"We're putting ourselves out there to enjoy the costume and show off the craftsmanship; we're not there to pose for you sexually," Jill Pantozzi explains about an incident where someone tried to photograph her cosplay group's asses.
The Oh You Sexy Geek panel had at least seven panelists plus an impromptu speaker, Seth Green who was in the front row supporting his wife who was on the panel; apparently Seth was given a considerable amount of time to chime in. This led to the ladies of the panel not having as much mic time as expected. The only male panelist actually scheduled was Chris Gore (FilmThreat.com) who didn't even arrive until five minutes before it was over at which point his opening remark caused controversy and seemingly insulted most of the audience. (Full disclosure: Seth and Chris are two of my celebrity crushes.)
The "Sexy Geek" controversy easily spirals. From accusations of pandering to sexualizing female comic/gaming characters to addressing the large issue of women in the media/commercials. Somehow, this has become a bigger issue than DC's relaunch of all their titles. DC has been accused of sexist practices, not hiring women, failing to publicize titles/works that do have female creators and eliminating female characters from solo titles.
Is there a way to be a Sexy Geek and still be part of a supportive community that includes female creators, fans and characters without singling them out as the token sexy female?