Logged-in Ladies: the Gender Gap Online

   Halo is possibly one of the most successful video game franchises in the world, with communities of players and enthusiasts, and even a feature film inspired by the game. Its Wikipedia page has 181 references to support the information written by users. Sex and the City, has become on of the most influential shows on television, spawning popular t-shirts, fashion magazine editorials, and even the flavored cocktail trend among the urban hip or those who aspire to be. It also proudly built its reputation on sultry and scandalous behavior. Its Wikipedia page has 21 references.

Sue Gardner, Wikimedia Foundation executive director

   What is the reason for this imbalance? Could it possibly be that only around 13% of the site's contributors are female, according to a New York Times article in today's paper? The article, by Noam Cohen, addresses a few possible explanations for this gender gap, one being the very common offline reality that women are typically more hesitant to publicly state their opinion. It also explains that the hacker community is very much connected to Wikipedia, a community traditionally fueled by testosterone. Wikimedia Foundation director Sue Gardner explains that while she is keen to draw more women contributors to the site, the motive is not diversity for the hell of it, but to "ensure that the encyclopedia is as good as it could be." Writers from different backgrounds can only result in a greater variety of entries, which has always been the intention of founder Jimmy Wales.
   This skewed ration between the sexes can even exist on sites specifically geared to attract female users. "soc.women" is a Usenet newsgroup dedicate to women's issues. And that still has more men posting than women. This according. to the essay "We Are Geeks, and We Are Not Guys: The Systers Mailing Lists," by L. Jean Camp.
   But the matter can be taken into a different context altogether. Wired magazine, which began in the 1990s at the beginning of the digital age, has set a standard of energetic and trendy writing dedicated to the latest technology, a feat not easily mastered. According to Paulina Borsook, while 20% of the publication's readers are women, only 15% of their writers are, too. Editorial positions have typically been held by men, and according to Borsook, the majority of pieces written by women are reserved for matters of sex and dating.
   Why has it not changed before this? Why are we still having to keep tabs on the number of female posts on user-generated sites like Wikipedia?
   The stigma of being a techie has not faded for women. The misconception that science and math fields are designed for men has continued into the twenty-first century, and what will change it, in addition to time, will be the participation of the public. Women must be outspoken about their interests in technology, and not be intimidated by peers or colleagues. The level of arrogance can be astounding when it comes to a man and his toys. Basement bloggers (I'm actually in a dorm, so HA!) can fancy themselves Rhodes Scholars when Call of Duty is involved, and that hubris only escalates when there's no one in the room to challenge them. Just a florescent computer screen and a headset.

Sources:
Cohen, Noam. "Define Gender Gap? Look Up Wikipedia's Contributor List." The New York Times. 31 Jan. 2011

Borsook, Paulina. "The Memoirs of a Token: An Aging Berkeley Feminist Examines Wired." Wired Women: Gender and New Realities in Cyberspace. Ed. Lynn Cherny and Elizabeth Reba Weise. Seattle: Seal Press, 1996.

Camp, L. Jean. "We Are Geeks, and We Are Not Guys: The Systers Mailing List." Wired Women: Gender and New Realities in Cyberspace. Ed. Lynn Cherny and Elizabeth Reba Weise. Seattle: Seal Press, 1996.