# Donglegate

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{{Short description|Online shaming incident}}
'''Donglegate''' was an [online shaming](/source/online_shaming) incident. A [double entendre](/source/double_entendre) on the word "[dongle](/source/dongle)" was overheard at a [Python Conference](/source/Python_Conference) (PyCon) programmers' convention on March 17, 2013, which led to two people being fired and a [denial-of-service attack](/source/denial-of-service_attack).

==History==
In March 2013, at the PyCon technology conference, Adria Richards, a female participant heard two men seated nearby using the words "[dongle](/source/dongle)" and "[forking](/source/Fork_(software_development))" in reference to the male presenter, which she perceived as a sexual joke (see [sexual innuendo](/source/sexual_innuendo)).<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Ronson |first=Jon |date=2015-02-21 |title='Overnight, everything I loved was gone': the internet shaming of Lindsey Stone |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/feb/21/internet-shaming-lindsey-stone-jon-ronson |access-date=2023-02-04 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> She photographed the attendees with their faces visible, then published the photograph on [Twitter](/source/Twitter) including a shaming statement in her tweet. The following day, the employer of one of the photographed individuals, a software developer, terminated his employment because of the joke.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news |title=Techie Adria Richards fired after tweeting about men's comments |publisher=CBS News |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/techie-adria-richards-fired-after-tweeting-about-mens-comments/}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Zandt |first=Deanna |title=Why Asking What Adria Richards Could Have Done Differently Is The Wrong Question |work=Forbes |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/deannazandt/2013/03/22/why-asking-what-adria-richards-could-have-done-differently-is-the-wrong-question/}}</ref><ref name="auto1">{{Cite news |last=Vuong |first=Andy |date=March 25, 2013 |title=SendGrid employee's tweet sets off firestorm |work=The Denver Post |url=http://www.denverpost.com/ci_22863310/sendgrid-employees-tweet-sets-off-firestorm |access-date=September 18, 2015}}</ref>

In response to the public shaming of the developers, Internet users who were uninvolved launched a [DDoS attack](/source/Denial-of-service_attack) on the woman's employer, [SendGrid](/source/SendGrid), and according to an article by [Jon Ronson](/source/Jon_Ronson) in ''[The New York Times Magazine](/source/The_New_York_Times_Magazine)'', demanded her firing.<ref name="nytjonronson">{{Cite news |last=Ronson |first=Jon |date=February 12, 2015 |title=How One Stupid Tweet Blew Up Justine Sacco's Life |work=The New York Times Magazine |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/15/magazine/how-one-stupid-tweet-ruined-justine-saccos-life.html |access-date=September 18, 2015}}</ref> SendGrid subsequently terminated her employment later the same day. Following the incident, PyCon updated its attendee rules stating, "Public shaming can be counter-productive to building a strong community. PyCon does not condone nor participate in such actions out of respect."<ref name="auto1" /><ref name="nytjonronson" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=How "dongle" jokes got two people fired—and led to DDoS attacks |url=https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/03/how-dongle-jokes-got-two-people-fired-and-led-to-ddos-attacks/ |website=Ars Technica|date=21 March 2013 }}</ref>

In a 2014 interview, the woman—still unemployed—speculated whether the developer was responsible for instigating the Internet backlash against her.<ref name=":0" /> The developer, who was offered a new job "right away", said he had not engaged with those who sent him messages of support, and had posted a short statement on [Hacker News](/source/Hacker_News) the same night after he was fired saying in part that the woman had "every right to report me to staff, and I defend her position".<ref name=":0" /><ref name="ycombinator-hackernews">{{Cite web|url=https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5398681|title=Hi, I'm the guy who made a comment about big dongles.|website=news.ycombinator.com}}</ref>

==See also==
* ''[So You've Been Publicly Shamed](/source/So_You've_Been_Publicly_Shamed)'' (a 2015 book by British journalist Jon Ronson)

==References==
<references />

Category:Scandals in the United States
Category:2013 scandals
Category:2013 controversies in the United States
Category:Sexism

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Donglegate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donglegate) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donglegate?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.