All articles tagged with #online abuse
Coco Gauff faced a surge of racist abuse on social media after winning her China Open match against Sun Xinran, a dispute stemming from a replayed point caused by a flickering light. Gauff defended her actions as rule-compliant and expressed sympathy for her opponent, while the WTA noted a significant rise in online harassment against female players.
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting says he has received an unbelievable volume of online homophobia since taking office—more in weeks than in his life—amid backlash to an openly gay leader of the armed forces. Speaking on the Iain Dale All Talk podcast at the Edinburgh Fringe, he said the abuse reflects persistent stereotypes online and framed the role as a chance to show resolve and challenge prejudice.
Caitlin Clark condemned online harassment of WNBA players and urged an end to hate as the league faces safety concerns after Alyssa Thomas’ on-court throat contact with Clark and a one-game suspension; coaches and the league stressed toxicity online amid rising visibility, while Clark called for better officiating and more fair media coverage in the ongoing discussion about player safety and treatment.
An opinion piece about online abuse that followed a light observation on Hugh Laurie’s House. The actor’s witty, in-character reply highlighted the parasocial bonds and tribal defense that fuel fan backlash on social media, turning criticism into personal attacks. The author uses broader examples (Taylor Swift, Scorsese, Beyoncé’s BeyHive) to argue that fandom can amplify hostility, though most fan communities are harmless, and real-people scrutiny can be distressing.
CMAT speaks out about ongoing body-shaming after her Radio 1 Big Weekend set, saying the abuse is 'boring' and that she would like to change her body but struggles; she notes there is no relief from the harassment, has deleted apps for her mental health, and remains grateful for her career as she gears up for more festival appearances and shows.
Sheina Gutnick, daughter of Bondi Beach hero Reuven Morrison HY”D, has endured a torrent of antisemitic online abuse after stepping into public advocacy and testifying before Australia’s Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion. The harassment ranges from death threats to Holocaust comparisons, highlighting how social media amplifies hate. Gutnick says there are no real checks on online hostility and continues her late father’s legacy by fighting antisemitism through CAM Australia.
Barry Keoghan returns to Cannes for a third time with Butterfly Jam, saying he wants to let his work speak for him and move past online abuse; the interview traces how he navigated a challenging rise from Dublin’s foster system, built a production company (Wolfcub), and now selects projects with care, including upcoming Beatles-related work and a Netflix series, while continuing to balance festival buzz with personal growth.
Dutch prosecutors offline Motherless following CNN’s findings on videos depicting gender-based violence and drug-facilitated sexual assault; the Netherlands-based hosting provider NFOrce said it only provides infrastructure and launched an abuse-handling review, as authorities opened a preliminary investigation, underscoring global efforts to curb exploitative content and noting that sites can reappear by moving servers or domains.
German actress Collien Fernandes says her husband secretly opened accounts in her name to post pornographic deepfakes and initiate online affairs for more than a decade; after allegedly confessing in 2024, Germany has debated tightening laws on sexualized deepfakes, with protests and political urgency, while Fernandes has filed a new criminal complaint in Spain as she continues advocacy and public scrutiny of online abuse against women.
Barry Keoghan says online abuse about his appearance has driven him to shy away from public life, leading him to quit social media in 2024 and retreat from events, as he continues acting and plays Ringo Starr in Sam Mendes’ Beatles tetralogy.
Oscar-nominated actor Barry Keoghan says the abusive online reaction to his looks — which led him to exit social media in 2024 — has become a “problem” that makes him shy away from public appearances and could hinder his willingness to take on-screen roles, even as he works on projects like The Beatles: A Four-Film Cinematic Event and Butterfly Jam.
Wildlight’s Highguard is shutting down after a brief run; developer Josh Sobel reactivated his X account and apologized for a now-deleted post that blamed gamer culture for the game’s reception, calling it a stress-fueled misstep while acknowledging toxic discourse helped shape the climate. The game launched Jan 26, 2026 and went offline Mar 12, 2026 after drawing roughly 1.5 million players in its opening period, with a peak around 100,000 concurrent players. Sobel says he values the online connections he made and has set his replies to followers-only.
Freestyle skier Eileen Gu, a 22-year-old Stanford student and one of the sport’s highest-earning athletes, has faced intensified vitriol for competing for China rather than the United States. She spoke about threats, online hate and even physical attacks at a news conference, saying she’s grown stronger and wants to shield others from cyberbullying, amid a charged US-China sporting rivalry where supporters defend her dual heritage.
A Guardian analysis shows millions on Telegram have created and shared AI-generated nude images, with at least 150 channels worldwide offering nudification services or nude feeds, making graphic content easily accessible and scalable. Telegram says such material violates its rules and has removed more than 952,000 pieces of offending material in 2025; meanwhile nudification apps with AI tech have hundreds of millions of downloads on Google Play and Apple App Store. The report links AI-enabled abuse to a broader rise in online violence against women, highlights regulatory gaps in many countries, and describes real-world harms for victims including reputational damage, job loss, and ostracism.
Campaigners criticize the UK government for delaying the implementation of laws against creating non-consensual sexualized deepfakes, amid concerns over AI tools like Grok that facilitate such content, with calls for urgent regulatory action to protect victims and uphold women's rights.