After reading @melissafudor‘s frustrated response (via Women in Wireless) to @iamsusannah‘s article in Forbes, titled “Why Women Shouldn’t Go to Tech Conferences,” I felt a bit compelled to throw in my two cents. Melissa, in her moment of frustration, vents about Susannah’s article, claiming that it singles out “all women.” I understand Melissa’s frustration, and frankly I think that Susannah, being a good journalist, uses rather rhetorically powerful title to present an idea she doesn’t necessarily agree with. In the article, Susannah shares her experience on two panels at TechWeek. During the panel “Social Media Magic: A Woman’s Touch,” Susannah and the other women were asked why they are “so good” at using social media; one of the women says it’s because women are “all about feelings,” but Susannah says she “[doesn't] necessarily believe [that]” to be true reason (I wouldn’t either, Susannah). Finally, Susannah finds herself wondering whether social media is a good place for women because of their fondness for “[talking] about themselves, and where they like to shop, and other people” (the last part might be proven by by Melissa and I both responding). Despite Samantha’s somewhat judgmental attitude towards her fellow panelists, I think she raises good questions, and ones that I’ve thought about myself, most notably: HOW do women use social media? WHY do women use social media? How do women network online? Do women network better than men? How do men/women network differently? Guest blogger for CNBC, @CEOCoachBates, tackles the second part of my questions in her article “Are Men Better than Women at Social Networking,” in which she points to a recent study conducted by LinkedIn on how men and women use social networks. I discuss this research in my tumblr post here; the research concluded that men are more savvy social networkers – even in fields you wouldn’t expect, like cosmetics! I hope to explore the answers to other questions provoked by Susannah’s experience in later posts. In the end, even if the title of Susannah’s article is offensive for no reason but the reaction, I think her curiosity as to why women are good at using social media is completely valid.