2. misc-audio
  3. 167465-139155

Why aren't there more women on audiophile forums?

I've seen this question bandied about on forums frequently. Here's a long analysis of the subject matter.  For those going to the beach and needing a read, the whole dissertation is available for download.

"Masculinity and gear fetishism in audio technology community discourse"
Annetts, Alex (2015)
Doctoral thesis, Anglia Ruskin University.

"This thesis is a study of audio technology community discourse and its historical features. I contend that the audio technology domain is fundamentally exclusive and hierarchically stratified, based on discursively inscribed prerequisites to participation and enunciation, notably a hegemonic masculine performance, gear fetishism and the articulation of technical knowledge.

I show that communities organised around audio technology, socially construct and perpetuate these features as components of their respective discourses. I expose all three elements to be rooted in culturally embedded gender stereotypes, dating back to a nineteenth century dichotomy of public and private space.

I present a deconstruction of the complex discursive performances of masculinity and offer opportunities for privileged masculine recordists to critically reflect upon their dominance and homogeneity within the domain as an original contribution to knowledge. In this endeavour, I investigate the emergence and development of exclusive tropes as components of audio technology culture, and demonstrate how they continue to be perpetuated in the face of both social and technological developments that offer possibilities to destratify the community hierarchy and enunciative function.

My methodology is based on a comparative discourse analysis of industry and academic texts, as well as the communities that surround and influence the construction of modern audio technology discourse. Case studies are conducted of two leading industry publications: Tape Op and Sound On Sound, and supplemented by an exploration of Women's Audio Mission. I combine these sources with interview material gathered from relevant industry professionals. In doing so, I observe how the audio technology community has maintained barriers to participation, often in the face of technological progress that offers supposed opportunities for democratisation. My work presents an argument against this notion, exposing the supposed democratisation as an illusion of accessibility and thus as mere massification."

https://arro.anglia.ac.uk/id/eprint/702044/
128x128hilde45
hickamore
672 posts
 
A submission in a contemporary political theory course claiming there are only two political "models," and that Marxism is one of them, would get an F and be laughed out of the room if read aloud. The only contemporary alternative to liberal democracy is strongman authoritarianism. Even in China and North Korea, no Marxists remain. Democratic socialist Bernie Sanders wasn't even nominated; authoritarian Donald Trump actually became president. Strongman dictatorships in Russia, Turkey, Hungary, Poland, Uzbekistan, and on and on. Islamic theocracies in Iran and Saudi Arabia (one Shi'a, one Sunni) where the name of Marx dare not be mentioned. So anyone today who's afraid of Big Bad Karl is trembling before a tombstone.

Bet you didn't know that Marx corresponded regularly with Abe Lincoln during the Civil War, eh? Contemporary world-historic figures are like that: wishing to commune with fellow Large Minds. Like the world's nine other Most Consequential Political Thinkers, Marx left a long trail. Quel surprise. But not nearly as long as Plato or Aristotle or Plotinus. Read Plato's Gorgias and you'll swear you were reading yesterday's Congressional Record.
hillarysucks
7 posts
 
Obviously most of y’all are or want to be.....
celtic66
1,668 posts
 
Vapid and ghastly!  Did anyone bother to look up the Anglia Ruskin University website?  I've seen more mature Charter preschool websites.  Not exactly Oxford.  Seems our equivalent of Evergreen College outside Olympia where you invent your degree insuring non-hirablility. 

Room temperature IQ, pseudo intellectual dreck.  But, thank you for sharing, I needed a diversion from from my orderly world.
richdirector's avatar
richdirector
269 posts
 
This has been done on other forums before.

As a sweeping generalisation (UK) women listen and enjoy the music a lot more and men listen for what is wrong a lot more. There is fetishism for the equipment collection in audiophile that attracts men in this field more than woman (in general)
Men strive to make a collection and when they have it they then change it to make a new one... So the amp gets sold and they look for pre. Amp and power amp combos etc etc ad nauseum. 

But and as they say in Brazil... Its a big lifted cosmetically enhanced but.... If I go to one of my other forums which is on fountain pens there the chat is nearly 50/50 men and women... So what would I surmise? That pens are easier to collect, they are smaller 'treasures', they are linked to communication whether with others or themselves.

But we shouldn't stress about this thesis, it is a valid one as is something like how princess Diana death galvanised the place of the Royal family compared to the globalisation of the economy. An ex of mine did the structure of domestic cat communities comparing urban, suburban and country cats and spent 2 years tracking and observing them. It was very interesting!!!! It is hard for students to find topics and this one is as valid as many others...

Off to listen to my new Project rs2 cd box.... Its amazing 
gerryah930's avatar
Ag insider logo xs@2x
gerryah930
144 posts
 
Your "ex's" thesis was valid. The one posted by the OP is pure rubbish, no decent University worldwide would approve that as a dissertation - her advisor should be fired. This from someone who has trained over 30 doctoral students, 15 postdoctoral fellows, 12 surgical residents, and a handful of faculty. And started 2 biotechs with successful exits. 
More to discover