Young Women Are Reclaiming The Slur ‘Egirl’

By

Cecilia D'Anastasio

PublishedJuly 26, 2019

Comments (175)

Ash “Aasshh.jpg” Eldridge Ash Eldridge (Instagram)

Jayden “YourPrincess” Diaz is haunted by the term “egirl.” A League of Legends streamer competing among the top two percent of players, Diaz hasn’t been able to escape it for years—every day in Twitch chat, in League of Legends games and across social media.

“I let it really hurt me,” Diaz, 20, told Kotaku of the word, which she defines as a woman who “exploits the fact that she’s a girl to get attention online.” Diaz, with curled lengths of brown hair and a polished fashion sense, says viewers have called her a glorified camgirl throughout her career as a professional gamer. “I let it control even the role I played in League,” she explained, adding, “I used to main support, but I stopped playing support because I hated being called a ‘boosted egirl,’” or a woman whose high League rank was earned by someone else.

Jayden “YourPrincess” Diaz at Riot Games’ Rumble on the Rift event at TwitchCon in 2018. REL Hunt (Riot Games)

“Egirl” is a word that has followed female Twitch streamers and cosplayers around for years. Derogatory by nature, “egirl” is wielded by naysaying trolls to undermine a woman’s legitimacy as a true gamer and nerd based on her looks or internet popularity. In 2013, right before it hit the mainstream, one Urban Dictionary user’s early classification of egirls went, “Often seeking the attention of professional gamers. . . Live sightings of eGirls can be found at gaming LANs.” As gaming culture moved onto Twitch, and streamers garnered a modicum of micro-celebrity, public-facing girl gamers like Diaz began receiving the popular put-down and have been waging war on it ever since.

Yet over the last year, egirl has taken on another meaning. If you’re not a teenager on the short-form mobile video app TikTok, you might not have noticed. I asked Diaz to run a Google image search for “TikTok egirl,” which brought up hundreds of pictures of primly made-up teen girls sticking their tongues out in high-fashion streetwear. “What the fuck?” said Diaz, laughing in disbelief. “Dude, it’s a whole fashion trend now.”

In a recent article in the fashion and lifestyle magazine Dazed, a young girl with heavy, winged eyeliner and cropped, slime-green hair stares menacingly at the camera. Around her neck is a dog collar, and her lips and cheeks are dark red smudges. “E-girls and boys’ style is the antidote to the homogenised IG [Instagram] aesthetic,” the headline reads. The article goes on to detail how Gen-Z influencers who describe themselves as “egirls” are “mixing alternative aesthetics like thick chains, chokers, monochrome stripes, and dramatic eyeliner with softer, anime-inspired qualities like little hearts drawn on under their eyes, caked-on blush, and rainbow-coloured hair.” Leveraging beyond-their-years makeup skills and mouthing the lyrics to anime openings over short TikTok dance videos, the new generation of self-proclaimed egirls runs counter to the hardcore online gaming culture Diaz has been steeped in since 2014.

“I first heard the term ‘egirl’ on Tiktok!” said TikTok user and cosplayer Hailie Harding, who describes it as a sort of “manic pixie dream girl” aesthetic. Harding was the only TikTok star Kotaku could persuade to respond to our request for comment over e-mail, although a dozen were sent. (Most preferred to chat on Instagram). “Being an egirl is creating this perfect illusion of exactly what the internet today claims it wants: an anime loving, video game playing, sexy goth girlfriend.” She adds, “As a girl, I think it’s a fun way to express yourself.”

Gaming isn’t really necessary; and although liking anime adds some egirl cred, the new cadre of egirls is more identifiable by their edgy-kawaii look rather than their hobbies. The TikTok egirl aesthetic has become so codified that, months ago, its consistency spurred a meme recreated hundreds of thousands of times across the app: “egirl factory.” In the videos, a supposedly normal-looking girl is dragged off to an “egirl factory,” where someone outfits her in the trappings of modern egirl-ism: winged eyeliner, make-up hearts, pigtails. Then, she might do a bored, hip-swinging dance or ironically stick her tongue out like an ‘80s hair metal singer:

Female Twitch streamers who have been around the block know that Harding’s sexy, game-playing girl isn’t exactly what “the internet” has always wanted. It’s this tension that spawned the derogatory connotations of “egirl” in the first place. For more misogynistic Twitch viewers, there are arbitrary parameters for how a woman who games should behave on the internet, with the bar impossibly high for “acceptable” behavior. Trolls might argue that while grinding out levels on League of Legends and wearing thigh-high socks spells “girlfriend material,” doing that and earning money on Twitch makes someone a glorified camgirl. Self-appointed crews of vigilante boob police have spent hours on Twitch looking for female streamers to report for clothing violations. (Yet at the same time, Sarina “Novaruu” Powell has been dressing “like a boy” on stream for about a week, and still says she sees “egirl” pop up in chat about five times a day.)

