Flash video n' related stuff
I had the privilege to present a session earlier this week at the FlashBelt conference in Minneapolis. It was my third year in a row being a part of this fantastic conference that is a labor of love for its organizer, Dave Schroeder. I had to leave the conference early this year, so I missed a lot of the social mixers and, most notably, the keynote that has unfortunately cast a pall on this year’s conference. (See http://bit.ly/PY4ty for all the gory details.)
Because I feel I know Dave well, and I was one of the female speakers at this conference, I feel the need to weigh in.
I’ve been speaking at tech conferences for several years now, often as one of only two or three female speakers. So I’ve experienced my share of misogyny, but also of proactive inclusiveness. I’ve had the perennial conversation with many of the conference organizers: “How do we get more women involved?!” They all say they can’t find females who are willing to stand up and speak. It is truly a chicken-and-egg problem. It stands to reason that a woman may not want to show up, let alone speak, if she feels she’ll be putting herself out there to be disrespected or objectified. It’s not easy being a woman in a field dominated by men, and in some cases, boys.
I know Hoss. I’ve presented at conferences he’s been a part of several times. And, yes, he does seem to get a pass. “Aw, yeah, that’s just Hoss…” I’ve heard that more than once. To that point, let me share a couple of personal experiences I’ve had interacting with him.
My first encounter with Hoss was at the conference where I presented for the first time, with my female business partner. The sessions had just let out and there was a rush for the elevators. My partner and I were the last to get into a crowded elevator, and Hoss was the next in line. We squeezed back to make room for him, and he got a big grin and shouted to everyone within earshot… “Yeaaaah, I’m ridin’ with the LADIES!” and proceeded to press himself against us. We were of course disgusted and embarrassed, but as first-time speakers we didn’t want to make too much of a fuss. As women so often feel they have to do in business, we snickered and laughed it off. And just kept our distance.
The next time I crossed paths with him was a couple of weeks ago at another conference. Again, I was in an elevator, but this time I was there with my husband and 7 month old daughter. I had mentioned the previous elevator experience to my husband, so he was surprised when a quiet, respectful Hoss got in, nodded to me and smiled at our baby. We had a short conversation and he was on his way. This is the “teddy bear” Hoss that Dave refers to in his public apology, one that has a daughter of his own. (Based strictly on this interaction, who would have guessed he was on his way to show off his “orgasmatron”?)
So, yes, Dave should have been aware of the tone and content of Hoss’ presentation prior to inviting him to speak. But not for a second do I believe he would consciously condone discrimination, objectification, or abuse of a female attendee or speaker. I had to bring my daughter with me to this year’s conference and he bent over backwards to make things easy for us (you don’t see many babies at tech conferences, believe me). FlashBelt has always been the most gender-inclusive conference of its kind. I honestly believe that the reason this was sparked at THIS conference was primarily BECAUSE there were so many women in attendance. It would truly be a disservice to single out FlashBelt as “the” sexist conference. Dave has a big heart, and he just got a big lesson in trusting those who he thinks of as friends.
I tell you all this not to ratchet up the buzz, but to hopefully become part of a bigger solution. This stuff is always under the surface. The women know it; the men know it. It’s incidents like this that can raise consciousness, help trigger action and foster change. Let’s hope that’s the real take-away from this year’s FlashBelt.
If anyone has ideas to bring about a more gender-blind Flash community, please bring ‘em on. It’s 2009, already!
15 Responses for "Flashbelt: Fantastic conference, with a wake-up call"
Well said, Lisa. I think it’s well worth the time you took to write your stance.
Meeting a guy like that I will just get mad in place and burn everything 🙂 . “Don’t want to make a fuss attitude” is what cause those dorks to feel they can do anything they like.
Great article Lisa. While I think it should have upset the women at the conference, it should have evoked such a massive negative response if it were only men.
Thanks for sharing.
I do think that it will help raise consciousness. Perhaps I should have been more offended. I knew the preso was outrageous, but didn’t realize the extent. I guess I was expecting it.
Dave’s amazing conference is getting some rotten press and I hate to see that. Flashbelt like you said is one of the better conferences.
This does not look good at all for Hoss. I am pretty amazed by the description of his presentation. Its not even borderline questionable. Surely there must be a review of each speakers slides before they are allowed to present?
I am not entirely sure what you’re saying here. Don’t blame Dave for putting Hoss up there? Don’t blame Hoss for doing what Hoss always does?
All I know is, I judge people by what they make. Not by their reputations or their baggage or anything else. Hoss acted like an offensive jerk and demeaned the women in that room. What else is there to say? There should be no need to divide people’s reactions into those who think a little ‘rough-housing’ is perfectly okay and those who ‘can’t take it’. He does not deserve a platform for that kind of behavior. I’m not going to be lighting any torches to drive him out of town but I’ll be damn sure my money goes nowhere near anything he may be involved in. I hope Courtney got a refund.
