Responses to the site include theAmerican Association of University ProfessorsandThe New York Timesraising fears that it threatensacademic freedomsby harassing and intimidating staff, conservative magazineNational Reviewdescribing it as an "irritable gesture" of victimhood by conservatives, and concerns about the safety and welfare of staff following a trend of threatening behaviour and communication, including rape and death threats, being sent to listed faculty. In December 2016, 1500 professors and faculty from across the globe petitioned to have their name added to the list in solidarity with academics who had been targeted and intimidated following their listing, with the message that the listed are “the sort of company we wish to keep.”