“The idea was that women anywhere near professional male gaming was gonna turn the whole thing to shit,” entrepreneur and former Twitch streamer Zoie Burgher told Kotaku of the origins of “egirl.” Burgher earned her viral online fame from playing Call of Duty in a bikini and twerking at the camera after earning a kill streak. “People were uncomfortable with the girls showing up so they had to come up with a derogatory term.”

Since the word “egirl” has been leveraged to condescend to women gaming online, women gaming online have been leveraging it for their own purposes. Burgher was one of the first Twitch streamers to turn the “egirl” into her own self-aware, money-making brand. Permanently banned from Twitch since 2016 for over-sexual content, Burgher now describes herself as the “head egirl in charge” of Luxe Modeling, a collective of self-described “egirls” who sell lewd photos and videos. “I love the term egirl because I think it’s just like the world slut,” said Burgher over the phone. “You’re not supposed to take a derogatory term to give yourself empowerment,” she explained, adding that that’s exactly what she’s doing. “I’m trying to make the gamer girl WalMart,” she added of Luxe Modeling.

Zoie Burgher streaming Call of Duty on YouTube. Zoie Burgher (YouTube)

Recently, the gamer corner of the internet summited peak self-aware egirl when cosplayer Belle Delphine, in an Overwatch bikini and brandishing a pink Xbox controller, began packaging her “gamer girl bathwater” for $30 a pop. Delphine seems unapologetic about earning money from her sex appeal and gaming hobby, and as Polygon’s Patricia Hernandez noted, it wouldn’t be off-base to call Delphine a troll. “What’s curious about Delphine’s side hustle here is that it seems to be a mixture of business and next-level performance art,” Hernandez wrote. “Delphine’s work is defined by her willingness to go there. The result is as strange as it is funny.” The bathwater sold out in two days.

Although the reclamation of “egirl” isn’t new, its meaning has broadened, distinct from Twitch culture. TikTok teens’ redefinition or mainstreamification of it almost mirrors the transition from “emo” to “scene.” Emo was decidedly a lifestyle, culture and an aesthetic, while its Myspace-fueled cousin, “scene,” was mostly recognized as a sugary interpretation of the emo aesthetic. The TikTok egirl might cosplay, or might exclusively shop at Urban Outfitters; she might dye her hair pink, or wear cat ears. She might be a 4chan-shitposting social outcast, or a popular girl with the most mild edge.

There is, of course, deeper connective tissue between the “egirls” of Twitch and TikTok. Living primarily in cyberspace is one of them. In the past, actively participating in online gamer culture as a woman might have fulfilled that condition. Today, when “online” has nearly subsumed “offline” for younger generations, the “e” in egirl is more a nod to the portion of one’s identity that exists purely in cyberspace. This fixation on social media isn’t new to Gen Z, but their hyper-awareness of their online personae might be. This leads to another major throughline: others’ idea that egirls are phony and just want attention.

“E-girl literally just begging for attention,” reads the TikTok profile description of one star who goes by Gothchan666. If the name wasn’t a giveaway, clearly Gothchan666 is being ironic; it doesn’t matter whether or not she’s “begging for attention” if she’s having fun on an app with her friends and followers. In a TikTok video, Gothchan666 might pull her hair into two anime-style buns, draw black dots under her eyes, which are heavily mascaraed, and lip-sync the lyrics to some cutesy song with high-pitched vocals. If she’s wearing an outfit she likes, she might post three or four TikTok videos in it, each of which are viewed tens of thousands of times. “I only call myself an egirl because other people call me an egirl,” she explained over an Instagram direct message.

Twitch streamer Natalie “ZombiUnicorn” Casanova Natalie Casanova (Twitter)

Aside from the harassment Twitch streamers have been facing for years, the idea that egirls are online to be objectified has had consequences even for the newer generation. Earlier this month, 17-year-old Bianca Devins, widely referred to as an “egirl” on TikTok, was murdered by an unhinged man she met online named Brandon Andrew Clark. Devins and Clark attended a concert together New York city, and when she expressed interest in another man, police say, Clark cut her neck and posted images of her body on Discord. “Sorry fuckers, you’re gonna have to find someone else to orbit,” he said to her friends and fans. Investigators believe that her kiss with another man was the murderer’s motive.

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Reclaimed or not, the word “egirl” is laden with dark connotations. As a younger generation’s influence begins to alter its meaning, though, women on Twitch might begin to see some changes, too, for better or for worse. More and more, women on Twitch who aren’t fighting it are gleefully enjoying the new toothlessness of the term. “I think the term ‘egirl’ is past being an insult now,” said Twitch streamer Natalie “ZombiUnicorn” Casanova over e-mail. Lately, she’s seeing the word “thot” more instead. “If someone tried to use [egirl] as an insult toward me I’d just laugh and be like ‘Ahh yes, egirl Zombi aka the online version of me versus IRL Zombi when I actually go outside.’”

