22 August 2013

Female Role Models XI

Dave Winer is a really smart guy.  The ideas he had decades ago help us share information online today.  If you've ever used an online news feed or a blog or subscribed to a podcast, you've likely benefited from Winer's work. Winer is also an advocate for some great causes in technology and communication - open source programming, innovation in journalism, and free speech.

But he really screwed up when he asked, "Why are there so few women programmers?"

OK, maybe not when he asked.  More like when he answered:
Now, I'm sure there is sexism, probably a lot of sexism. But I also think there's something about programming that makes many women not want to do it. Here's a theory why that might be.
Programming is a very modal activity. To be any good at it you have to focus. And be very patient. I imagine it's a lot like sitting in a blind waiting for a rabbit to show up so you can grab it and bring it home for dinner.
There is specialization in our species. It seems pretty clear that programming as it exists today is a mostly male thing. Which also raises the obvious question that perhaps we can make it so that it can better-use the abilities of the other half of our species?
And then, apparently oblivious to the irony:
I invite comment on this post, but be careful about saying derogatory things about whole genders, which btw, also includes my gender.
See, this is what happens when otherwise decent guys basically talk out of their ass.

OK, let's try the old "replace-a-word" trick to see how bad this is.  Replace "women" with "African-Americans" and "male" with "white."  After all, African-Americans make up a disproportionately small percentage of the field too.  If Winer said he's "sure there is racism, probably a lot of racism," but this is a "modal activity and to be any good at it you have to focus," and "there is specialization in our species" - we all know where Winer would be right now.  Or at least we'd know what creek he'd be up.

I'm also pretty sure coding isn't the only job that requires patience and focus. For example,  Veterinary medicine is majority female and it's trending even more female, given stats for vet school enrollment.

Of course, I might have trouble "focusing" if one of the biggest names in the history of my field suspects there may be something to my biology that keeps me from being any good at it. For that matter, I might have trouble focusing if I had to endure rape threats and death threats (not to mention a pink slip) if I call people out on their penis jokes at professional conferences.  In fact, I might just go find another line of work.

To his credit, Winer updated his post with a strikethrough and acknowledged "this was not a well written post." He later wrote a clarifying post of sorts - not an apology, but an explanation that "I write what occurs to me" along with a shout-out to his mom.

In what I think was an attempt to be helpful, or at least a peace offering, he tweeted out a link to Girls Who Code.  And that's when Winer and I had an exchange:





And that's where we ended.

Winer may not have a lot to say about solutions, but I have some ideas. First, we change the mindset.  If it - ahem - "occurs" to you that the reason women don't do something may be because that something is hard, you probably want to review your thought process a little bit.  For a long time men thought voting was too complicated and profound a task for members of the weaker sex, so prone to flights of fancy or delicate distractions. The same was said about careers in law or medicine. Now apparently it's coding.  Winer is now saying he doesn't care what non-programmers think because programming is so hard and equating his critics with opponents of free speech.  Seriously. Enough already.

Second, confront sexism wherever it exists, especially in the workplace.  Work today is hard enough without people doing everything from suggesting you're not capable to hitting on you to threatening to kill you. When Winer wrote what occurred to him, it's good that people slammed him for it.  (Ironically, I see no examples of someone saying he doesn't have the right to speak, at least not on that thread.)

Third, recognize and celebrate those who bust stereotypes in the workplace (and elsewhere) and serve as role models.  These are the people who show the dudes they can do the work, and give younger people someone to emulate.  People who, as I've said ten times before:
Someone an online mom can show her daughter [or son, a great point my wife made] and say, "See her? See what she's doing? See how she's living in the same world you are, with the same challenges you have, and see how she succeeds? THAT is how you do this. THAT is what I stand for. I want you to be like HER."
People like:

Gina Trapani. She's apparently a friend of Winer's who chalks this whole mess up to a "bad day" that has apparently stretched into a few days now. She founded lifehacker. She's a programmer and and a podcaster and an entrepreneur. And yes, she's smart enough to write code.

Zerlina Maxwell. She's a lawyer, a writer for a bunch of different sites like The Grio, and an advocate for women who have experienced domestic violence.  She's the woman who went on FOX News and said that maybe men should take responsibility for their own actions when it comes to rape - and then got rape threats from men online.  She hasn't backed down - she's experienced domestic violence and she spends her time trying to make it easier for others who have experienced it as well.

