In this episode of Breaking the 20%, we crack open the archives of early computing magazines from the 1960s and 70s — a time when keypunch girls were IN, lipstickless coders were OUT, and “dumb blondes” were considered the ideal user interface.
Join us as we explore the casual sexism, absurd hiring practices, and thinly veiled innuendo that shaped tech culture before the word “programmer” even sounded like a real job. From Susie Meyer learning PL/I to optical readers bragging they don’t take maternity leave, this is a tour through the cocktail-soaked, bias-ridden origins of the industry we call home.
Spoiler alert: The worst hiring advice from 1962 still feels a little too familiar today.
Datamation - June 1961 - IN and OUT of computing
Datamation- August 1962 - How to Hire a programmer
Datamation - January 1963 - The Woman Programmer
Datamation - February 1967 - RECOGNITION EQUIPMENT Incorporated OCR Advertisement
Datamation - April 1967 - RECOGNITION EQUIPMENT Incorporated OCR Advertisement
Datamation - June 1967 - RECOGNITION EQUIPMENT Incorporated OCR Advertisement
1967 - RECOGNITION EQUIPMENT Incorporated OCR Advertisement & Tape Advertisement
Datamation - October 1968 - Susie Meyer meets PL/I
Datamation - July 1970 - We taught our data entry system to speak a new language: Dumb Blond.
Datamation - August 1971 - TALLY Advertisement
Datamation - December 1975 - You've come a long way, Baby
QSOL.com ad
Categories: All Episodes , Season 3 , How tech treats women , Stereotype Thread , English