At this year’s Pubcon event, Google’s Matt Cutts asked a question at the start of a session that had nothing to do with search engines. The story goes, as told by Rand Fishkin at SEOMoz in One of the Most Talked About Incidents at Pubcon, that Matt asked about age and political opinion. Now it’s an “event” all on its own.
There’s probably some unwritten rule somewhere that says, “Never ask anyone their age.” Asking at a conference is simply asking. A gun wasn’t held to anyone’s head demanding a response. Whoever chose to admit being under or over 30 years old rose their hand. Seems harmless. I would have replied to the “over thirty” with gusto, since I’m far, far past that magic number and can still walk upright.
Rand recaps:
“Matt rose to the stage and first, asked a few questions of the audience. He wanted folks to raise their hand if they were over 30 or under 30 (I couldn’t see the audience, but he said it favored the under 30 crowd). He then asked how many folks were more red state or blue state (I believe he specifically re-worded it as “How many people were happy with the mid-term elections”). I couldn’t believe my ears and stood slightly to turn around the room and look – it appeared to be about 65-70% “happy with mid-term elections.” Two gentlemen to my right appeared to take quick offense, and one muttered to the other (as the “blue state” types were raising their hands) “f–kers.” Almost simultaneously, a woman behind me said something to her friend about “damn liberals” – I imagine that there were negative comments during the “red state” hand-raising as well, but didn’t hear them from where I was sitting. From talking to others afterwards, however, I gathered that I wasn’t alone in hearing antagonistic mutterings.”
This color identification has to stop.
Newsweek ran a map recently with the United States colored in red or blue. My state is one color, but I couldn’t find myself in that map. I don’t have a color. I have life experiences. I have some education. I play roles in life. I work. I do stuff that I regret later. I change my mind all the time. I laugh, cry, scream, and stare at the gray hair on my head. I look for good people and feel the good inside those who make you work harder to “get” them.
What the heck color is all that?
I don’t think, for a second, that Matt Cutts was anything other than being gloriously curious. I rejoice in that. He asked questions. I rejoice in that. He asked one of the questions in a way that could have been offensive because it focused on color, and therefore, was restrictive. I wouldn’t have chosen to ask the question that way.
However.
How sad that he might never ask anymore.
How tragic that we might all stop asking questions anymore, because the way one is asked can be intrepreted in so many ways.
If Matt asked a question and some of the people in the audience at that time had anything to say about it, they should’ve raised their hand and speak.
Matt or any other spokesperson at any similar convetions have nothing to do but insert some other non-related discussion in their speaches. Jokes, political stuff, age etc.
It’s the way we see a workshop as interesting.
He or anyone else, should never stop doing these stuff, simply because there can never be a 100% success rate, at anything. You are bound to have a few down votes amongst the crowd.
It’s the overall score that matters.
Cheers Kim,
I’m not sure what I would have done if I’d been there. Most likely I would have done what Rand did, and watched the human response. I always find that interesting
I’m bothered that asking questions is so risky. Is there a new protocol these days? Matt likely didn’t consider a few things, like the fact that as you say, a conversation could have been started. Rather, it seemed like a quick show of hands with no discussion. That limits things and cuts off potential.
The color issue is probably a separate thing…a personal pet peeve of mine. Like “black” and “white” hat SEO. Color labels create divisions between people who need to talk to one another.
Not even a single human is alike. We are all different, and when people attend to a specific technical conference about marketing, especially on the Internet, “colors” are already a trend.
You have to say words about each other. if you don’t speak a certain faction, they will feel ignored and then you will still suffer.
If you do talk about a certain faction, maybe they won’t like what you say so they’ll feel bad anyway.
So there’s no easy way. Overall I think Matt, or Rand or you or other respectable people, are not tio be worried about such aspects.
The majority will surely digest and love what you blab about there
I didn’t feel upset or offended in any manner when Matt asked the questions he did. This controversy is a bit of a tempest in a teapot, to borrow an English colloquialism.
Matt prefaced his questions with a desire to get a sense of the demographic in the audience, and didn’t ask questions in a manner intended to offend anyone. He also showed no bias or slant during his presentation in any manner.
I also didn’t see anyone who appeared to be offended by the questions.
I highly doubt I would have been offended either, knowing my own character. It would be interesting to hear from those that Rand seemed to overhear. Was it the questions, or the public asking of them or what? Maybe it was nothing…but it was obviously something to Rand. We can already assume this is good link bait for SEOmoz. That aside, there are much larger questions that I have, from a purely curious mind. Such as, is there are a protocol for conferences for things like this? And, when does a question become ammunition, anyway?
Honest – I was not thinking “linkbait” with the post. I talked about it with a few folks at the conference and after – I got two suggestions through the site to talk about it on the blog (one noted that no one else had mentioned it), and I got a few emails after the conference that referenced it. Sorry if it seemed like I was “baiting” or had any intention other than to share.
LOL! Rand, whether you intend to link bait or not doesn’t even matter anymore. Your posts just do that now. I didn’t mean it as a bad thing. It’s an “just is” thing.
I don’t think he will stop asking questions, maybe he’ll keep it out of public apprearences. Somehow I think Matt has had harsher feedback on things he has done before
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Certainly there are some things that interrupt the conference pattern that are welcomed…because humor is seen in them. But, anything causing strife is never a good thing.