DISCUSSION

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Reply

- LamboniusCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:30pm

I’m so damn glad that I’m too old for this particular corner of online culture.

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- MrTusksLambonius

7/26/19 4:40pm

Hey, a rapper we never heard of got arrested the other day, too. Are we out of touch?

No, it’s the children who are wrong.

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- KathulosCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:43pm

What is the tongue sticking out thing all about? I see it all over the place now. and I assume its referencing some anime thing.

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- Cecilia D'AnastasioKathulos

7/26/19 4:57pm

Bryan Menegus from Gizmodo showed me, but it’s not appropriate for the comments section.

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- OlogKathulos

7/26/19 5:03pm

What is the tongue sticking out thing all about?

Google ‘ahegao face’

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- PegCityNerdingKathulos

7/26/19 5:03pm

Step 1: make sure you’re not on a work-related computer.

Step 2: Google “ahegao”

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- TheWatcher86Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:08pm

If it’s not appropriate for the comments section, is it appropriate anywhere?

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- 4thThrowawayCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:09pm

Probably a brazzers comment section then

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- NekolasKathulos

7/26/19 5:14pm

It is called ‘ahegao’, a hentai (naughty japanese comics) term for when your mind goes blank from pleasure, and the persons facial expression ends up like you described

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- KathulosNekolas

7/26/19 5:21pm

Image for commentHa, figures it’d be something like this.

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- MerxWorx01Kathulos

7/26/19 5:23pm

Look up the “Me Me Me” video. The whole egirl shitck from the makeup, outfit(more or less), the dance and the song pretty much came from that. nsfw(obv)

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- NeverEndingJediGIFKathulos

7/26/19 5:26pm

Seems like it has been around forever because Miley Cyrus used to do it all the time. I always thought she looked ridiculous doing it.

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- KathulosMerxWorx01

7/26/19 5:30pm

Nah. I’m good. But thanks anyway.

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- HonkIfPartsFallOffCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:33pm

Oh man now I really want to know!

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- MerxWorx01Kathulos

7/26/19 5:34pm

No worries, I don’t think anyone seeing it felt anything but a sudden need to take a scolding hot shower.

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- KathulosMerxWorx01

7/26/19 5:46pm

I always think of those kinds of showers as ‘getting a Silkwood’.

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- Kirk ChopKathulos

7/26/19 6:37pm

So the human race has moved on from duckfacing? Finally!

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- wombat23Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 7:25pm

we have a level of appropriateness here? uh-oh.

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- KingKaijuiceNekolas

7/26/19 7:49pm

It should be noted, that it’s the perfect way to bait anime/gaming nerds into engaging with your content. It’s not a natural face for anyone to make during sex, but when half your experience with sex is consuming hentai, that’s like all you see.

So this is like the holy grail of fetish trends. These girls are taking advantage of that monetarily and I’m proud of them.

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- KingKaijuiceNeverEndingJediGIF

7/26/19 7:53pm

Miley Cyrus just stuck her tongue out like anyone trying to present themselves as “wild.” She did look ridiculous, but that’s kind of the point.

It’s been around for awhile because it’s pretty normal. It has no relation to the recent “ahegao” trend.

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- ConstantineCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 9:31pm

That’s really saying something. Almost worries me about what my search history might look like if I struck out on my own looking to figure it out.

ETA: Well, that answers that.

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- HydevCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 10:01pm

Hmm.

It means “panting face” in Japanese. It often is used in Japanese porn.

Why wouldn’t that be okay for the comments section? Eh, okay.

I always thought it was a Miley Cyrus thing.  That must be where she got it from.

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- NeverEndingJediGIFKingKaijuice

7/26/19 11:21pm

I don’t watch any streamers so I guess I’ve never seen it (I know, I know, why even comment on a thread that I really don’t get).

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- KingKaijuiceNeverEndingJediGIF

7/27/19 12:13am

I wouldn’t even think of it as a streamer thing. It’s a horny nerd culture thing. Particularly that of the anime variety, as the ahegao face originates from anime porn. So it draws in a pretty specific(but not small) crowd.

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- NeverEndingJediGIFKingKaijuice

7/27/19 12:32am

I had to go look up ahegao because you said it earlier and again but I had no idea what it was. Yeah, not my fetish. :D

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- KingKaijuiceNeverEndingJediGIF

7/27/19 2:05am

Haha, yeah. It is a very specific type of thing. But it happens so much in that type of content, you can easily see how it would become a fetish of it’s own.

And I’m surprised that people are just now capitalizing on it.

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- JustadumbremarkOlog

7/27/19 11:05am

Image for comment1

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- JustadumbremarkTheWatcher86

7/27/19 11:12am

On the Goatse scale; 1 girl and 1 cup of ginger, pepperoni infused overpriced covfefe.

