did anyone ask the "racist"avatars if they where really lite skined?  Did they ask them what their sexual orientation was?  Did they ask them if the avatar they where representing was even the gender they where in real life.  I have no doubt true racism follows us where ever we go, so does homophobia, so does anti semitism you name it, its virtualy there.  

If you want a world where you can be whatever you want, you need to except the good with the bad.  This is the virtual world, not heaven.

I think its good for people to mistakenly be the victom of virtual racism it might make them a little more concious of it in real life.

I wonder how many black men are running in second life with the skin heads and the kkk.  I wonder how many gay men dressed as female avatars have bagged a "straight" man in second life.  same for the lesbians getting the straight girl.  

Your damned if you do and damned if you don't.  Years ago I worked at a McDonald's down South when I first got out of college.  One day, as I was leaving the parking lot, a black dude walked up to my passenger side window and asked if he could have a ride to a Wal-Mart about 3 miles down the street.  I said sure, it was on my way home anyways, and he got in and I gave him a ride.  No big deal.  Well, the next morning, I had 3 black girls I worked with meet me at the door, asking if I knew that guy and when I told them No, proceeded to tell me "Look, you red-necked white boy, don't you ever give a ride to a strange black man in this neighborhood again!".  I was shocked, I had moved there from out in the country in Upstate NY, but worked in the neighborhood for awhile and didn't think anything of giving someone a ride.  My point is it isn't always about race, and even being colorblind gets you grief by a race different than yours!

Yep, we sure have alot of people telling us how we are racist and behave badly.  Seems that since the election it is touching all aspects of our life.  I wish people would just grow up and quit looking for racial slurs and inequity behind every picture or word. I guess part of the change is bringing the new era of increased sensitivity and a fascist mandate for political correctness.

This article was almost too stupid to respond to but I could not resist. An avatar is incapable of emotion it is not human and therefore has no racial point of view. The person whose avatar it is will be the racist or not. What a ridiculous article and I feel I have lost IQ  points reading and responding to it. Newsweek are you hiring 8th graders to do your articles now?

Oh, and I make NOOOOOO tips at all when I wear my overweight avatar.  Doesn't matter the skin color.  So maybe Second life is filled with Fatists.

I have experimented using different color skins as well.  I don't believe the study finds racism.  Has anyone thought that maybe it just happens to be personal attraction to a specific look?    Did you try the experiment with an alabaster skin and then a tanned skin and then an oiled tan skin.  I'm sure you'll find the most positive responses with the oiled skin.  As a SL dancer, I make less in tips when I have a darker skin.  I also make less tips as a brunette.  A blonde haired girl with a nice oiled tan makes the best tips...  So maybe it's not racism that makes avatars say no, but rather an attraction that makes them say yes.

did the rpeople studying this relize that just beacuse you create a avatar you still going to fall back into a certin group of actions twords others dosen't matter if your there or not how ever whith the anmity of the internet you can say or do what ever you want without reprocutions. so it enhances this ideas. i my self have an xbox live avatar and he looks just like how i dress and for the most part how i look but it's not me. so this study was a waste of time and money beacuse anyone could have told them yes people are raceist oinline.  

Did they compare if people liked Elves compared to Trolls?  

Its not racism, its a social preference.  This study is absurd.  There is no proof that anyone who was "rejected" was due to a racial bias or view the person with the different skin color as a "minority".  All these words and judgements are assumed and not proven.  

There is not even a solid correlation let alone proof of causation.  Irresponsible and absurd.

redredsocialist:  This is directed to you

Huh?  While I am sure that you have posted this just to get people going, I must agree with Kelly9601.  It takes all people with all different tastes in other humans to make this big ball go round.

I am pasty white German/French decent.  However, I am drawn to dark skin, eyes, and hair.  My friend who is a darker Korean, prefers blonds...etc.

There is no set base for what people like or for natural selection.  As for Natural Selection, that has more to do bigger, stronger, healthier than race.

If you are just trying to yank peoples chains, wow, get a life.  If you truely beleive your post, you're just an idiot.

Rredredsocialist: Your comments are laughable.  Your opinion as to what is attractive is just that: your opinion. Don't presume that it is a fact for everyone.  I am about as pale as you can get, but I find that I am attracted to both light and dark-skinned men, with a slight preference for darker skin.  My boyfriend of the last four years is Indian (as in, from India, not Native American) and darker than many African Americans I know.  And, by the way, comparing African Americans to apes IS racist.  