@Gareth,
Generally, conference organizers don’t pre-approve their speakers’ presentations, just their synopses. It is trusted that speakers will be professional, which as we all know isn’t always the case. That may change now, however!
@Shirley Clarke
Dave has already taken the blame for putting Hoss up there, I’m not trying to make any excuses for him, or for Hoss, certainly. I hope that’s not what it sounds like. My point is that Dave is horrified by all of this, and I’m sure will be taking steps to heal the damage done. The organizers of other conferences at this point I’m sure are listening. Boycotting tech conferences will *certainly* not solve the problem… getting more involved and looking for constructive ways to involve and welcome women will.
This is partly the reason why reviews happen in stages for Adobe MAX presentations (as well as other larger tech conferences).
Not only does having early submission generate better presentations across the board … but it also prevents “questionable material” from ever getting to paid attendees of a conference.
Not sure if it makes sense to *censor* presentations … but at least there should be some sort of submission and review process before the talk. No?
That being said, I knew Gifford’s reputation … can’t say I watched more than 1% of his presentation before tuning out, myself. You could do that at Flash on Tap, because of the venue … not that I could understand what he was saying 75% time (I have trouble with heavy Scottish? accents and the acoustics were terrible) … but, after seeing some of the questionable slides shown, I knew I should probably find something more constructive to do (like drink beer at the venue).
As for the “finale” … well, it was awkward at best. Frankly, I couldn’t believe he a.) he built it and b.) he was demoing it. I did appreciate the production values of the work, a shame it had to be wasted on something seemingly offensive.
I’ve never met the man personally, so I’m not sure quite what to make of him. I used to think he was the “Benny Hill” of the Flash community, but I have a better understanding of what he’s capable of …
I remember that we touched briefly on this subject when we were up in Boston, but maybe having it out in the open & under discussion now is something that will help the community!
I can’t speak highly enough about your well thought out response to the Hoss Gifford and Flashbelt debacle. I agree with you 100% and hope that the community will take this and move forward in a positive direction.
i followed your link – that report of the keynote is horrifying. i don’t know how to change someone who thinks that sort of behavior is ok, into one who understands that it’s not.
culturally, one small thing i think we could do to make flash conferences more inviting for women would be to create a mother’s room or nursing area where new mothers can have some privacy and find community. also, having a social event for women speakers and attendees might be inspiring for women to get face time with and career inspiration from leaders in the field.
i’m so impressed that you’re back on the conference circuit already, with your baby no less!
Thanks for taking the time to write this, Lisa, it’s very useful perspective.
> I’ve had the perennial conversation with many of the conference organizers: “How do we get more women involved?!”
One vital step is to get women at least equally represented starting very early in the planning stage. If a handful of women had been involved in planning the program, I’m sure somebody would have brought up Hoss’ offensiveness — and from what everybody says about Dave, he would have realized that despite their friendship, this wouldn’t contribute to the inclusiveness he wants for Flashbelt.
jon
The most unfortunate thing about this incident is how the negative press underminds all the wonderful things happening at flashbelt. As a woman in the interactive field, working mostly with men, I’ve never been disrespected in the workplace. My coworkers are intelligent, caring and respectful. I love going to work and always feel welcome and part of the team.
I am also grateful to say I’ve never been rubbed up against in an elevator by a colleague. This behavior is completely unacceptable and unfortunately degrades the entire profession, paints a bad picture for sponsors and anyone reading about flashbelt. If anyone should be writing apology responses, it should be hoss, he should be pretty embarassed and feel like a jackass. Now, rather than getting to talk about the inspiring and wonderful speakers I heard, anyone who knows I attended the conference, wants the gossip on the a-hole. I don’t want to be thought of as a woman who goes to work in a field where I have to endure sexual harassment–which I don’t. I would hate to think any of my male coworkers could be branded this way.
Thank you for your response and as far as moving the community in a more positive direction, the first step would e to get Hoss Gifford off the stage! Hopefully organizers and sponsors realize that allowing him to give a presentation is approving the degradation of women, the field, and the conference. I know a ton of great flash developers who are women, great speakers, intelligent, etc… let’s get them a mic!
@Michele
To clarify one point, neither of the “elevator incidents” I cited happened at FlashBelt; both were at other conferences, and the first one was several years ago…
Glad to hear about your positive experiences in the workplace. I, too, have had some great co-workers and fulfilling experiences in the tech industry. I’m sure that the tech conference organizers, and Hoss himself, have heard the community loud and clear, and this will foster some positive growth for all of us.
I’ve read about this in several different posts. He knew exactly what he was doing going into the presentation and should not be so easily forgiven.
If I was a Flash Belt attendee and was subjected to this presentation, I would have left the conference and asked for a refund.
Your article is great!