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- Michael WeinsteinKathulos

7/27/19 11:35am

Oh sweet summer child

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- KathulosMichael Weinstein

7/27/19 12:48pm

More like out of touch old man. I figured it was Anime/Hentai related was not expecting it to be O face/ Vinegar strokes.

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- Mr. Max Maxi MaximumKathulos

7/27/19 3:55pm

anime orgasm face

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- BusPassTrollopCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:56pm

Holy shit! Okay so I am an old. Like seriously, creeping towards my 40s. But I’ve got a teenager that is super into tik tok and shitposting, so she had me download the app so that she can send me stuff that she finds funny and I will admit, it is a great time waster. But just a few weeks ago I joined a tik tok shitposting group on facebook - listen, I love these dumb groups! - and WOW at the very outright misogyny and hate in there. Honestly it has been bumming me out to watch all of these threads unfold in the group. I have my nice little comfortable leftie bubble online, so to be exposed to such blatant slut shaming and “egirl” hate is really new to me (obviously I don’t go on reddit much at all, either). I haven’t left the group because sometimes it feels like a social experiment that I need to pay attention to - especially since I’m raising a teenage girl who is very much into this culture. But yeah. Wow. What a weirdly relevant article for me right now...

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- MerxWorx01BusPassTrollop

7/26/19 5:14pm

Yeah... One of the things that super apparent is how young people are being brought up perceiving the world with a anti pc lens. TikTok is a great place to see how pervasive it is and this article seem to see the tag as empowering versus being a tool to mock other women which I'm honestly not seeing.

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- BusPassTrollopMerxWorx01

7/26/19 5:21pm

Yeah. I can say for certain it isn't ever used positively in the shitposting group. It's very much a slur and the young women will throw it out just as much as the dudes.

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- MerxWorx01BusPassTrollop

7/26/19 5:28pm

It's pretty gross, especially when you account for the fact that its mostly young people normalizing a way to shame other people. When ever I see the tag and its a girl it's a 50/50 chance it's being used negativity. If it's a guy in the video that percentage goes up 100% at which point you can count the second before someone makes a thot joke.

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- sxp151BusPassTrollop

7/26/19 8:32pm

I don’t have a problem, that’s my problem! You’re too cool, dad, and it makes me sick! Just do whatever, dad, I’m outta heeeeeeere.

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- BusPassTrollopsxp151

7/26/19 9:00pm

*mom 😊

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- MisterPigginssxp151

7/27/19 12:56am

Are you having a seizure?

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- Admiral_CrunchMisterPiggins

7/28/19 3:41pm

No, he's Doug and he's outta heeeeere.

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- floydbotCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:31pm

<reads article about egirls, brow increasingly furrows in confusion>

It’s official. I’m an old.

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- sxp151floydbot

7/26/19 8:34pm

I’m so old, I’m an olde.

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- Mac the Geeksxp151

7/27/19 8:02pm

This explains the “ye olde” that showed up in my mailbox last birthday.

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- Optimus_Mikefloydbot

7/29/19 12:36am

Yeah. I guess egirl is bad, but maybe it’s not bad, and that may or may not have something to do with “TikTok egirls,” (which may or may not be the same thing as regular egirls).

I think my takeaway is that the internet is full of trash and I was better off not knowing about TikTok.

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- uyarndogCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:47pm

I’m not sure if I’m just too old, or too disinterested in video streamers and esports players, but I’ve never heard the term “egirl” before. It could be both.

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- GinsuVictimuyarndog

7/26/19 5:50pm

Today’s the first time I’ve heard the term.

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- Ka Mai uses a burner 'cause he hates social mediaCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:31pm

This is like that time my girlfriend wanted to go “reclaim” some wood from the ramshackle old barn on my grandparents’ land for a home improvement project.

Long story short, some things don’t need to be reclaimed. They need to be demolished.

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- Taliesin_MerlinKa Mai uses a burner 'cause he hates social media

7/26/19 4:36pm

It depends on the wood. If it were American chestnut, for example, people will pay good money for it.

Is egirl more ramshackle or American chestnut?

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- Ka Mai uses a burner 'cause he hates social mediaTaliesin_Merlin

7/26/19 4:42pm

I think my original comment made my opinion on the matter clear.

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- Taliesin_MerlinKa Mai uses a burner 'cause he hates social media

7/26/19 5:15pm

It did. I was wondering aloud - I think the comparison is bad, and the absurd bounds of that scale helped me think through why. Words aren’t wood; ramshackle has a more literal meaning when it comes to structures, but is pure bombast when it comes to words. Similarly, calling it American chestnut would inflate the value of reclaiming it.

Nice story though.

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- Ka Mai uses a burner 'cause he hates social mediaTaliesin_Merlin

7/26/19 5:21pm

You’re overthinking this, and I think you’re doing it on purpose.  Overthinking is not a substitute for having an opinion or something to say.

