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To add to her being unsympathetic, she played politics and she played it badly. One might argue that she felt a need to play politics because she was coming fro

To add to her being unsympathetic, she played politics and she played it badly. One might argue that she felt a need to play politics because she was coming from behind (being female) and that her political salvos were more penalized because of her gender (which probably was true) than they would have been if performed by men, but it makes her not an innocent victim. This shouldn't matter, insofar as she's not on trial, but it's another bias-inducing factor. The suit was not at all frivolous and, assuming Ellen Pao is rational, the fact that it existed at all is an indictment of the Valley. People don't sue ex-employers lightly, and she had John Doerr as an ally. So what I wonder is: what happened to fuck up her career so much that suing, with a mediocre case against a company that can call dozens of witnesses whom it employs, seemed the best option? It seems to suggest that the sleazy back-channeling that the Valley is constantly accused of is really there. (The idea that she was doing it for the money, because of her husband's finances, I find absurd. I could be wrong but I didn't see it as remotely likely that she'd get $16M, even if she won.) This is the story that piques my curiosity, because if I were her, I would have taken the severance and John Doerr's recommendation (and a contractually-mandated positive reference) as the ticket anywhere I wanted to go. What was done to her reputation that made that not possible? (Or am I completely wrong in this analysis?)

stolio 12y ago
> (The idea that she was doing it for the money, because of her husband's finances, I find absurd. I could be wrong but I didn't see it as remotely likely that she'd get $16M, even if she won.) Don't be fooled, there's still money in what she's doing. Plus other forms of personal gain. I doubt this hurts her with reddit given their actions over the past few years and this positions her to be a hero to a very powerful and growing political movement. Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In has sold 1.6 million copies, if she gets $1.50/book thats $2.4 million. Plus $50-100k for speaking engagements, plus seminars, other branding, revenue streams, etc. She's a billionaire so if she ends up making $10+ million through her activism that's no big deal, but it shows there's decent money to be made there. "Professional activist" is a now career. Anita Sarkeesian's kickstarter to expose male privilege in video games brought in over $150k, originally it was for under $10k but over time she's been able to monetize her victimization in the sense that the more she's "victimized" the more her supporters give to her so she can continue fighting the power. Her non-profit brought in almost $400k during fourth-quarter of 2014 because of gamergate. (http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2015/01/24/anita-sarkeesian-releases-kickstarter-breakdown-raised-440000-in-2014/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2015/01/24/anita-sarkee...) Her career hasn't been hurt by discrimination, it's been made by it. It's like racism and the black community, it's really bad for most of them but then there are the Public Enemy's and Al Sharpton's who thrive on it. Is Al Sharpton a victim of racism? In a way, but he's also a major beneficiary of it. Is Pao a victim of gender discrimination? Maybe, but she's positioned to capitalize on it either way. Could she make more than the $400k severance package she was offered? I wouldn't doubt it. Will it make up for lost income? That's only a question if reddit let's her go, which doesn't look likely: http://fortune.com/2014/11/13/reddits-new-ceo-may-not-be-interim-for-long/ http://fortune.com/2014/11/13/reddits-new-ceo-may-not-be-int... edit: ah, yes. The obligatory "you're not contributing to the discussion the way I want you to so I'm going to misuse the downvote button to hide your comment" downvotes.
- dominotw 12y ago
  >"Professional activist" is a now career There is also a whole new careers like 'diversity consultants' who coach on men on 'ally skills'. I am not making this up.
- michaelochurch 12y ago
  I upvoted you to cancel out the downvote, but I disagree. First of all, the "professional activist" gig that you're talking about is one with a power-law distribution. Most people who speak out against bad behavior by employers end up losing for it. (I can speak to this one, personally.) Sure, there are a few people who hit big and make enough money to support themselves, but they're very rare. From an expected-value perspective, she reduced her earning potential, even including the possibility of winning the suit. While she was asking for $16 million, as a lawyer, she probably knew that even had she won, she'd be lucky to get 1/5 of that, net of attorney fees. Meanwhile, she endangered her ability to ever return to venture capital. Also, Sheryl Sandberg isn't really a professional activist. She's establishment. "Lean in", as I understand it, isn't about up-ending the corporate regime but adapting to it.
  - stolio 12y ago
    I appreciate the corrective upvote. I also agree that the professional activist gig is rare and difficult to land, but that doesn't mean people don't try. Pao is already making waves by cleaning up the "woman-hating mess" that is reddit. She's already gained hero status[0] within some circles for this lawsuit (sorry for the pay wall). It's hard to place a monetary value on securing yourself a place in the history books but that's what she's done, in 50 years her name will be listed among the brave women who fought for a better world. Add in the human aspect of maybe not wanting to admit some personal failures and the lower bound of legitimacy needed to bring the suit isn't very high. You seemed to be saying you couldn't see any possible motivation other than the legitimacy of the lawsuit, so I'm suggesting there are several beyond the obvious payout. On Sandberg being establishment, I agree. But I don't think I agree that feminism in general or "professional activists" are anti-establishment. [0] - http://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/article/Ellen-Pao-like-Anita-Hill-changing-the-dialogue-6149161.php http://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/article/Ellen-Pao-like-An...

