Google's Ideological Echo Chamber

"Google's Ideological Echo Chamber", often referred to as the Google memo, is an internal memo written by American-based Google engineer James Damore on the company's ideological stance toward diversity. In the memo, Damore argued that Google had shut down the conversation about diversity,[1] and posited that gender inequality in the technology industry was, in part, due to biological differences between men and women.[2] Google CEO Sundar Pichai responded by saying that the memo "[advanced] harmful gender stereotypes", and on August 7 Damore was fired for violating the company's code of conduct.[3]

The memo and Google's subsequent dismissal of Damore were widely discussed in the media, and triggered fierce social media discussions

Course of events

The memo proposed that Google had a political bias which led to what it described as a silencing effect where extreme and authoritarian elements of an 'ideological echo chamber' were fostered and unable to be questioned. It also posited that women were not represented equally in technical and leadership roles because of biological differences between women and men, and that attempts to address this disparity were unfair.[4]

It was later updated to begin with a paragraph affirming the author's opposition to workplace sexism and the use of stereotypes.[5]

Damore's memorandum claimed that bias within Google clouded their thinking about diversity and inclusion.[6][7] He wrote "the distribution of preferences and abilities of men and women differ in part due to biological causes and that these differences may explain why we don't see equal representation of women in tech and leadership". According to Damore, those differences include women generally having a stronger interest in people rather than things (also interpreted as empathizing vs. systemizing), that women tend to be more social, more artistic, and are more prone to neuroticism and anxiety, and have a lower tolerance to stress.[8] The memorandum also went over suggestions on ways to address those differences in order to increase women's representation in tech and without resorting to discrimination.[6][7]

The memo was dated July 2017 and originally shared on an internal mailing list anonymously.[9][10] Damore has stated that he wrote it while on a flight to China.[11] On August 5, the memo was published by Gizmodo, initially without reference to the charts and citations backing up its argumentation[12]. The Memo's publication resulted in a controversy across social media and criticism from several Google employees.[2][13][14] According to Wired, Google's internal forums showed "plenty of support" for Damore who said he received private thanks from employees who were afraid to come forward.[15][16][17]

Damore was fired by Google on August 7, 2017.[18] The same day, prior to being fired, Damore filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (case # 32-CA-203891).[19][20][21] The complaint is marked as "8(a)(1) Coercive Statements (Threats, Promises of Benefits, etc.)".[22] A subsequent statement from Google asserted that its executives were unaware of the complaint when they fired Damore.[11] On the same day, Damore announced his intention to pursue legal action.[23]

Google's Vice President of Diversity & Governance, Danielle Brown, responded formally to the memo on August 8, 2017 and stated: "Part of building an open, inclusive environment means fostering a culture in which those with alternative views, including different political views, feel safe sharing their opinions. But that discourse needs to work alongside the principles of equal employment found in our Code of Conduct, policies, and anti-discrimination laws".[13] Google's CEO Sundar Pichai wrote a note to Google employees, supporting Brown's formal response, and adding that many of the contents of the documents were fair to debate. His explanation read "to suggest a group of our colleagues have traits that make them less biologically suited to that work is offensive and not OK... At the same time, there are co-workers who are questioning whether they can safely express their views in the workplace (especially those with a minority viewpoint). They too feel under threat, and that is also not OK."[24] Ads criticising him were put up shortly after.[25]

On August 8, Julian Assange offered James Damore a job at Wikileaks in a tweet that began "censorship is for losers."[10] One of Damore's first interviews on the events took place on the channel of conservative YouTuber Stefan Molyneux.[26] Damore's point of view on the events was published by the Wall Street Journal on August 11.[18]