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- Taliesin_MerlinKa Mai uses a burner 'cause he hates social media

7/26/19 7:11pm

Bad comparisons are not a substitute for having an opinion or something to say. At least I still tried to think through yours. Your allegation smacks of avoidance.

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- spad13Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:01pm

The whole “girls pretend to be gamers/geeks to get attention from male gamers/geeks” thing never ceases to be hilariously stupid and pathetic.

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- Ka Mai uses a burner 'cause he hates social mediaspad13

7/26/19 5:12pm

Especially because it mostly doesn’t happen, and is a delusion primarily conceived by socially maladjusted men/boys who can’t conceive of a woman having her own personality outside of seeking their approval and attention.

Yeah, pathetic.

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- ferrettotheeggspad13

7/26/19 5:21pm

Yup, you know those women, always rushing out to find the nearest neckbeard and milk him for all the free Hot Pockets, Mt Dew and Doritos they can stomach. Nothing says “I’m a catch” like “I still live with mom, but I have a private entrance.”

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- YamigachiKa Mai uses a burner 'cause he hates social media

7/26/19 6:31pm

Actually it’s a negative bias which has been formed due to the positive bias of an attractive girl who is gaming. They often receive far more views and attention for doing far less (than what a male would have to do for the same amount of attention), and some males tend to spite them for that.

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- wombat23Ka Mai uses a burner 'cause he hates social media

7/26/19 7:33pm

the idea is especially funny when you think about it. “darn these attractive women wanting to hang out with us because our culture is so pervasive that it now has hangers on” now, i was never really picked on in the nes era, but i missed the hot women dressing in super attractive costumes for our “gauntlet 2" nights at the arcade. If hot women are hanging around that are not privvy to the entire storied lore of the kunio-kun series of fighting games, they still are hot women..and around. so that would seem to dismiss the concern on the outset, wouldn’t it?

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- StefanJammersYamigachi

7/26/19 11:53pm

So why aren’t they mad at the fellow neckbeards that seek out and make the so-called egirls popular? Following the norms of our capitalist society these entrepreneurs should be held up as paragons of smart business sense; creating supply to meet demand, and greasing the wheels of economic growth. But because our society is also disgustingly misogynist, they’re actually slut shamed, just like cam-girls and porn stars.

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- sad-radStefanJammers

7/27/19 12:55pm

Our larger culture don’t like the idea of women making money. If we did, the pay gap wouldn’t exist.

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- EdgarStefanJammers

7/28/19 8:51pm

Because the neckbeards are actually 12-16 year old boys... How do you stop them from making attractive wen popular?

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- StefanJammersEdgar

7/28/19 9:32pm

Either 12-16, or emotionally frozen at that age. Either way, it is clearly a demand issue rather than a supply issue.

But I think that the system is working just the way it is designed to. As long as it continues to make money for Twitch, why would they try to stop it? And why shouldn’t other people not try to get in on some of that filthy lucre?

Unfortunately, the same goes for all the hate and abuse that makes the whole thing so toxic.

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- Ka Mai uses a burner 'cause he hates social mediaYamigachi

7/29/19 9:55am

some males tend to spite them for that.

So the man-babies of the gamer culture are mad at women for the behavior of other man-babies of the gamer culture.

Sounds about right.

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- EdgarStefanJammers

7/29/19 10:00am

it shouldnt be glamorized or defended . i dont think that preying on teenage boys is something we should promote

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- sarusaCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:42pm

In 2013, right before it hit the mainstream, one Urban Dictionary user’s early classification of egirls went, “Often seeking the attention of professional gamers. . . Live sightings of eGirls can be found at gaming LANs.”

Who would even be desperate for the attention of professional gamers when there are so many better catches out there?  Unless it’s Daigo. Call me, baby.

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- Unusually Large Glottissarusa

7/26/19 5:20pm

It’s an incorrect characterization. They want to SEEM like gamers to get the attention of nerds who would give them money/assistance/whatever. It’s a way of using people who have shit social skills and very low self esteem. I don’t see any dudes stream half naked, so I assume when women do it it’s for attention. Maybe I should start? I’m sure both men and women would want to see this dadbod.

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- PrimaryPineappleUnusually Large Glottis

7/28/19 1:28am

I don’t see any dudes stream half naked,

Full disclosure, I don’t really know anything about this stuff but maybe you just don’t watch or search for things that would prompt those sorts of videos to show up on your feed?

I just have a hard time believing that there aren’t dudes who stream half-naked because there’s definitely a market for it. I would search for it myself now but I’m pretty sure I’ll find it, and I don’t have time to go down that rabbit hole right now. I shouldn’t even be writing this comment.

so I assume when women do it it’s for attention.

I don’t want to assume your age, but do you remember when “tits or gtfo” was a thing?

That said, would it be wrong to assume that most people who do the streaming thing, regardless of their level of dress at the time, are doing it for the attention?

I mean... what other motivation is there?

