I'll say this though, bearing in mind that the media is very much a "who you know" business...
Neil Gaiman got his big break when, as a young journalist, he was sent to interview Terry Pratchett and befriended the great man, who was good enough to recommend this talented young chap to others. I don't think they were quite as close as Gaiman has implied over the years, but Terry giving Neil his entry into publishing is quite true.
Laurie Penny, once she'd graduated from Oxford, pretty ruthlessly used whatever contacts she'd managed to acquire to get a foot in the media door. I don't blame her for that - you use what advantages you've got. One person who made some important introductions for her was Neil Gaiman. A lot of Neil's interactions were self-serving, and look like he was grooming people to be character witnesses, but to be fair to the old creep, he's been willing to help others in their careers.
Maybe I just don't move in the right circles, but I have literally never heard anyone say "Laurie Penny really helped me with my career", or even heard of her doing a good turn for someone who wasn't in a position to do something for her. I've heard of quite a few people who used to be friendly with her, who ended up being cut dead as soon as they were no longer useful to her career.
I'm quite cynical about people who talk loudly about solidarity and empathy, because they're usually the people who lack those qualities.