Andrea Kuszewski. Not only is she an outstanding curator on Google+, She's an expert in cognitive neuroscience and particularly good at looking at how different types of people think.  I thought that might be especially relevant for this post. She also tells me that the peer-reviewed research that looks at differences in how women and men think suggests women are more patient. Funny how that works.

Darlene Cavalier. Just another one of those perky blonde cheerleaders.  We all know the type, right?  The one with the masters degree from the Ivy League school, the emmy-award winning series, the gig at Discover Magazine, and the business startup?  Dime a dozen.  Darlene has devoted her career to improving science literacy and encouraging young people, particularly young women, to go into STEM careers.

16 August 2013

Worlds collide on Loos Tales

Yes, he really wears this stuff everywhere
A couple of months ago I returned to my "old Kentucky home" and the Alltech 29th International Symposium in Lexington. It's a wonderful event - the largest (and arguably most diverse) conference in Kentucky each year - and it's put together by a relentlessly entrepreneurial, socially conscious and hard-working group of people.  I'm proud to have done some work for them.

I was at the Symposium to give a couple of presentations and attend a discussion dinner on crisis communications.  While there, a friend from Alltech asked me to appear on a radio show hosted by one of the people there covering the event, presumably to talk about crisis communications and how agriculture companies can do a better job talking with consumers. The radio host's name was Trent Loos - I hadn't heard of him before.  "You'll like Trent," my friend said. "He's... interesting."  He said he would introduce me ahead of time and do the show the next morning.  Oh, and he told Trent that I spent some time working for Senator Ted Kennedy, and that piqued Trent's curiosity.

I met Trent that night.  He looked like he just walked off the set of The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly - apart, of course, from the nametag he wore that said, "Catherine Keogh, Chief Marketing Officer, Alltech." He sauntered into the discussion dinner, telling the young Hungarian woman who was checking the list of pre-registered attendees that his name was "Dick Cheney" as he walked by.  (It took a minute for the woman to realize what had happened.)  He spent the evening peppering people he hadn't met with questions that seemed more like statements out of the "Things We Say To Annoy Liberals Handbook."  He wasn't thrilled with the "socialist" systems they have over in Europe and didn't mind telling the Europeans in the room about that.  He was even less thrilled with the regulations "Obama is imposing" on American farmers, and with people who "don't know a thing" about how food is made but keep telling farmers how to do their jobs.  Oh, and it's totally cool to eat horses.  Yes, Trent said this in Lexington Kentucky, "Horse Capital of the World."  And yet everyone in the room thought he was funny and charming - even me.

After the dinner, I sheepishly went up to Trent and asked him what he wanted to talk about in the morning. "I don't know," he said. "I'm sure we'll think of something."

So later that night I checked out Trent's website and learned he's on 100 radio stations with an audience of 3 million people. Gulp.

The next morning I went on his show - and he started off by introducing me as a "crisis communicator." Fair enough, I thought, we're gonna talk shop.  I can do this.  First crisis he wanted to talk about?  Newly-elected Congressman, Mark "hiking the Appalachian Trail" Sanford.  So I knew where this was going, and I basically walked right into the question about Senator Kennedy.  Then he started talking about his history of controversy with Robert Kennedy Jr. and made a few sweeping statements that made me think he was trying to push my buttons - things like "men make better leaders than women" -  and comparing the plight of Governor Sarah Palin to that of Secretary Hillary Clinton, and so on.  So I started thinking I was talking with a Rush Limbaugh clone in a cowboy hat.  Even when I agreed with him he said, "well, I don't want to talk about that anymore." The sixth-generation farmer from Nebraska was just looking for an argument with the  liberal Bostonian PR flack to entertain his predominantly rural, conservative audience.

In other words, he was doing his job.  And by not getting tripped up or too emotional about it, I was doing mine.

But then something really weird happened.  We started finding substantive common ground on really important issues and ideas.  Things like how crises are opportunities to show your mettle as a leader. Or how too many people ignore sound science when it comes to making decisions about food or food policy.   Or how an emotionally-driven insistence on certain farming practices can ultimately hurt animals, people, and the environment in the long run.  Most importantly, I think we agree on this - we will never solve the world's most pressing problems if the only people we talk to think exactly the way we do.

I think that's why the premise of Trent's show, Rural Route Radio, is bringing urban and rural perspectives together.  It's why Trent has had me back on his show twice now.  Once he had me on with a doctor and researcher from Texas to talk about how the mainstream media sometimes botches science reporting. Earlier this week he had me on with a farmer from Kansas to talk about everything from feed additives to global food markets to rodeo clowns.