Thundering, you make very good sense in your comment. Having tempered emotion makes it so much easier to read than posts like that of Raven's.

I have this to say, Raven, in response to your accusations of racism. Saying, as you do, "You people think that racism should not be talked about because YOU PEOPLE (bet you're white) don't want to hear it?" implies to me that you are racist. The statement rings of anger... and of racism.

I live in the south in an area where the black/white ratio is 55/45. In my opinion (and all of these are OPINIONS, including yours) blacks are no less racist than whites. On a regular basis, going about my regular life, and usually in very public places, I am on the receiving end of racism because I am white. Example, I walked in a Wal-Mart the week Obama won the presidential election. I was greeted at the door by a group of young black women yelling "McCain just walked up in this MotherF---" and hoots and sneers. I simply continued on quietly and did not, though I could have, remind them that of Obama's voters, more than 60 percent were white and 20 percent were Black, according to Edison/Mitofsky exit-poll information. So, being white does NOT necessarily make me a McCain supporter, but being white DID make me a target for those women on that day.

If we are going to continue to beat down the doors of racism, it is time we address all forms, not just the old "white against black". I think that many times, those speaking out against racism are not speaking with the same voice that a just person such as MLK would - but rather, they are speaking out in favor of a shift of entitlement to that very poisonous emotion in their own favor.

I had a close girlfriend while I lived in Kansas City who grew up as part of the only black family in a small Kansas town.  Therefore, she was exposed to primarily white people growing up. She moved to Kansas City in her twenties.  Because she was black, her friends were always trying to fix her up with other black friends simply because they were both black.  However, due to her upbringing she simply was more attracted to white guys.  She was attracted to a certain "look" just because of her unintentional conditioning.  I thought this was very fascinating.  It doesn't necessarily apply to this story, but just made me think of it.

This study is idiotic, the reasons a person would refuse could be several, even more so since they knew they were part of a psych study.  Basic stats class would easily explain the fact the participants will respond for even the ridiculous reason of messing up your study.  

There are no filters in this study to determine that race was the only resulting choice that affected a person.  It was also impossible to recreate the situation without changes in environment.

I really can't believe anyone would take this study seriously.

The old adage is still true, "People are people no matter where you go".  I don't understand why anyone feels a need to keep proving it over and over again.

What I would like to see is a study of African American's racist attitudes towards Caucasians.  No one ever talks about that.  I just don't understand why people feel that it's okay for African Americans to be racist against Caucasians.

I'm sure that's true, but it's very disconcerting.  Schools have made a huge difference in diminishing feelings of bigotry, but obviously we have a lot more to do.

Ive played a ton of MMOs and whenever asked to help someone do something...such as teleporting or whatever, never once has the color of the avatar's skin or the race they were ever impacted my final decision. Most likely the people asking the favor were just unlucky enough to ask at possibly a 'busy' time of day, such as the prime raid time. Seriously...if you are playing a game with tons of races/classes available...id have to say that most likely even a racist person playing wouldnt refuse just because of how an avatar looked. I say that mainly because everyone that plays an MMO knows that you cant really count on the avatar being an accurate reflection of the  player. Of course there ARE the people that get all googly over female avatars...so maybe i am totally wrong.

Racism...?  That's a pretty big jump.  

I'd say that it's likely that its a case of personal attractiveness rather than denegration of a 'racial' type, or any sort of racial stereotyping whatsoever.  Personal preferences can certainly fall along skin color, as well as hair color, eye color, shape of face, body type, etc.   If the study were done using hair color as a means of difererntiating between avatars, might there not be a preference say, towards blondes rather than brunetees?  Would this be hairism?

What was the methodology toward creating the original avatr?  Did they take an avatar that looked good as a Caucasian and then slap a black skin on him?   Did they do the reverse (as they should have to make the experiment valid) take a black avatar and slap a white skin on him?  Did that make a difference?

It takes a lot of guts, and little intelligence, to cry racism over a simple matter of personal attractivness.  Quote some real studies and get back to me.

I think another factor of this 'study' is missing. What color were the respondents? If the study only used white respondents then that in itself is biased.  And how long were the respondents participating in this 'study'?  If they had been at it for hours before the color change, theres a possibility that the participants were tired,aggitated,and not so agreeable to any more requests.

