4 ms·

I held my tongue on this earlier today thinking it would simply go away, but no more. Bottom line #1: The content of this article is not technically newsworthy

I held my tongue on this earlier today thinking it would simply go away, but no more. Bottom line #1: The content of this article is not technically newsworthy by HN norms. Bottom line #2: If you're a photogenic & telegenic young woman software developer in Silcon Valley and you're also sufficiently socially charming, creative, or just plain lucky enough to fall in with the "right crowd" at the "right time" you can get spades of press far easier than any male or any non-photogenic female. Remember Kim Polese? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Polese http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Polese ('nuff said) I can't cite the study offhand (I believe it was published in Nature in '05), but physical looks are a large multiplier (and and even larger divider) in young women's careers in almost all fields (there's an XKCD for this somewhere too). The effect dampens sharply later in life. As society has become more mediated, I'm sure that effect has only grown. Looks sell, but that sales job must be followed through with commitment and execution. Judging from afar (Pownce's infamous Python eval() hole aside), I've not seen her lacking in either. "Easy" fame and press is a double-edged sword. She's then expected to live-up to her "billing" and I doubt anyone is quite prepared for such a sudden burst of notoriety and the implicit expectations which come as part of fame's "package deal". At least by being a developer, her contributions can be more objectively judged. I suspect she takes great comfort in that. I also think even by Valley Standards she's bounced from one company (and one relationship) to the next with alarming frequency. The fact that I even KNOW those few details of her personal life is evidence of our society's double-standard for women. I can't think of a single other 'famous' developer who's personal life I know about other than Guido, but that's because he and his family used to live near us in Virginia. I suspect Leah had few options for advancement at SixApart and simply had to "ride-out her earn-out" per Pownce's acquisition agreement. I also suspect one of the implicit assumptions with her arrangement at Plancast was press-related (again simply leveraging fame as many "advisorships" in Valley companies end up being). Nevertheless, I'm sure she takes a good deal of comfort from the fact that, at the end of the day, she's now a developer with a deliverable exploring a fresh new non-Django-related API and platform. If she had wanted to be purely a "face" she likely would've stayed at CNET (err..Webshots) or moved to a more media-centric role. I also suspect she's already seen the darker side of Silicon Valley and has little wish to return to those salad days. Let her build. Let her be.

jasonmcalacanis 17y ago
Honestly? You sounds a little bitter.
brandon272 17y ago
You need to read the HN guidelines: http://ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html http://ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
petercooper 17y ago
If you're a photogenic & telegenic young woman software developer in Silcon Valley and you're also sufficiently socially charming, creative, or just plain lucky enough to fall in with the "right crowd" at the "right time" you can get spades of press far easier than any male or any non-photogenic female. Even if true (cough.. iJustine.. cough..) that's just "how life is" and complaining about it doesn't change human psychology. Like magpies, people are attracted to shiny things - you just gotta make yourself more shiny.
- bonsaitree 17y ago
  Did you read the full post? This was not a "complaint". I was trying to sum up the 2 key points of the discussion and defend Ms. Culver's excess press via sociology in both the historic (e.g. Ms. Polese) and current context of the Silicon Valley press ecosystem. I also did my best (clearly poorly) to give some defense of her efforts. This sort of thing gets highlighted on HN, and having modern studies to quantify the effects is useful, but one need look little further then Helen of Troy. Nothing new under the sun here. Who's iJustine? ;-)

jasonmcalacanis 17y ago

Honestly? You sounds a little bitter.

brandon272 17y ago

You need to read the HN guidelines: http://ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html http://ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

petercooper 17y ago

If you're a photogenic & telegenic young woman software developer in Silcon Valley and you're also sufficiently socially charming, creative, or just plain lucky enough to fall in with the "right crowd" at the "right time" you can get spades of press far easier than any male or any non-photogenic female. Even if true (cough.. iJustine.. cough..) that's just "how life is" and complaining about it doesn't change human psychology. Like magpies, people are attracted to shiny things - you just gotta make yourself more shiny.

bonsaitree 17y ago
Did you read the full post? This was not a "complaint". I was trying to sum up the 2 key points of the discussion and defend Ms. Culver's excess press via sociology in both the historic (e.g. Ms. Polese) and current context of the Silicon Valley press ecosystem. I also did my best (clearly poorly) to give some defense of her efforts. This sort of thing gets highlighted on HN, and having modern studies to quantify the effects is useful, but one need look little further then Helen of Troy. Nothing new under the sun here. Who's iJustine? ;-)