stolio 12y ago

> (The idea that she was doing it for the money, because of her husband's finances, I find absurd. I could be wrong but I didn't see it as remotely likely that she'd get $16M, even if she won.) Don't be fooled, there's still money in what she's doing. Plus other forms of personal gain. I doubt this hurts her with reddit given their actions over the past few years and this positions her to be a hero to a very powerful and growing political movement. Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In has sold 1.6 million copies, if she gets $1.50/book thats $2.4 million. Plus $50-100k for speaking engagements, plus seminars, other branding, revenue streams, etc. She's a billionaire so if she ends up making $10+ million through her activism that's no big deal, but it shows there's decent money to be made there. "Professional activist" is a now career. Anita Sarkeesian's kickstarter to expose male privilege in video games brought in over $150k, originally it was for under $10k but over time she's been able to monetize her victimization in the sense that the more she's "victimized" the more her supporters give to her so she can continue fighting the power. Her non-profit brought in almost $400k during fourth-quarter of 2014 because of gamergate. (http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2015/01/24/anita-sarkeesian-releases-kickstarter-breakdown-raised-440000-in-2014/ http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2015/01/24/anita-sarkee...) Her career hasn't been hurt by discrimination, it's been made by it. It's like racism and the black community, it's really bad for most of them but then there are the Public Enemy's and Al Sharpton's who thrive on it. Is Al Sharpton a victim of racism? In a way, but he's also a major beneficiary of it. Is Pao a victim of gender discrimination? Maybe, but she's positioned to capitalize on it either way. Could she make more than the $400k severance package she was offered? I wouldn't doubt it. Will it make up for lost income? That's only a question if reddit let's her go, which doesn't look likely: http://fortune.com/2014/11/13/reddits-new-ceo-may-not-be-interim-for-long/ http://fortune.com/2014/11/13/reddits-new-ceo-may-not-be-int... edit: ah, yes. The obligatory "you're not contributing to the discussion the way I want you to so I'm going to misuse the downvote button to hide your comment" downvotes.

dominotw 12y ago
>"Professional activist" is a now career There is also a whole new careers like 'diversity consultants' who coach on men on 'ally skills'. I am not making this up.
michaelochurch 12y ago
I upvoted you to cancel out the downvote, but I disagree. First of all, the "professional activist" gig that you're talking about is one with a power-law distribution. Most people who speak out against bad behavior by employers end up losing for it. (I can speak to this one, personally.) Sure, there are a few people who hit big and make enough money to support themselves, but they're very rare. From an expected-value perspective, she reduced her earning potential, even including the possibility of winning the suit. While she was asking for $16 million, as a lawyer, she probably knew that even had she won, she'd be lucky to get 1/5 of that, net of attorney fees. Meanwhile, she endangered her ability to ever return to venture capital. Also, Sheryl Sandberg isn't really a professional activist. She's establishment. "Lean in", as I understand it, isn't about up-ending the corporate regime but adapting to it.
- stolio 12y ago
  I appreciate the corrective upvote. I also agree that the professional activist gig is rare and difficult to land, but that doesn't mean people don't try. Pao is already making waves by cleaning up the "woman-hating mess" that is reddit. She's already gained hero status[0] within some circles for this lawsuit (sorry for the pay wall). It's hard to place a monetary value on securing yourself a place in the history books but that's what she's done, in 50 years her name will be listed among the brave women who fought for a better world. Add in the human aspect of maybe not wanting to admit some personal failures and the lower bound of legitimacy needed to bring the suit isn't very high. You seemed to be saying you couldn't see any possible motivation other than the legitimacy of the lawsuit, so I'm suggesting there are several beyond the obvious payout. On Sandberg being establishment, I agree. But I don't think I agree that feminism in general or "professional activists" are anti-establishment. [0] - http://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/article/Ellen-Pao-like-Anita-Hill-changing-the-dialogue-6149161.php http://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/article/Ellen-Pao-like-An...