Reactions

Scientific views

David P. Schmitt, a personality psychologist writing for Psychology Today said that "in my view, claiming that sex differences exist in negative emotionality is not an 'incorrect assumption about gender.' It is an empirically well-supported claim," but that such differences were "unlikely to be all that relevant to the Google workplace", and were "not very large".[27] He also wrote "Using someone’s biological sex to essentialize an entire group of people’s personality is like surgically operating with an axe. Not precise enough to do much good, probably will cause a lot of harm. Moreover, men are more emotional than women in certain ways, too. Sex differences in emotion depend on the type of emotion, how it is measured, where it is expressed, when it is expressed, and lots of other contextual factors. How this all fits into the Google workplace is unclear to me."[28]

The BBC reported conflicting scientific opinions of the memo with Geoffrey Miller, a professor in evolutionary psychology at the University of New Mexico, stating that Damore got "most of the science right" and showed "pretty good judgment about what we know and what we don't know". However, he also said that "given that ... the sexes have such intricately complementary quirks, it may often be sensible, in purely practical business terms, to aim for more equal sex ratios in many corporate teams, projects, and divisions."[28]

Gina Rippon, the chair of cognitive brain imaging at Aston University in Birmingham, England, disagreed. She told the BBC: "The key thing for me is that he's got quite a lot of the science wrong."[29]

Peter Singer, Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University and a Laureate Professor at the University of Melbourne, stated of Damore's content that there are "serious articles, published in leading peer-reviewed scientific journals, supporting it", but added, "there are also grounds for questioning some of this research". On the issue of Google firing Damore, Singer stated "it isn't necessary to decide which side is right, but only whether Damore's view is one that a Google employee should be permitted to express. I think it is."[30]

Debra Soh, a sexual neuroscientist at York University[31] who writes about gender science, called the memo "fair and factually accurate". Arguing that scientific studies "have confirmed sex differences in the brain that lead to differences in our interests and behaviour", she said prenatal testosterone was correlated with "a preference for mechanically interesting things and occupations in adulthood" which explains the higher percentage of men in technology-related fields.[32]

Jonathan Haidt, Professor of Ethical Leadership at New York University's Stern School of Business, and Sean Stevens, research director of the Heterodox Academy, concluded from a study of the relevant meta-analyses that Damore was correct that genders exhibit different traits, but that it was "extremely important" to distinguish between interest/enjoyment, rather than ability. They also said that such a conclusion does not deny that bias, harassment, and discouragement exist in Silicon Valley and contribute to outcome disparities.[33]

Jordan Peterson, Professor of Psychology at the University of Toronto, who interviewed Damore said his points were supported by scientific evidence and his memo was "certainly not an anti-diversity screed".[34][35]

Cynthia Lee, a lecturer at Stanford wrote that the scientific claims about gender differences in the memo were a red herring: "Regardless of whether biological differences exist, there is no shortage of glaring evidence, in individual stories and in scientific studies, that women in tech experience bias and a general lack of a welcoming environment, as do underrepresented minorities."[36]

Employment law experts

Several employment law experts noted that while Damore could challenge his firing in court, his potential case would be weak and Google would have arguably several defensible reasons for firing him; a lack of response to his memo could be cited as evidence of a "hostile work environment" in lawsuits against Google. Additionally, the memo could indicate that Damore would be unable to fairly assess or supervise the work of female colleagues.[37] An expert in Californian labor law, Valerie Sharpe, a labor lawyer based in the San Francisco area, said to Business Insider that Damore could win the case and his chance is "above decent".[38]

Yuki Noguchi, a reporter for NPR, said that Damore's firing has raised questions regarding the limits of free speech in the workplace. First Amendment free speech protections often times do not extend into the workplace, as the First Amendment restricts government action but not the actions of private employers, and employers have a duty to protect their employees against a hostile work environment.[39]

