Public data platforms make hidden flattery impossible in Silicon Valley networking

Evidence

To Walker, authenticity is about being honest and transparent with intentions rather than sneakily attempting to curry favor. Because Walker worked for the hot startup Foursquare when I interviewed him, he was privy to a great deal of obsequiousness. Obviously, flattery and sycophancy come hand in hand with business dealings, but it was difficult for any potential investor to disguise his intentions given sites like CrunchBase and AngelList, which provide detailed biographical information about tech people. Walker’s definition of authenticity made sense given the realities of startup investment. — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 657

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s existing knowledge of Gavin Newsom’s disclosure rules and the ‘technolibertarian’ threads — public transparency as a regulatory substitute for personal trust. — connects to: Tech status hierarchies are made visible and reinforced through public digital connections — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update: Celebrity, Publicity,…, 202; Publicly owned data platforms could replace corporate ones as utilities — Nick Srnicek, Platform Capitalism, 102; Winning a small influential Silicon Valley audience gives outsized online defense — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update: Celebrity, Publicity,…, 430

Broader Connections

• Tech status hierarchies are made visible and reinforced through public digital connections #corroborates (0.75) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 202
• Publicly owned data platforms could replace corporate ones as utilities #expands (0.72) — Nick Srnicek, Platform Capitalism, 102
• Winning a small influential Silicon Valley audience gives outsized online defense #corroborates (0.72) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 430