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- ProfessorMarshmallowUnusually Large Glottis

7/28/19 4:25am

Male streamers aren't automatically judged based on their appearance so why would they stream half naked. Girls who dress normally when streaming are frequently harassed to 'show boobs.' I don't think having poor social skills and low self esteem absolves responsibility for toxic behaviour

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- neveragaintheburnertimesUnusually Large Glottis

7/28/19 5:46am

.”They want to SEEM like gamers to get the attention of nerds who would give them money/assistance/whatever.”

Nope. Do not pass go. Go back to your cave and don’t come out until you learn to think critically. This might take some time, since you’ll have to work hard on developing that second brain cell to rub against your first. (Try not to get distracted by all that rubbing.)

Here’s the thing: The vast majority of girls and women who play games and stream are... gamers. They’re just gamers! They’re literally no different than the dudes who do it except that they have tits. How someone dresses has no bearing on whether or not they are a gamer - this is some logic 101, so I hope anyone old enough to have a ‘dadbod’ is aware of it. People finding them sexy, people watching them *because they find them sexy*, neither of those have any bearing on whether or not they are a gamer. The uncountably vast category of women who play games falls into this category. (Including me! But I’m old and ugly, so I just get ignored or laughed at or abused instead of being accused of trying to use my sexuality for attention. PROGRESS!)

There is a second category: girls and women who have found a way of making money without necessarily having to expose themselves as much as the average camgirl. They offer services (sexual imagery) in exchange for gifts, which is a normal transactional exchange. Whether these people belong on Twitch is a conversation which can be had, but that does not make these girls conniving or cruel. If the men who watch them believe there is a closer connection.... that’s on the dudes. Guys will invent connections where literally nothing exists. (There’s a dumb app game called SongPop. When you sign up, they assign you an AI opponent so you’ll always have someone to play, though they don’t mention it’s an AI and give it some stock photo of a girl. Lordy, but the internet is full of anguished men who thought they had A Real Connection with this AI and are FURIOUS nobody told them it was one. You don’t chat with this AI. You don’t do anything except guess songs. Guys still imagined this AI was Into Them.)

The third category is conmen and women. Yep, the gaming community has them. Yep, the conwomen tend to play on their sexuality as part of the con. And? There’s conmen too, way more of them. And the conwomen wouldn’t be using their sexuality if dude-gamers weren’t such misogynistic dumbasses. That’s how cons *work*, and how they have worked throughout history.

Finally! What the fuck is wrong with attention? Do you roll your eyes at a guy who streams popular games... because he wants attention? Do you hate all the guys who do things for attention, upon which the vast majority of Twitch is founded? Or do you offer sympathy to guys who are lonely and want attention while castigating women for the same thing? Is it because they’re attractive - if I, old and ugly, wanted attention... would that be okay? Or just pathetic, because only pretty girls get attention, and if they do they’re also pathetic?

Just asking.

Now shoo off to your cave.

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- Unusually Large Glottisneveragaintheburnertimes

7/29/19 9:11am

I appreciate you leading with insults. Having my intelligence insulted really helped me to focus on the rest of the potentially valid points you were making. Also, stay angry! Mad, ugly people (your words - “But I’m old and ugly...”) are historically good at motivating change. I look forward to your response which will be, no doubt, full of colorful prose/invectives.

P.S.

I’m not going to respond to any of your arguments. I agree with some of what you said, but based on your wildly disproportionate response to my snarky comment, I’m gonna guess you aren’t interested in perspectives that don’t currently fall within your purview.

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- Unusually Large GlottisProfessorMarshmallow

7/29/19 9:34am

In the same way I assume girls who stream scantily clad are doing so for attention/clicks, you assume all males with poor social skills and low self esteem are automatically toxic. I guess we’re even?

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- neveragaintheburnertimesUnusually Large Glottis

7/29/19 6:04pm

I wasn’t trying to change your mind. I was responding with the grief and exhaustion of 35 years of having to deal with desperate sexist bullshit just to enjoy my hobby, of being a shoulder to cry on when it got too much for my friends. Of mourning one friend who killed herself after years of her Nice Geeky Guy husband calling her a whore every time she spoke to anyone or did anything online.

I don’t have the energy anymore to be an activist. I don’t have the strength to change minds, because to do so I have to pretend as though I have no horse in the race and it’s all hypothetical and Emotions Are Illogical. Can’t do that anymore. Instead, I shriek. And sometimes I make snarky comments because it’s 3am and I’m tired of crying.

And yep, I’m ugly. I find it interesting that you still tried to weaponize that against me after I brought it up, as if I have any shame about it or it upsets me at all.

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- Unusually Large Glottisneveragaintheburnertimes

7/30/19 11:15am

Thank you for using a response to my comment as a vehicle to project the issues you have faced in your own life onto me. I am definitely responsible for the hardships you and yours have dealt with over the past decades, and want to personally apologize for my involvement. I especially want to apologize for any events that took place during or prior to my adolescence (or birth, for that matter), for which I am sure I am somehow culpable.