Others

Cathy Young in USA Today argued that the memo "had [legitimate] points on gender" but that it probably overstates things, while Google's reaction to the memo was harmful since it "[lent] credence to complaints in the modern workplace, [that] men are the beleaguered sex".[40] Erick Erickson, a conservative writer for RedState, criticized Google's decision to fire Damore, writing that it showed that "views outside left-wing groupthink are not shareable inside Google".[41] David Brooks of the New York Times criticized Sundar Pichai's response to the memo, writing that "either Pichai is unprepared to understand the research (unlikely), is not capable of handling complex data flows (a bad trait in a C.E.O.) or was simply too afraid to stand up to a mob", and suggested that Pichai should resign from the Google leadership.[42][43]

Megan Smith, a former Google vice president, said of Damore's memo "It's so offensive to see what this young man was writing, but it's helpful to see it in the public..." and characterized Damore's statements as "insidious" and that in reading his memo, "...women of all races, men of color, experience what I call death by a thousand paper cuts".[44] In an opinion article for The Guardian, science journalist Angela Saini wrote that the memo reflected common misconceptions about the biological differences between men and women, and demonstrated a flawed understanding of the research it cited.[45][46] Christina Cauterucci of Slate Magazine drew parallels between arguments from Damore's memo and those of men's rights activists.[47]

