we didn’t intend by an unknown entity is not ethical. Their words ‘playing’ with the data is awful.

I really hope the researchers are thinking about their actions now this set of ‘monkeys’ are talking about how upsetting this is? We are women who should have rights.

Of The 5 Freedoms for animal welfare, the last two are:
4.Freedom to display normal behaviour.
5.Freedom from fear and distress.

Number 4 has been taken away from women and girls by this ideology. Just look at the board for things we aren’t even supposed to talk about or do but can get advice here. Number 5 has too eg single sex spaces being lost, particularly important for the most vulnerable. And to the researchers - you are contributing to 4 and 5 on thousands of mums.

Hope your mums are proud of you.

Actually, some Masters students in Forensic Linguistics have some decent notions. These notions include identifying sensible research questions and selecting appropriate methodology.

See presentation slides from the Masters students who'd conducted an analysis on Aston Villa's supporters forums and actually went to Aston Villa to present their results to them! (I omitted the students from the photos and just included the projected slides.)

#AIFLOnTour our campus-based MA Forensic Linguistics students have been carrying out research on online fan communities and media coverage of the women’s game on behalf of AVFCOfficial and today they presented their findings at Villa Park.

https://x.com/AIFL_Aston/status/1772653426419097834

Do we suspect that they asked Aston Villa for their permission?

I think that what's happened is that Random Weirdoes #1 and #2 scraped Mumsnet and no one asked the right questions about whether this was OK and then Random Weirdo #3 decided to reanalyse that dataset that everyone assumed was legit because no one objected when it was first collected.

It's a combination of "that's someone else's department" and https://www.cartoonstock.com/cartoon?searchID=CS416925 being a distressingly-common attitude amongst academics.

Ah. Cancel my last post then.

Outwith simply isn't a word in english English but should be. We struggle along with outside, beyond or not within. It really freaked me out when I spent 3 months in Glasgow about 10 years ago but it is so useful.

Another word that isn't English but should be is the Indian English word prepone. It is the opposite of postpone. It is a useful word.

I love the word outbrave, which honestly does not get used enough!

Sarah Peters on used 'outwith' in the interview that, I think, was linked earlier on this thread. I noticed because it's not a word that I'm used to English people using.

What does 'outbrave' mean? To test yourself, go further than you think you can?

Could someone help me with the wording I would need for a FOI request and a complaint to the IOC

The cartoon I really wanted to use http://www.thephilosophyman.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/ethics-committee.jpg

I've set up thread #2 at https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/5060410-thread-2-a-corpus-assisted-discourse-analysis-of-linguistic-transphobia-on-mumsnet as @IwantToRetire appears to be away from keyboard.

Plagiarism. That’s from the Bible.

Oops, I didn’t read it carefully enough. A neat reversal by E.M .Forster.

Wrong way round. It should be

For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

as @IwantToRetire appears to be away from keyboard.

Oh no - have just seen your post and was carefully trying to think of some cleverly funny second thread heading.

Going to bed despondent.

Can you post the link?

This is it?

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/5060410-thread-2-a-corpus-assisted-discourse-analysis-of-linguistic-transphobia-on-mumsnet

Well at least that means it isn't outwith FWR

Just a shame Ashton didn't realise that our words are outwith their rainbow tinted analysis.

But on the other hand if any money is going to be earned by this devilish across the border raid on our lives I will accept suitable compensation.

Lillian darling, a gin and tonic for me and Richard will have a pint of Shires.

Chin chin!

(Oops, forgot I’m a silent character )

Outbrave is to face something with a show of defiance!

So on here we outbrave accusations of transphobic rhetoric with our pithy responses to such accusations!

I use outwith. I wasn’t aware it was regional. I wonder who I caught it off. I haven’t lived in any of the regions mentioned so far.

How can anyone live without 'outwith'?

'In the case of the first group, SSE speakers are frequently unaware that they are using Scotland-specific vocabulary; the preposition ‘outwith’ is a key example of this ‘covert Scotticism’ phenomenon, as is vocabulary such as timeous, dram, ceilidh, swither, thole, burn (in the sense of ‘a stream’), sporran, messages (as in ‘groceries’) and using the verb ‘to mind’ to mean ‘to remember/recall’ or the verb ‘to greet’ to mean ‘to weep/cry’.'

https://www.languagereach.com/scotlands-linguistic-landscape-scottish-standard-english-and-scots/

How can anyone live without timeous?!

Perhaps this is an elaborate attempt to prove that there are only 6 GC people in the UK with sock-puppets here and on TwiX?

‘Outwith’ is the bigliest and best word ever.

I’ve probably used it in every technical report I’ve ever written.

I often want to use blatherskite but I doubt the audience for my reports or reviews would appreciate it.