One of the biggest streamers in gaming says he won't stream with women

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One of the biggest names in video game streaming says he doesn't stream with female gamers in order to avoid rumours.

Ninja, or Tyler Blevins in real life, made the comment while speaking to gaming website Polygon.

"If I have one conversation with one female streamer where we're playing with one another, and even if there's a hint of flirting, that is going to be taken and going to be put on every single video and be clickbait forever," he said.

He went on to explain that he made the decision for the sake of his marriage to fellow streamer Jghosty (Jessica Blevins), but that she had nothing to do with him making that choice.

It's made waves because Ninja is a big deal. The American has over 10 million followers on streaming platform Twitch, and at one point when he was playing Fortnite with rapper Drake earlier this year, there were 628,000 people watching.

Some, like Australian game developer and former cosplayer Ally McLean, said his decision not to play with women would further exclude them from a male-dominated industry:

External Link: Ally McLean tweet: This "won't stream with women for fear of jeopardising his relationship" stuff is just one of many ways that women in games are held down and gated from opportunities afforded to men by deep rooted misogyny that relegates us to be girlfriends or promotional sex objects

Others said Ninja was sending an unhealthy message to his young fans:

External Link: Eric Heggie tweet: "So absurd. Shroud, the second biggest twitch streamer, plays with women all the time. Even hangs with them at streamer events. no drama/issues/etc because they are his friends. It would be healthy for Ninja's young male audience to see the same from him."

And there were also comparisons to US Vice-President Mike Pence, who said he never dines one-on-one with women who aren't his wife:

External Link: Carolyn Petit tweet: Whether it’s Mike Pence or Ninja, when men with power in a field refuse to associate with women in that field, it normalizes gender discrimination and hurts women.

However, others like Fortnite streamer Valkyrae said Ninja should be able to take the steps he feels are necessary to protect his private life:

External Link: Valkyrae tweet: Seeing tweets twisting Ninja’s decision to not playing w/ women. YouTube clips/clickbaits the worst for views. People are gullible. To hear rumors like “I heard he’s cheating on you” is 24/7 toxic to a relationship. Respect decisions that limit drama in people’s personal lives

External Link: Ashleeeeean tweet: Am I like the only female that’s not threatened by Ninja saying he doesn’t want to play with women? I just fail to see how his reasoning is a set back for us as streamers/gamers? He respects his marriage and wife which is more than some other streamers who cheat on theirs

External Link: HeatherLovelyy tweet: Am I one of the only female streamers not upset about Ninjas decision? There are a lot of toxic people on twitch who would do anything to ruin someones reputation and possibly even relationship. The fact that he puts his marriage first speaks volumes to me.

Earlier today, in response to the controversy caused by his comments, Ninja released a statement saying he was only trying to draw attention to the online harassment that streamers face:

"Having just celebrated my one year anniversary, my wife and my family will always be the most important thing to me and I am doing my best to protect them."

He said he was a fan of "all kinds of streamers and gamers", and pointed fans towards female streamers curvyllama, juliatv, and halieatisuto.

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http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-08-14/fortnite-player-ninja-doesnt-stream-with-women/10119664