Slashdot Mirror
Sexism Is Still a Thing At Microsoft's GDC Party (techcrunch.com)
An anonymous reader writes from an article on TechCrunch: Microsoft hired a bunch of women wearing very little clothing to dance and socialize with people at the company's official Game Developers Conference after-party last night in San Francisco, Business Insider reports. Phil Spencer, head of Xbox, said in a statement to TechCrunch. "At Xbox-hosted events at GDC this past week, we represented Xbox and Microsoft in a way that was not consistent or aligned to our values. It was unequivocally wrong and will not be tolerated. I know we disappointed many people and I'm personally committed to holding ourselves to higher standards. We must ensure that diversity and inclusion are central to our everyday business and core values. We will do better in the future." What's problematic is that Microsoft chose to throw a party that clearly caters to heterosexual men by hiring women as objects of sex.
I see nothing whatsoever wrong about this arrangement.
Or... here's a thought.... don't cater to sexuality at all. If people want entertainment that caters to their sexual preference they should be seeking such entertainment on their own time, and not on time that is being paid for by the company dollar.
There's a little something called professionalism, and at a corporate event, this kind of thing is starkly lacking in it.
File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
While we're busy removing human interests that aren't directly related to the subject matter from the conference, should we ban serving food and drinks as well?
Dear whiplash
With all the improvements that are being made to this wonderful site one of the biggest flaws brought in big part by the previous owners (DICE) was the overly politicised topics that not even tangentially touches the historical major focus of this site: technology and its applications.
It is my belief that, for the original audience of this site, some here since before the 9/11, some even from when http colon slash slash was actually pronounced when reading URLs out loud, the main drive to come and read the front page is to catch up with the latest of the technology and its applications.
This kind of politicised subject (the same going for the U.S. elections, ISIS, the refugee crisis and general gossip) already abounds in the mainstream media and for more than a decade this used to be the place to run away from all that, to read about the subjects that are our jobs and our passions and to welcome our robotic overlords.
Unicode, https, burying videos, all that would be secondary if this kind of article continues to be propped up in here.
It is time for some transparency here: did this article even passed through the firehose? People actually voted for it? Maybe times changed and people here are voting for this kind of article to the front page but, otherwise, it would be a great update, maybe the greatest, to go back to the roots of "News for Nerds, stuff that matter".
Either that or at least inform the audience that Slashdot is OK with this kind of articles, that the desired audience is a new audience with a different profile and give us the alternative to go look for an alternative.
These are exactly the kinds of incidents that can happen when one doesn't strictly adhere to the Rust Code of Conduct. I've started using the Rust Code of Conduct for everything I do in my life, online and offline. Before I make any sort of a decision or take any sort of an action, I whip out my copy of the Rust Code of Conduct and confirm that my actions will not violate it in any way. I have printed out a copy of the Rust Code of Conduct and I keep it on my person at all times. I have another copy in my car, one at my desk, and several placed around my home in easily accessible locations. The last thing I want is to be somewhere without my Rust Code of Conduct! Some people say that it's dumb or that it wastes too much time, but I think they're wrong. Complying with the Rust Code of Conduct all of the time is something that I think is critical to living life in our modern age.
Please... if you are going to throw around ad-hominems, try and be more creative. I'm neither gay nor a prude. I have no problem whatsoever with sex, or even people who would present themselves sexually. Heck, I think even prostitution should be legal. I do, however, have a problem with a deliberately sexually charged atmosphere at a corporate event when the corporation's line of business is entirely independent of it. (At some types of companies, this sort of event could be entirely acceptable and professional).
File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
Heterosexual male here. No, of course not. How immature and insecure do you have to be to somehow feel offended by the mere sight of something that doesn't interest you? How about you just pay attention to something else, instead of trying to ram your offence down everybody else's throat?
I do think the event should have had male dancers for the ladies and gay males, if they were going to go down this road. Go down it all the way, or not at all - those are the best choices. (I HAVE seen such parties with both male and female dancers, btw!)
No. Merely that they recognize when the marketing isn't aimed at them.
Do you get pissed off because Summer's Eve doesn't happen to cater to you?
Should I be OUTRAGED when gay-themed films don't cater to me? Should I demand equal hetero time?
Should I go out and start a war over lesbian-themed advertising?
No.
If the product itself appeals to you, ignore the flashy advertising if it doesn't suit you.
This over-sensitive bullshit is part of what's wrong with people today.
Chas - The one, the only.
THANK GOD!!!