[Air-L] 'MEN Invented the Internet'?

[Joseph Reagle]

On 06/05/2012 01:28 PM, Conley, Tara wrote:
> Also, if any list members could recommend further reading on Internet
> history (including computing) that includes discussions about gender,
> 'race', and so forth, I'd appreciate it!

I really appreciated this thread and it prompted me to write a blog 
entry on the topic.

<http://reagle.org/joseph/blog/social/gender/female-internet-pioneers>


2012 Jun 06 | Female Internet pioneers: A history yet to be done

    Legal scholars have a saying that hard cases (i.e., 
unusual/confused) make
    bad law (i.e., legal decisions). The recent lead in a story about sexual
    harassment in IT venture capital is probably a poor case for me to write
    something sensible. But the claim that "men invented the Internet"
    prompted an interesting discussion on the AIR list that is worth 
pointing
    out. Among the many excellent posts:

     1. Deen Freelon notes the lead really has nothing to do with the story.
     2. Burcu Bakioglu, Charlie Breindahl, Jeremy Hunsinger and Meelis 
Ojasild
        note the idea of invention is a simplification of complex and
        interrelated events.
     3. Steven Lovaas notes "the" Internet is actually a network of 
networks.
     4. Tara Conley notes a number of (now) famous women who contributed to
        information technology.

    While these are valid and interesting points, I confess I find them
    unsatisfying. If we stick with the commonsensical understanding of the
    lead, without recourse to unpacking "invention," expanding what we 
mean by
    the Internet, or invoking Grace Hopper and Ada Lovelace, what can we
    conclude? What if we purposefully looked for women pioneers of the
    Internet and found that only 10%, or 1%, or even 0% of them are women? I
    would claim this is more a reflection of society than the worth of 
women.
    (Though, I admit, this is not the inference most people draw, and is not
    as potent tactically in mainstream discourse.) In any case, who were 
some
    of the notable female contributors to the Internet?

    Virginia Strazisar

      * At the Internet Society's Hall of Fame, women pioneers are 7% 
(1/14).
        [Society20122ih]
           * Elizabeth "Jake" Feinler
      * On its Early Internet Leaders page, women are 7% (9/128).
        [Society2012eil]
           * Susan Estrada
           * Judy Estrin
           * (Feinler)
           * Elise Gerich
           * Susan Hares
           * Sandy Lerner
           * Radia Perlman
           * Joyce Reynolds
           * Virginia Strazisar
      * In RFC 1336, women are 8% (2/24). [Malkin1992r1w]
           * (Estrin)
           * (Reynolds)

    Sadly, around 10% is a common figure when it comes to women in some
    IT-related endeavors. (Of the 9 women listed, 56% (5/9) have Wikipedia
    pages atleast!) In any case, unfortunately, the contributions,
    perspectives, and history of these women have simply not been 
captured yet
    - to the best of my knowledge of course.