See also

References

  1. ↑ McGirt, Ellen. "Google's Ideological Echo Chamber". Fortune. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017.
  2. 1 2 "Google Employee's Anti-Diversity Manifesto Goes 'Internally Viral'". Motherboard. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  3. ↑ "Google fires author of memo criticizing company’s diversity program". The Washington Times. August 7, 2017. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  4. ↑ James Damore (July 2017). "Google’s Ideological Echo Chamber: How bias clouds our thinking about diversity and inclusion". includes abstract entitled "TL;DR", table of contents, diagrams, footnotes, citations, references. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  5. ↑ McGregor, Jena (August 8, 2017). "The Google memo is a reminder that we generally don't have free speech at work". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  6. 1 2 Kate Conger (August 5, 2017). "Exclusive: Here's The Full 10-Page Anti-Diversity Screed Circulating Internally at Google [Updated]". Gizmodo. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  7. 1 2 Conor Friedersdorf (August 8, 2017). "The Most Common Error in Media Coverage of the Google Memo". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  8. ↑ "Google fires employee behind anti-diversity memo, reports say". August 7, 2017. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017.
  9. ↑ "The fired Google engineer wrote his memo after he went to a 'shaming,' 'secretive' diversity program". Business Insider. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017.
  10. 1 2 Samuelson, Kate (August 8, 2017). "WikiLeaks' Julian Assange just offered Google's fired anti-diversity employee a job". Fortune. Archived from the original on August 10, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  11. 1 2 Pierson, David; Lien, Tracey (August 9, 2017). "Diversity training was supposed to reduce bias at Google. In case of fired engineer, it backfired.". LA Times. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  12. ↑ "The Mainstream Media Misrepresents a Google Engineer’s Memo".
  13. 1 2 Emerson, Sarah (August 5, 2017). ""Google on Anti-Diversity Manifesto: Employees Must 'Feel Safe Sharing Their Opinions'"". Vice. Archived from the original on August 6, 2017. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  14. ↑ Etman, Omar (August 6, 2017). "Google employee's leaked anti-diversity memo sparks evaluation of tech culture". PBS. Archived from the original on August 7, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Internal Messages Show Some Googlers Supported Fired Engineer’s Manifesto". Archived from the original on August 8, 2017.
  16. ↑ Masunaga, Samantha (August 7, 2017). "Here's what Google workers are saying about an employee's controversial diversity manifesto". Archived from the original on August 9, 2017 – via LA Times.
  17. ↑ Wakabayashi, Daisuke (August 8, 2017). "Contentious Memo Strikes Nerve Inside Google and Out". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017.
  18. 1 2 Damore, James (August 11, 2017). "Why I was fired by Google". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  19. ↑ Booth, Robert; Hern, Alex (August 8, 2017). "Google employee fired over diversity row considers legal action". The Guardian. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  20. ↑ Finley, Klint (August 8, 2017). "Google Manifesto Author Just Might Have A Legal Case". Wired. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  21. ↑ Kovach, Steve (August 8, 2017). "The engineer Google fired over the diversity memo has filed a complaint with federal labor officials". Business Insider. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  22. ↑ "NLRB". nlrb.gov. Archived from the original on August 10, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  23. ↑ Gomez, Luis (August 8, 2017). "That divisive Google engineer's diversity memo? Read it first.". San Diego Union Tribune. Archived from the original on August 7, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  24. ↑ "Note to employees from CEO Sundar Pichai". August 8, 2017. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017.
  25. ↑ "Someone is plastering anti-Google ads outside Google's office criticizing CEO Sundar Pichai". Business Insider. Retrieved 2017-08-11.
  26. ↑ Ong, Thuy (2017-08-10). "Former Google employee has no regrets over incendiary memo". The Verge. Retrieved 2017-08-12.
  27. ↑ Schmitt, David (August 7, 2017). "On That Google Memo About Sex Differences". Psychology Today. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  28. 1 2 Feldman, Brian. "Here Are Some Scientific Arguments James Damore Has Yet to Respond To". Archived from the original on August 11, 2017.
  29. ↑ Eggert, Nalina (August 9, 2017). "Was Google wrong to fire James Damore after memo controversy?". BBC News. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  30. ↑ "Why Google was wrong". Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  31. ↑ "Sex neuroscientist suggests gender feminists and transgender activists are undermining science". February 13, 2017.
  32. ↑ Soh, Debra (August 8, 2017). "No, the Google manifesto isn't sexist or anti-diversity. It's science". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on August 10, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  33. ↑ Baron, Ethan (12 August 2017). "Google’s fired engineer James Damore defends himself in national newspaper op-ed", SiliconBeat. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
  34. ↑ Schmidt, Samantha (August 10, 2017). "‘I’m not a sexist’: Fired Google engineer stands behind controversial memo". Washington Post.
  35. ↑ Peterson, Jordan (August 9, 2017). "2017/08/08: James Damore and his Google Memo on Diversity (complete)". YouTube. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  36. ↑ ""I'm a woman in computer science. Let me ladysplain the Google memo to you."". Archived from the original on August 11, 2017.
  37. ↑ Wiessner, Daniel; Wolfe, Jan (August 8, 2017). "Google memo writer faces tough legal road challenging firing". CNBC. Reuters. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  38. ↑ "James Damore has an 'above decent' chance of winning his legal case against Google". Business Insider. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  39. ↑ Naguchi, Yuki (August 8, 2017). Google Memo Raises Questions About Limits Of Free Speech In The Workplace. NPR. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  40. ↑ Young, Cathy (August 8, 2017). "Googler fired for diversity memo had legit points on gender". USA Today. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  41. ↑ Erickson, Erick (August 8, 2017). "Why Google's firing terrifies social conservatives so much". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  42. ↑ Brooks, David (August 11, 2017). "Sundar Pichai Should Resign as Google’s C.E.O."Free access subject to limited trial, subscription normally required. The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  43. ↑ "New York Times columnist David Brooks wants Google's CEO to resign". Business Insider. Archived from the original on August 12, 2017. Retrieved 2017-08-12.
  44. ↑ O'Connor, Clare (August 8, 2017). "Google Fires Anti-Diversity Memo Writer, Drawing Ire In Right-Wing Circles". Forbes. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  45. ↑ Saini, Angela (August 7, 2017). "Silicon Valley’s weapon of choice against women: shoddy science". The Guardian. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  46. ↑ Romano, Aja. "Google has fired the engineer whose anti-diversity memo reflects a divided tech culture". Vox (8 August 2017). Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  47. ↑ Cauterucci, Christina (August 7, 2017). "The Google Anti-Diversity Memo Cribs Its Worst Arguments From Men’s Rights Activists". Slate. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved August 9, 2017.

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