Im sure this is old news here but the 2nd result on google to Chicago Fanatics Message Board...
https://barrettsportsmedia.com/2018/10/ ... age-board/JULIE DICARO EXPOSES TOXIC MESSAGE BOARD
By Brandon Contes / October 26, 2018
Women watch sports, women are opinionated and entertaining. Women make successful radio hosts, yet very few are sports radio hosts.
At times women are overlooked, many will not view sportscasting as a viable career option because they don’t see the avenues to get there. Many women are also deterred because they fear receiving backlash for entering what has long been deemed a man’s world. Chicago radio host, Julie DiCaro has again recently brought this to light.
DiCaro, a 15-year lawyer turned media member, has been covering Chicago sports for over a decade, starting with her own blog in 2007. Now an anchor, host and columnist for 670 The Score, DiCaro has worked to expose how common it is for women sports media members to be harassed online.
Earlier this week, DiCaro stumbled on the website chicagofanatics.com, an older forum messaging board style website. The radio host found a board titled, “Julie DiCaro!!!” and quickly saw it contained, not 756 comments, but 756 pages (since increased to 800 after she publicized it) of comments, the bulk of which were harassing, mean-spirited and derogatory.
After sharing the board on Twitter, the anonymous website admin soon responded.
“Your thread has nearly 23k posts and is by far the most popular thread in the nearly 20 year history of our site. That says a lot about your popularity and above how passionate our members are.” wrote @ChiFanatics in an attempt to diffuse the issue. Unfortunately the passion of the website’s members is poorly directed.
“Why highlight it?” Another Twitter user, not affiliated with the website wrote to DiCaro. “What benefit do you get? Does playing the victim benefit your career? I’ve never posted about it, but from when I listened I didn’t particularly think you’re great at your job either. Have you ever reflected on why so many people don’t like you?” …As if the despicable personal insults are warranted.
DiCaro took to medium.com where she directed her own passion more appropriately, sharing with everyone the inability of many people to accept women into the world of sports.
“Why do sites like this exist? Why do people like this exist? Why do people obsess over everything a person says and does simply because they are on the radio?” wrote DiCaro.
“Frightening women and lying about women and trying to drag women down into the muck will continue to be sport for a certain kind of man. But please don’t be a part of it. You can choose not to be part of it,” she added.
This is not the first time DiCaro publicized hateful comments directed toward her and other women in sports. In 2016, DiCaro and Sarah Spain of ESPN posted a powerful video of men reading actual Tweets containing hard to imagine deprecating comments directed at the female hosts, titled #MoreThanMean. The YouTube video has since amassed over 4.5 million views.
There is a certain amount of criticism that is expected when entering the public eye, but personal, vile attacks such as those many women in sports receive, shouldn’t be said to anyone, let alone become a common daily occurrence.
Brandon Contes is a freelance writer for BSM. He can be found on Twitter @BrandonContes. To reach him by email click here.
Brandon Contes
https://barrettsportsmedia.comBrandon Contes is BSM’s lead reporter for sports radio and television news. You can find him on Twitter @BrandonContes or reach him by email at
Brandon.Contes@gmail.com.
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