'Game of Thrones' got upstaged by the #NoConfederate campaign
As the third episode of Game of Thrones' seventh season aired, another HBO-focused campaign pulled a lot of attention away from the mega-popular fantasy drama.
Last week, HBO announced a new project with Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, an alternative reality show in which the Civil War did not stop slavery and it continued to this very day. Woof. Pretty rough, right?
SEE ALSO: Why #NoConfederate will be the talk of 'Game of Thrones' Twitter tonight
Lots of people thought so, and the announcement was greeted with multitudes of backlash against the extremely sensitive subject and the fact that it would be spearheaded by two white dudes. (Writer couple Nichelle Tramble Spellman and Malcolm Spellman, who are black, are tapped to co-write and executive produce, but D&D are still set to be the showrunners.)
Out of this intense social media and regular media backlash, an impromptu protest formed with the Twitter hashtag #NoConfederate. The campaign was launched by #OscarsSoWhite progenitor ReignofApril and the hashtag spread like wildfire. Viewers of Game of Thrones circled the hashtag around tonight's episode as a loud message that they had no desire for a show about modern slavery.
Through most of Sunday night, #NoConfederate was one of the most trending topics on Twitter. It led Twitter's trending topics in the U.S. and was in the top three worldwide.
We did it!!! We trended #1 nationwide & #2 worldwide for most of the hour. THIS is the power of social media, @HBO, & we say #NoConfederate
— April (@ReignOfApril) July 31, 2017
Many just tagged #NoConfederate along with their weekly GoT live tweeting and some called out HBO on the issue all together.
Listen to the people (your customers), @HBO. #NoConfederate
— Caroline Salinas (@csalinas_97) July 31, 2017
A series about the South winning the Civil War, w/ a sitting president who just called for police brutality, is beyond sick. #NoConfederate
— CeeLee (@CeeLeeMusic) July 31, 2017
It takes a very sadistic imagination to create a show that makes entertainment out of slavery never ending. Very sick. #NoConfederate
— Terrell J. Starr (@Russian_Starr) July 30, 2017
#NoConfederate because it's already open season on Black people, that show has been running for 400 years.
— Erik Island (@ErikIslandInc) July 31, 2017
Because a #BlackHermione is still a controversy in 2017. #NoConfederate
— Lady Thiggy (@thigpen_sara) July 31, 2017
HBO responded to the popular campaign Sunday, in a statement to the Hollywood Reporter:
Though it's too soon to tell, it doesn't look like this statement will make much of an impact on those not really wanting such a divisive and seemingly unwise television show. Meanwhile, those behind the campaign celebrated a great success tonight.
I want y'all to understand what we did. Five Black women announced on Friday that we would have #NoConfederate trending on Sunday at 9p.
— April (@ReignOfApril) July 31, 2017
WATCH: 'Game of Thrones' cast asks our Magic 8 Ball about their fates