I brought up the ugly thing because you were keen to insult me off the rip. Didn’t seem right not to give a little back - I’m very generous in that way.

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- Taliesin_MerlinCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:39pm

I love the range of strategies towards egirl objectification. One person can make a lot of money off of playing the term straight, someone else can sell overpriced bathwater and make the buyers look like fools, a third person can be a great player who rolls with the label, and so on.

In other words, they’re challenging the term not by denying it, but by making it polysemous, or making it mean multiple things depending on the situation.

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- Rzmmdx LeetuberCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:40pm

What is a TikTok.

Is it made by Ke$ha?

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- SQLGuruRzmmdx Leetuber

7/26/19 5:05pm

TikTok is the new Vine (not affiliated with Vine, but similar functionality).

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- Rzmmdx LeetuberSQLGuru

7/26/19 5:35pm

I thought Instagram was the new Vine.

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- Sting ChameleonCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:27pm

Is this a twitch/streamer thing? I’ve been gaming for over 3 decades and I’ve never, not once, seen or heard the word “Egirl” until this article.

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- doctorleakyCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 7:24pm

I think generally it would be nice if the internet were a more anonymous place. Why can’t people just not show themselves at all? What is the point of seeing someone?

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- CoastersPauldoctorleaky

7/26/19 7:43pm

Anonymous Internet places can have a toxicity of their own.

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- doctorleakyCoastersPaul

7/26/19 11:23pm

I know. I guess I think commodifying your image is always weird to me. I’m a consummate misanthrope though

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- ExWestBankerCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:37pm

everyone i’ve seen comment that they’ve never heard the term... like it’s ok to not be young anymore, it’s ok for younger people to have their own slang just like you did, chill out.

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- Kirk ChopExWestBanker

7/26/19 6:41pm

Get off my e-lawn!

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- jtrctylrCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 7:16pm

What even are words anymore?

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- CalzinCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 6:37pm

Love how about 75% of the comments are people very proudly claiming their ignorance. Congrats you didn’t know a thing, now you do, got anything more to add or just want to signal to everyone how much you don’t care some more?

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- AxialCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:05pm

I will confess that I had never before heard the term “egirl”.

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- therubixcube22Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 10:37pm

Never knew “egirl” was a slur. Is it because esports and e-celebrities are generally considered as lesser than their counterparts?

Never mind the e-branding, but tangentially relevant, I really dislike the term “gamer”. It’s like a term marketers came up with to describe an audience they want to appeal to. What exactly is it that a “gamer” does to warrant their own subsection of categorization? I feel like most people who would be called “gamers” nowadays are just actually normal people who just happen to like some video games, and that very few actually “live and breathe” the medium like a can of aerosol mountain dew. Truthfully, I actually don’t think “gamers”, or what people think “gamers” are supposed to be actually exist. Just call them what they are. Human beings.

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- chaos2992Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 11:44pm

do we really need a gender specific word for a gamer, esport player, streamer etc? doesnt using the term egirl just draw more attention to gender when the focus should be content? seems a bit counterproductive. they are spending time and effort to reclaim a word that was never conducive to their struggle in the first place. we dont have e-guys or e-thems, so what is the purpose of e-girl if not to draw attention towards gender? its a term psychologically aimed at pointing out gender and all that it implies. id just toss the term in the trash and move on honestly. fuck those people who used it as a derogatory term, yeah, but you don’t need to prove anything to them by “reclaiming” it.

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- GoodBadMediumCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 7:53pm

Who is the girl in the lede image if you don’t mind me asking?

Edit: it says it right under the photo.

Also, why can’t we delete our own damn comments.

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- SupernoperCecilia D'Anastasio

7/27/19 7:16am

It’s weird that you’d rather Zoie Burgher as a positive towards this argument considering her dramatic downfall after the Luxe collapsed. Being an “Egirl” is not sustainable and she is proof of that. You can’t base your whole brand around your body because it wont last and people will quickly get bored.

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- FunkyJCecilia D'Anastasio

7/29/19 11:03pm

Brandon Andrew Clark wasn’t unhinged.

He was an entitled male who believed that he deserved something from a woman, Bianca Devins, and believed he was right to slaughter her when he didn’t receive it.

He was perfectly “hinged” and behaving in the way he was raised and the way society moulded him.

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- Hathur79Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/27/19 4:39pm

That’s great... gotta admit tho, never even heard this term, ever. I know “gamergirl” as a common term.. never seen or heard “egirl” though

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- FuzungaCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:49pm

Literally never heard of this before now.

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- rhgoiasrhgoihfgoifsdhoiCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 7:43pm

Is it weird that I had honestly never seen anyone use the word “egirl” at all until a few days ago?