  And as a fan of the online game World of Warcraft, Ihave found that most of the female avatars are actually male players. would the Scientist find these men conflicted about their sexuality?

Perhaps the author and some readers are trying to back up pre-conceived ideas with this study.

A factor not considered:  can the choices in this study merely be preference rather than racism?  I have many friends of various ethnic persuasions and respect them equally.  However, if placed in a situation (even in a game) to select a color, I will gravitate towards the most familiar.  This does not mean I am a racist, I am simply showing my preference.  In racing games, I will always choose the blue car because that is my favorite color.  Am I prejudiced against green cars because that was not my choice?

I consider myself to be a relatively intelligent person, and I have read this about 3 times, and I still have no bloddy idea of what in the hell they are talking about in this article.  

obvious.

obvious.

This is an interesting study. Please also note that this study does not state whether or not the avatar being asked the question was of light skin or dark skin. Also not involved is whether or not the actual person behind the computer was of light or dark skin. People will assume that because the darker skinned avatar recieved a lesser response to the proposed question that this is racism.

This is a very interesting article it show people are still people. It doesn't show White people have a racial bias it shows people have a bias no mater where you are.

psych and profiling is sooo all kewl and counter-rational.  it's like like y'know, a religious experience.

This is indeed a good article. It reminds people of the unsolved human ethics problems merely from their attitude and way of thinking. Americans should learn how to accept another race in their society instead of believing in the manifesto of being the greatest one in the world. You are not that great until you learn how to be humble.

I agree with you, Raven, in that racism is still alive, and even though it is not nearly as mainstream as it used to be (specifically the primarily white/black racism in the United States which this article and, I'm assuming, the previous posters are referring to), it is still a major issue, as a whole, more than worthy of discussion and journalistic ventures.

I part ways with you're comment when you imply that most, if not all, perpetrators of racist actions and thoughts are white. By Merriam-Webster's definition of racism, you are either contradicting yourself (assuming that you are not white), or perpetuating the system you seem to despise (judging/discriminating others because they're white is still racism even if you are also white).

Also, you used the term stupidity to describe the racists' mindsets, so I must part ways with your opinion once again. I believe stupidity refers to mental capacity, not content, and that ignorance is a much more fitting term. Are all impoverished, inner-city black students stupid because they can't get into colleges at the same rate as rich, suburban white kids? No. They are just denied many of the same opportunities by forces very much out of their immediate control.

It is the same with many so-called racists; they were denied the opportunity to conceive the possibility that all races are equal. In many cases, by racist parents, teachers, and mentors, but oftentimes the cause is much more benign: they grew up and live in places where there is not much diversity, racially or otherwise. If you were unfamiliar with another race, you would not necessarily be comfortable around a member of said race until you became familiar. You'd be lying if you told be you would be 100% comfortable around someone with blue skin the first time you met them.

Finally, I would like to point out that most likely there are countless non-white players who turned down the white avatar's request because they were white (judging them on the same principles you appear to hold, Raven). And I am no expert, and have no hard numbers to back this up, but I am fairly sure the majority of the US population is still white (if not, it was until recently), and I am further assuming that more white people play this game. The results could be (and probably are) skewed because there are proportionally more white racists (who are racist against darker skin) than darker skin racists (who are racist against whites).

P.S. For future reference I would suggest not becoming emotionally charged in your arguments and back up your positions with sound logic, if not facts, if you want to be taken remotely serious.

Why are you two (shark & mamma) freakin' out?  You knew what the article was about BEFORE you read it.  You people think that racism should not be talked about because YOU PEOPLE (bet you're white) don't want to hear it?  This article is great because it points out that racist pigs display their racist stupidity even when playing games.  I guess you people already knew that--which is why you don't like hearing it, huh?  Racism is as bad as it was when it was as bad as it could get.  Racists and bigots just try to hide it, now.  

Great article that points out how racism is EVERYWHERE.  Bet these racist players are ALL white.

Holy Crap - I can't believe THIS got published ! Where is the important stuff on Ike, the election , etc? I guess I'm the numb nutz for actually reading it. Please go do somewthing with your life, author of this article. Give me a friggin' break.

All the news going on in the world and this is what you write about? You must work for the man.The man that wants Americans in the dark.Gee do you have any stories on Lindsie Lohans lesbian relationship I think Americans need to hear more of this crap also.