That's also why I've written so much about the single greatest threat to the human race - homophily. It's why I follow smart-but-not-famous thinkers like Ethan Zuckerman and  Alice Marwick.  It's why I think it's so important for a liberal Bostonian PR flack like me to talk with and listen to moms, scientists, political activists of all stripes, environmentalists, and farmers.

So yeah, Trent may look and act the part and he may spout the typical right-wing talking points from time to time.  But there's no doubt in my mind that he's sincere about solving problems and about preserving and protecting a way of life that has served him and the generations before him very well.  More importantly, there are very few people today who actively seek out perspectives they don't share with the intent of having an honest, substantive discussion. In my experience at least, Trent is one of those people.

Tell you what, though - if he ever disses the Red Sox on his show I'm gone.

08 August 2013

Global business has a huge gay problem

The organizers of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi have good news for makers of packaged dairy products - they're looking for a corporate partnership. It's an opportunity to associate a brand with an event that celebrates the highest ideals of the human condition - excellence, respect, friendship - and gain instant and overwhelming brand exposure on a global scale.  

As is often the case with international sporting events, however, the laws or behavior of the host country have raised serious concerns.  This time, it's a new law in Russia that outlaws spreading "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations."  There is another new law that can send you to jail for three years for "offending religious feelings." In effect, you can be arrested in Russia for appearing in public with your gay partner, giving a public display of affection, wearing a rainbow flag pin, or simply speaking your mind on this issue.   President Obama criticized the law recently on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

My longtime friend John Aravosis has been all over this issue for some time now.  He's pointed out that the Russian Sports Minister has said athletes who violate this law will be arrested and he's helped lead an effective PR campaign against Russian brands in response.  He's documented violence against gay people in Russia since the law was passed and he's highlighted the plight of gay olympic athletes in the Games next year.

But here's the thing - athletes are actually a small minority of the people who go to the Olympic Games in an official capacity.  They're vastly outnumbered by staff, media, and sponsor representatives.  Prominent athletes such as Johnny Weir are actually protected by their celebrity.  He's not going to be carried away in handcuffs for kissing his partner after winning a medal.

But that young, unknown  foreigner working in a sponsor's hospitality booth might. And that arrest may be captured on a cell phone video, and shared worldwide.  And that person's employer will have a lot of difficult questions to answer.

Now that the Russian law is getting more attention and the Russian Sports Minister's comments are on the record, any "packaged dairy products" company that partners with the Games will clearly be making a judgement call on the merits of brand exposure versus human rights.  Good luck with that.

The companies that have already announced partnerships with the 2014 Games may have a little bit of an "out" from a reputation perspective - they can say they're already locked into an agreement, that they oppose the law, they have a track record on human rights, and so on.  But even they will have to provide employees with some information or messaging that will run counter to their professed values.

People who attend the Olympics on behalf of a sponsor will get the typical "here's how you stay safe in a foreign country" handbook and the "you're here to represent the brand, not make a political statement" lecture.  But companies are going to have to tell their employees who work at the Games things like "if you're gay, please be discreet."  They will have to advise against the kinds of words and actions that straight people take for granted. They may even suggest that gay employees not take part.  That's not going to sit well with employees or many consumers.

If a sponsor's employee is arrested under the new law, it's going to create a new, unique set of challenges for that company.  There's an obvious and important need to follow the laws of the countries where you operate. But legal compliance and reputation defense aren't always aligned.  So here are some things companies can do ahead of time to mitigate a crisis:

  • Review company anti-discrimination policies and other rules that affect GLBT employees. If you're leaving someone out, you better have a good reason for it.  John Aravosis and his colleagues will be taking a look, and he will be telling your customers.
  • Have your code of conduct for the Games reviewed by general counsel AND by your communications staff.  These internal messages are bound to get noticed by people outside the company.  Make sure you're not saying anything that could get misconstrued. 
  • Let your employees and customers voice their concerns.  Have a personal presence in the company and online to make sure people know who you are and that you care. Give direct, specific and personalized answers to direct, specific and personalized questions. 
  • Most importantly, BUILD RELATIONSHIPS NOW. Know the legal system in Russia, the security apparatus for the Games, the appropriate staff at the relevant embassies and consulates.  Make sure if there's a legal issue you're ready to deal with it.  Furthermore, get to know the leading voices in the mainstream, GLBT, and digital media on these issues.  Ask to talk with them to share what you're about.  Don't introduce yourself to an opinion leader by asking for something or trying to explain yourself.  

Right now is the time to act.  Not next year.  Right now.