LJ gender update thingy

[rm]

Responses to all our complaints seem to have LJ doing some version of backpedalling/apologizing/assuring us this change will not happen. So other than constant vigilance, I think this thing is okay now (you can see feedback responses in comments to my last post or pretty much everywhere people are talking about this).

Super busy today with off-line stuff to worry about. More later.

Comments

[rani23.livejournal.com]

What was their reasoning in the first place???

[eumelia.livejournal.com]

It appears they were doing it for advertising. Making them more gender specific.

It's all about the money.

[nicoli-dominn.livejournal.com]

What, and providing more choices for gender selections (as well as an "unspecified" option) wouldn't also achieve the same goal? Silly LiveJournal. Or maybe it's silly advertisers. Maybe both.

[marcmagus]

The backpedalling is backed up by a rollback in the changelog. As you say, I believe this one's resolved unless they turn around and screw it up again.

[brewsternorth.livejournal.com]

*nods* daedala at Dreamwidth truffled up this in comments at synecdochic's DWth.

Still, as said in the main post, constant vigilance.

[moominmuppet.livejournal.com]

Very good news; thanks!

[jcbemis.livejournal.com]

another reason this is important:

http://www.copyblogger.com/james-chartrand-underpants/

[brewsternorth.livejournal.com]

rm just posted about that yesterday, actually - it was in comments at that post that I discovered the thing about gender setting changes happening in changelog.

[jcbemis.livejournal.com]

oops - I must have missed that somehow - sorry

[brewsternorth.livejournal.com]

Is OK - it's a fascinating article.

[x-pixel-x.livejournal.com]

I got linked around to here, don't mean to barge in.
I'm just curious, because I haven't seen it. DID they apologize? Actually?
I ended up sending the form letter because I was just unable to say things that didn't come off as screaming. All I got was the standard reply which came off more as 'Oops, we got caught, stop being upset' than 'Oops sorry.'

I mean, if they'd like to say they're sorry, I will accept that, but if they're going to give me the brush off, I'm giving it right back.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Not really. THey said it was a mistake, but they did affirm that "gender identity is more than binary" so that's pretty good.

[eumelia.livejournal.com]

Heads up (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/15/AR2009121500945.html?hpid=topnews), in case you haven't seen this.

[woogledesigns.livejournal.com]

I think that saying in an official statement that 'gender is not a binary' is actually quite radical and progressive. Some of the biggest media companies in the world bank on the belief that gender is and should be a binary. I think that deserve some recognition.

[i-am-schizo.livejournal.com]

Hi there!

Did LJ officially apologize somehwere and actually say that, and if so please link because I'd love to read it, or did I get your comment wrong?

[rm.livejournal.com]

They didn't really apologize, but they did really say that they recognize that gender is not a binary.

[woogledesigns.livejournal.com]

They sent me this message:
"Below is an answer to your support question regarding "Gender Field"
(http://www.livejournal.com/support/see_request.bml?id=1029604).

======================================================================

Thank you for taking the time to contact us with your concerns. We understand that gender is not binary, and intend to respect that understanding for our users.

At this time, the code you reference is not live on the site, and will not become so in the future. We know that you, and many other users, have serious concerns about any requirement to specify gender, so we'd like to take a moment to explain events and our position further.

The intention of this code was to change the sign-up process to include a field for the selection of gender; that the code would completely disable the "Unspecified" option at the same time was deemed unacceptable. While the code in question had gone to our beta (testing) server, it had not gone to our production server, and will not do so due to this problem. Furthermore, we'd like to clarify that code posted to the changelog community is not always final, as such code must then go through the beta testing process and can often be changed before actual implementation.

Additionally, some erroneous information has been spread regarding the potential public display of the gender field. We would like to clarify that gender is not currently publicly displayed on the profile, nor anywhere else on the site, and there are no plans to change this behavior.

Regards,
LiveJournal Community Care Team

Did this answer your question?
YES:
http://www.livejournal.com/support/act.bml?close;1029604;ctskhrv5q58rvkj;3941196
NO:
http://www.livejournal.com/support/see_request.bml?id=1029604

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