The fact that she approaches media outlets with the story? The fact that her funding didn't happen until she did this? The fact that she didn't delete the comments, or ignore the comments, but rather focused all of her efforts on talking about those comments? Even to the exclusion of talking about the actual project itself that she was trying to get funded.
Why do you seem to think it is some kind of sinister plot? If you were trying to get funding, and someone threw a golden opportunity to generate a ton more publicity and exposure into your lap, wouldn't you take advantage of it?
The question is: Why do YOU think it's some kind of plot?
If someone who is embarking on a project to expose and discuss misogyny suddenly finds themselves on the receiving end of vicious misogynous attacks, would it not make sense to bring that to the fore? After all, the sheer viciousness of the attacks only serves to prove that misogyny is alive and well, and most importantly, damaging.
Bringing inconvenient truths to light goes to the very heart of journalism.
Why do you seem to think it is some kind of sinister plot? If you were trying to get funding, and someone threw a golden opportunity to generate a ton more publicity and exposure into your lap, wouldn't you take advantage of it?