Gallagher addresses issues coming from the rise of Gamergate

What is the role of a trade association in weeding out sexual harassment in its industry? According to the head of the Entertainment Software Association, it is to facilitate discussion and condemn bad behavior.

ESA CEO Mike Gallagher made his comments during a video games conference in New York City Wednesday, according to the technology news site Re/code. He was responding to an audience question about sexual harassment in the light of Gamergate, a loose-knit movement that claims to be pushing for more accountability in video game journalism but whose members have engaged in harassment of women with feminist views.

"It's important to understand the role of a trade association in this. We're not law enforcement," Gallagher said. "What we do is convene and have discussions with leaders of other industry groups, and I think when you see companies like Twitter changing their policies about harassment and the language that's used, and putting in some steps to mitigate that, I think that's positive."

Gallagher noted sexual harassment "is not a uniquely video game issue," Re/code reported. Harassment on the Internet is a big problem, he said.

"It's not uniquely our challenge but we do stand with others who want to see the threats end, the harassment end and for civil discourse," he said.

The CEO also addressed the issue of female representation in the video game workforce, pointing to a recent survey finding women made up a larger percentage of video game workers than other tech fields.http://on.recode.net/1PoCtl2