More anonymous concoms

[redbird]

minnehaha K posted last week [1], unhappy about the trend for con committees to sit behind email like chair@example.org and artshow@example.org with no name given.

A flyer for Lunacon turned up in the mail today. Two people working on the convention are identified: the Filk Mistress and the Regency Dance Master. Not, say, the chair, or the people running the dealers' room, art show, or registration.

The only reason I'm confident that there is a con chair is that she, he, it, or they takes credit for creating the convention flyer.

cattitude is poking around online as I write this, and reports that most of the articles on the website are credited to "chair" (still unnamed).

[1] Thanks for reminding me of who, fredcritter.

Comments

[fredcritter.livejournal.com]

It was minnehaha K. Which isn't at all the same thing as saying "that was me," but it at least makes the identification in case you were curious.

I think there are good reason to have the email routed that way and I don't think most of it is really for the sake of hiding identities, but I do think that folks need to be reminded that it can have that appearance & effect and that at least some other folks really would like to know who are running things. For example, if I can pry the time loose from work, I'll always go to a Congenial chaired by Uncle Vlad, whereas if somebody else were to take over I would need to make inquiries before making commitments.

[fredcritter.livejournal.com]

Add-on: Oh, you made exactly that point in reply to her post, didn't you? Ah well, good to know we're both on the same page...

[redbird]

I note also that it's odd to identify only the people running the filk and the Regency dancing, especially since the set of likely con chairs or registration heads is a lot larger than the set of likely Regency dance masters.

[catelynn.livejournal.com]

As someone who is running a different conference...this is an interesting point. We did use the anonymous email addys but it might be nice to have a name/face to the address.

I also got the lunacon flyer today and do not remember seeing anyones name on as any area leads.

[redbird]

As Fred noted, there are practical reasons to send email to "registration@example.org" or the like; that doesn't mean it can't say "Conference Chair: P. Q. Example, email to chair@example.org" instead of just "Conference Chair: chair@example.org".

This is particularly useful in a context where the competence or otherwise of the conrunners may be known, and a factor in whether I go to that con. (To say nothing of the off-chance that the chair will be someone I want not to be in the same county as, let alone the same con suite.)

[volund.livejournal.com]

... the chair will be someone I want not to be in the same county as, let alone the same con suite

For Lunarians/Lunacon, a distinct and very real possibility in some previous years.