Responses by women in the profession to my recent post about why there are so few female bloggers in philosophy (and specifically here at the Cocoon) strongly suggest that the phenomenon is due in large part to a "chilling" effect — i.e. a reasonable fear about how women bloggers are treated and viewed in the profession. In response, I floated the proposal that the Philosophers' Cocoon permit people to sign up as contributors under pseudonyms. Although there were a few concerns raised about the proposal, by and large the response of the community seemed in favor of it — and I agree that the balance of considerations supports the policy. Pseudonyms are not without problems, but the kind of de facto segregation excluding women on philosophy blogs (the Cocoon included) seems to me morally worse by far.
I therefore invite people interested in becoming contributors, but who wish to contribute under a pseudonym, to email me (at marvan@ut.edu) expressing a desire to become a member in this capacity. In order to contribute under a pseudonym, I must know your name and background (grad student/faculty?, institution). I will under no circumstances divulge your identity to anyone. I am an honorable fellow who keeps his word. I do hope this policy encourages people who fear professional repurcussions from blogging publicly — including women — to officially join our community. People of all backgrounds should be able to discuss philosophy online in a safe and supportive environment. Or so I. And so, I hope, say we all.
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