A sexist boys club: Ex-Facebook employee tells all in new book

Yes, we all think Mark Zuckerberg is cool and working for Facebook would be the most awesome job ever. Except that it might not be true, especially if you’re a female. Facebook’s former employee, Katherine Losse has written a new tell all book titled The Boy Kings: A Journey into the Heart of the Social Network, which reveals how Facebook as a company was highly sexist, and often not the greatest place to work, particularly for women. The book, is revealing account of how Zuckerberg and his gang of boys made the place a boys only club. From inappropriate paintings in the hallways to engineers gone wild in Vegas, this book is a juicy read. The book is available on Flipkart. CEO Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t come out shining in this book. In fact if you thought his card, which says, “I’m CEO, Bitch” is the only sign of his immature, sexist side then there’s more. The Daily Beast which has excerpts from his book mentions how on Zuckerberg’s birthday, female employee were asked to wear t-shirts with Marks face on it, while the guys had to wear Adidas sandals. [caption id=“attachment_361725” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Zuckerberg in this file photo. AFP”]  [/caption] The Daily Beast quotes Losse as saying, “The gender coding was clear: women were to declare allegiance to Mark, and men were to become Mark.” Kate Losse joined Facebook as employee #51 in 2005. From the book’s description, she was hired to answer user questions such as “What is a poke?” and “Why can’t I access my ex-girlfriend’s profile?” But her early enthusiasm gave way to asking critical questions of how the company was functioning. According to the blurb: Over time, this sense of mission became so intense that working for Facebook felt like more than just a job; it implied a wholehearted dedication to “the cause.” Losse also talks about the role of Facebook’s No 2 executive, Sheryl Sandberg, who recently became the first woman on the Facebook's company’s board of directors. Besides being the first woman, she is the first executive other than founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg on the board. Sandberg, according to Losse, was someone who took care of the aggressive geeks at the social network when Losse lodged a complained to her. The book will perhaps bring to light other Silicon Valley stories of sexual discrimination. The question that Losse’s book will inevitably raise is whether geeks are the new sexists of our times. You can read some more excerpts from here book at the Daily Beast here.