Photo Credit: NBC
Warning: Spoilers Ahead
SVU is known for its ripped-from-the-headlines episodes, and this week the series does its take on the Gamergate controversy.
Tonight’s episode is about video game developer Raina Punjabi who solidifies the launch of her first game amid an array of online insults, threats and intimidation from the male-dominated gaming community.
After a female employee is assaulted at a gaming convention, the detectives at the Special Victims Unit have to up their level of security to ensure that Raina remains out of harm’s way. Furious about the situation, Raina refuses to let the negativity prevent her from releasing her game, but she has no idea how much danger she’s really in. Based on the sneak peek things take a turn for the worst and some people are out for Raina’s blood.
This story should sound very familiar. This SVU episode, like many others, is based on a real life story that took place just last year.
In October of 2014, the Washington Post reported that there had been a large number of rape and death threats terrorizing female gamers. According to the site, a woman Anita Sarkeesian attempted to gain funding for a series of videos that criticized the hyper sexualized female characters in video games, and they threatened to kill and rape her.
Episode 16.14 of Law & Order: SVU is titled “Intimidation Game” and airs tonight at 9/8c on NBC.
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