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A comment on Zoom bias: The social costs of having a 'tinny' sound during video conferences. Parent comment

Re:Zoom bias: The social costs of having a 'tinny' sound dur... by bubblethink on Friday March 28, 2025 @03:31AM (#43502544)
>Background - Blur, doors, and bedrooms are what you see 90% of the time. A good background helps you stand out. I have a bookcase with the books ordered in color.

True on the first part, but bookshelves as backgrounds are so cliche. Every two bit hack who gives an opinion on TV has a bookshelf as the background. It's a negative signal for me.

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Re:Zoom bias: The social costs of having a 'tinny' sound dur... by Jensson on Friday March 28, 2025 @04:28AM (#43502888)
Cliche is typically what you want to go for in a professional setting, it is not a negative signal in general.
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Re:Zoom bias: The social costs of having a 'tinny' sound dur... by Gud on Friday March 28, 2025 @05:42AM (#43503334)
I think it depends on what you are trying to accomplish. Are you trying to fit in or stand out?
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Re:Zoom bias: The social costs of having a 'tinny' sound dur... by theshrike79 on Friday March 28, 2025 @05:39AM (#43503309)
It always shouts "curated inauthentic bookshelf" to me.

Every book and item has been carefully selected to produce a specific image about the person.

I just use a Severance themed overlay :)

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Re:Zoom bias: The social costs of having a 'tinny' sound dur... by disgruntledphd2 on Friday March 28, 2025 @08:21AM (#43504481)
I had my real bookshelves behind me for most of my remote career. Mostly because my old sociology professor called attention to what backgrounds people get in media reports tells you a lot about them.

Sadly, we had a second child and we put a cot into the room, so I can't have my books behind me anymore :(

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Re:Zoom bias: The social costs of having a 'tinny' sound dur... by Paul-Craft on Friday March 28, 2025 @03:07PM (#43508926)
Me, too. You can't really see what's on them due to the bokeh from the DSLR I use as my webcam, but you can tell they're books, at least! What's actually there is my RPG collection, and some other hobby references.
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