Susan Estrich: 'Lack of Diversity' at Apple Caused 'iPad' Name

NewsBusters ^ | February 3, 2010 | P.J. Gladnick

[PJ-Comix]

There are some stories that make you cover your eyes with your hand and groan. And this column by Susan Estrich about what she thinks is the poorly named Apple iPad is definitely one of those. Here is Estrich putting on her feminist cap and making a very long stretch on blaming the name "iPad" on a "lack of diversity" at Apple:

Is there a woman in America who did not laugh, or at least roll her eyes, the minute she heard that the newest, hottest tablet computer from one of America's most ingenuous companies was going to sound like a feminine hygiene product? The iKotex is what most people I know are calling it, with apologies to Kotex.

So where were those women? The short answer is that, plainly, they were not in the room. Go to Apple's home page and look at the pictures and bios of key executives. I'll tell you who you'll find: Steve, Timothy, Scott, Jonathan, Ron, Bob, Peter, Mark, Philip, Bertrand and Bruce. All white, all men. If there is a "top" woman at Apple, at best she's No. 12.

[af_vet_rr]

Um, no... Must be her “brand”. This really IS a stretch. I noticed she said, “White Men” as well. Does she think if a black man were in the board room the name would’ve been different? It’s clear they called it the iPad because it’s like an electronic legal pad (OF PAPER!!!).

Perhaps because it was also close to "iPod" - iPad/iPod?

[Gene Eric]

>> Groan alert! Did anybody here think of “iKotex” when the “iPad” was revealed?

Nope. And neither do I associate Estrich with laptop.

[TXnMA]

I must really be "out of it"!

The first thing "iPad" made me think of was something like this:

Or this:

...perhaps with something like, "From the desk of..." printed cross the top...

~~~~~~~~

How utterly male, pedestrian -- and clean-minded -- of me...!

[TXnMA]

Now we know why no one here is interested in meeting either you or your “friends”...

[TXnMA]

"Not me... I suppose one must have a certain fixed mindset already to make that connection."

Same here -- and that "certain fixed mindset" is known to professionals who treat mental aberrations as "infantilism"...

[latina4dubya]

hello... has she not ever heard of the ipod? who in the world would think of a feminine hygiene product? she’s nuts...

[steve8714]

Heh heh..

[tubebender]

Did anybody here think of "iKotex" when the "iPad" was revealed?

I thought iPon yes but definitely not iKotex...