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- VictorVonDoomCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 9:33pm

Here I thought “e-girl” was something non-gaming media came up with last week to describe Bianca Devins.

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- DeltathCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 11:00pm

This is the first time I've ever heard the term "egirl".  I didn't realize it was even an issue.

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- coolmanguyCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 6:31pm

Oh man I'm getting old

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- BrzostekCecilia D'Anastasio

7/27/19 2:21pm

Dudes in RuneScape claimed to be e-girls back in 2006.

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- MisterPigginsCecilia D'Anastasio

7/27/19 12:49am

Idiot derides egirls, but watches every egirl stream. Good job angry little morons.

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- cdog9231Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 9:34pm

TIL a new word!

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- HydevCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 10:07pm

I must be unique when it comes to female gamers. I react to female gamers the same way I react to any gamer: I watch them play first to see if they are any good. If the player shows gaming skill, I might follow their career. I don’t get all bent out of shape because the gamer is a girl; I consider it a bonus. But if it’s obvious that the lady has no gaming skill and is just streaming in low cut dresses for clicks, I don’t get bent out of shape over that either. But I certainly don’t watch or follow them. But I’d do the same thing if the player was a guy as well. But I’m not surprised by the reactions they get because acting like a girl-hater online has no consequences. But that’s the internet. You can do and say all manner of unethical and immoral things because no one will hit you, fine you, punish you in any meaningful way.

The only time I’d call a female an “electronic girl” is if she stepped out of the movie TRON.

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- EldritchOnRyeCecilia D'Anastasio

7/27/19 10:20am

I love how the shame is constantly on the women and not of the sad sacks who are willing to pay them and then feel entitled to deride them.

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- BainbowCecilia D'Anastasio

7/27/19 7:36am

As well they should reclaim it. Three of the biggest members in my FFXIV guild, including the former-guildmaster who I rather respect, were women. Far as I’m concerned, sexism has no place in the online gaming space.

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- AH1976Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:19pm

What a coincidence, today I reclaimed the word Guggleport which is the term for when you’re trying to plug in a cable but because of low-light or positioning it’s bloody difficult.

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- Yes I drive a 240... Jalopnik RefugeeCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 6:07pm

The only time I’ve heard the term egirl, was when someone was referring to a bunch of female ravers that were always on ecstasy. Never heard of it in the gaming scene. How long has it been around?

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- TimeCecilia D'Anastasio

7/27/19 11:16am

What a great lesson, don’t ignore the sexists, don’t ban them, just become the caricature of what they’re describing instead of believing in yourself and your own style, that will suuuuuuurely work.

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- JsjsosoamCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 4:55pm

I really am completely outside the insta/tik tok loop, even twitch isn’t a regular place I frequent. But this is really interesting. I feel like maybe in a ‘prediction turns to a prophecy’ sort of way, some recent trends just feel straight out of a cyberpunk novel. With tech, with internet culture and fashion.. (ok maybe a bit of a stretch). But it’s really pretty interesting to see how newer generations are using and being influenced by technology. I feel each generation gets to be the guinea pig for some new development, and the 2000's and 2010's were really insane with jumps in everyday technologies and services. Anyhow sort of a tangent.. but regardless, great article!

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- babaelonCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:02pm

Considering the VAST majority of popular young women on Twitch are much more interested in PG13 cam-whoring for those precious (typically underage) neckbeard donation$$$, you know, actively promoting the gross activity you’re pretending exists in a vacuum, it’s no wonder terms like E-girl get thrown about.

If it quacks like a duck...

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- 100khitmanCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:25pm

This story lost all creditability when it referenceed zombieunicorn she's literally everything that's wrong with female streamers also she's a super hypocrite who puts down other women for doing the same thing she's doing

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- Sherman HuangCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:18pm

I think it’s really just emo for the new generations or scene 2.0.

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- OmegapixelCecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 6:30pm

I thought this was Jezebel for a second

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- dannyboy731Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:47pm

So they’re all Harley Quinn

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- MerxWorx01Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 5:00pm

Huh, literally every video I’ve seen on TikTok of women who use the tag are mocking other women who do the “Me Me Me” dance and make the ahegoa face. I’ve never seen it used positively, it seems to have always been a way to let others know that you’re are in on the joke and not a part of it.

TikTok is a fun place for videos but boy despite being full of young people it is decidedly very anti feminist and routinely very anti progressive. It sucks when you literally get served Q anon shit or some right winger on a podium.

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- Display name 98Cecilia D'Anastasio

7/26/19 9:58pm

The duality of the internet, on one hand a platform for total free speech, on the other hand pieces of shit who want to talk in hateful ways about women, other races, sex and death.

Time’s coming where a decision will have to be made. Because you will never be allowed nice things.

Do we enforce properly moderated sites which will inevitably end up costing money to belong to or shut down all internet speech and go back to web 1.0 or do we put up with the anti fact idiots, the racists, the sexists, the down right insane?

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