Gender News: Tech Leaders Don’t Follow Women on Twitter!

Brands Tap into Changing Gender NormsAfter CoverGirl announced its very first Cover Boy last week makeup artist and social media influencer James Charles shown below amp8211 Adweek took a look at how marketers are tapping into shifting gender norms as younger generations embrace gender fluidity quotYoung people today are rather accustomed to the concept of identity in general as performance That39s really what social media isquot Shepherd Laughlin Director of Trend Forecasting for the Innovation Group told Adweek Brands like Target which famously removed gendered signs from its retail stores earlier this year are taking note both in how they advertise and in product creation Thinx underwear designed for women on their periods for example updated their product line to include underwear for transgender men Other clothing retailers like Zara and Guess are creating gender neutral product lines although some critics have complained that their designs are bland and unimaginative quotNo gender neutral doesn39t have to be grayquot NPDamp8217s Chief Retail Analyst Marshal Cohen criticized The challenge as marketers tap into shifting cultural norms will be remaining authentic quotAdvertisers have long been exempt from sort of owning their values and owning the perceptions they39re putting out there in the public and I think it39s nice that they39re now being held accountablequot Samantha Skey President and Chief Revenue Officer of SheKnows Media concluded to Adweek amp160amp160amp160amp160Report Shows Silicon Valleyamp8217s Gender Gap Will Only Get WorseDespite heightened talk of the importance of diversity in the tech industry over the past several years a new report from Girls Who Code and Accenture shows that the gender gap will only get worse over the next decade Tech Republic Reportsamp160 Without increased efforts from tech companies meaning if the current workforce and education trends continue the percentage of women in the computing industry will drop from 24 to 22 by 2025 quotAt a time when there39s unprecedented attention and momentum behind computer science education and this issue the gender gap in technology is actually getting worsequot Reshma Saujani founder and CEO of Girls Who Code told Tech Republic adding that the universal amp8220onesizefitsallamp8221 approach for both boys and girls is actually expanding the gender gap The report also found that the gender gap is at its height in high school where girls can be discouraged from continuing computing coursework due to lack of mentors On the bright side the report estimates that if tech companies teachers and parents encourage girls to pursue computer science women could make up 39 of the computing workforce increasing womenamp8217s cumulative earnings by 299 million The report concludes by recommending tech companies start their recruiting efforts by visiting local middle and high schools35 Women to Follow on TwitterEarlier this month Motherboard uncovered that Elon Musk follows zero women on Twitter since the report heamp8217s followed one woman sparking the Guardian to take a hard look at the accounts of tech leaders and the percentage of women they were following As you can imagine the findings were pretty dismal all those examined followed between 2 and eleven times as many men as women In response to the coverage Silicon Republic put together a fantastic list of 35 women in tech that everyone should be following amp8220Itamp8217s almost as if women on Twitter are as engaging informative entertaining and worthy of follows as any other accountamp8221 the authors quip Make sure to check out the full list hereWomen Rule in Virtual RealityNew York Magamp8217s newest cover story explores the female creators pushing the boundaries of what virtual reality can be an industry that is so new women are taking advantage of the fact that there is no established hierarchy and they can start on an equal playing field While VR has so far been mainly focused on creating better video games a group of women are using VR to communicate the female experience creating an entirely new world in a society and a tech industry that is still maledominated amp8220When you39re shut out of a system or you feel like you don39t have a fair play the most powerful thing you can do is create options and new avenues for yourselfamp8221 Shari Frilot New Frontieramp8217s chief curator told NY Mag Lindsay Metcalfe design manager for Google VR added amp8220As women in VR we have a responsibility to define the culture and to design for inclusivity and diversity from the startamp8221 Check out the projects from women across the industryamp160hereMore Headlines Last WeekChanging Silicon Valley Entrepreneurship Culture from the Inside OutSix of the Most Influential Young Women in Media and Tech Share Advice for the Next GenerationThis Investor Will Give You Millions amp8212 If Your Business Makes Women RicherTaking on the Boysamp8217 Club at the Art MuseumWhat Male VCs Donamp8217t Get About WomenFocused StartUpsClick the social buttons above to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated bloggersamp160

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Gender News: Tech Leaders Don’t Follow Women on Twitter!

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Connor Zickgraf

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Gender News: Tech Leaders Don’t Follow Women on Twitter!

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