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Sexist Presentations At Startup Competition Prompt TechCrunch Apology
beaverdownunder writes "Silicon Valley technology conference organizers TechCrunch have been forced to apologize after two Australian men pitched a smartphone app called "Titstare" in front of a nine-year-old girl. The Sydney duo's presentation had the mainly male audience laughing, but angered Twitter users and reignited a debate about sexism in the technology sector. The two entrepreneurs — Jethro Batts, 28, and David Boulton, 24 — pitched their 'tongue in cheek' idea at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco on Sunday after winning expenses for the trip to the US in a similar competition, AngelHack Sydney. In their pitch, Boulton explained to an audience of hundreds (plus thousands online) that it would allow users to 'take photos of yourself, looking at tits'. 'It's science my good friend, science,' Boulton said. TechCrunch also apologized for another pitch for a product called Circle Shake, in which a man simulated masturbation."
Me. And a number of my married male friends.
Supporting feminism has nothing to do with your gender or sexual preference. It's about recognizing that women are still not treated with equal regard and respect in certain spheres -- the tech sphere being one of them.
If you support the rights and reproductive freedoms of your sisters, daughters, female friends, girlfriends, wife, and mother, then you might find interesting news and political writing on feminist blogs. If you're unconcerned about these issues but are curious about why so many women are angry at the treatment they get in society, you might want to read a few of those blogs to get an idea.
Koans and fables for the software engineer
The ones at fault here are the ones bringing 9 year olds to a Techcrunch conference. Much more "adult" stuff than this could have been discussed, and within context too.
The 9 yr old had a better app & presentation than the 20 something immature idiots did.
She was more professional than they were.
So why shouldn't she be there?
There are two types of people in the world: Those who crave closure