City University of New York – Bernardo Atxaga Chair 2024: Miren Gutierrez

This workshop given by Miren Gutierrez focuses on the intersection between technology, discourse, and power from a gender perspective. It uses ‘Erresistentziak antifeministak Lokatza podkastean’ –an article on antifeminist discourse of which she is coauthor — as a starting point to talk about misogyny, antifeminist resistances, and gender disinformation in the Basque Country and beyond.

‘Lokatza: Pentsamendu feministan narrasean’ is an award-winning podcast launched by EiTB. Lokatza (mud in Basque langauge) is based on interviews, sound, music, and reflections on Basque history, culture, political landscape, language, and struggles from a feminist perspective.

Her article, coauthored with Asier Leoz and Miren Berasategi, from the University of Deusto, was developed with a grant from Emakunde, the Basque Institute for Women. They use automatic text analysis and theories on antifeminist resistant discourse and backlash (e.g., Asimov, 2018; Cuklanz, 2023; Faludi, 2006; Flood et al., 2020; Gutierrez et al., 2020; Moore, 2013; Otterbacher et al., 2017) to identify antifeminist ideas in the scripts and connect them to broader trends.

• Day 1: What Is Antifeminist Resistant Discourse?
• Day 2: Gender Algorithmic Harm
• Day 3: Gender Disinformation
• Day 4: Sexist Discourse in Media & Sports

Conference: ´Antifeminist Resistances: An Overview from the Basque Country´
October 10th, 18:30

This conference deals with the concept of "antifeminist resistance" through the exploration of three cases located in the Basque Country. The Basque Country offers some of the lowest levels of violence against women in Europe; however, it is not free from it. Studies show there is a connection between violence and discourse, reason why it is important to understand which and how antifeminist resistant messages are disseminated. This conference examines:

1. Opinion-eds published in the main Basque papers
2. The scripts of EITB´s Lokatza podcast, dedicated to the feminist quest
3. Platform messages about the introduction of parades including women in the Alardes of Irun and Hondarribia.

 The conclusion is that, although the most aggressive forms of antifeminist resistance are not common, antifeminist resistant discourse is not only widespread but also varied in this country and similar to situations everywhere else.

Miren Gutierrez

Miren Gutiérrez holds a PhD in Communication and is a researcher at the University of Deusto. She has published more than 65 articles, chapters, monographs, and scientific-technical reports. She is the Principal Investigator of the ARES research program (analysis of anti-feminist resistance), financed by the State Research Agency (AEI). She is also a Research Associate at ODI in London (UK), generating scientific reports based on big data and algorithms. The central theme of her research is data and algorithms as tools for data activism and as a space for political and social debate. Gutiérrez is the author of the book ‘Data Activism and Social Change’, London: Palgrave-Macmillan.