Fictional Tech Workers: Accuracy in TV & Film

Many popular works of fiction portray computer programmers, IT specialists, and hackers. A 2017 developer survey explored the accuracy of these portrayals.

Text mining analyzed 10,983 responses to an open-ended question about fictional characters, categorized as most realistic, least realistic, most inspiring, and most annoying.

Elliot Alderson from Mr. Robot was a frequent answer for realistic portrayals, alongside characters from Office Space and Silicon Valley. Categorizing responses revealed the proportion for each character.

Mr. Robot‘s protagonist dominated the most realistic and inspiring categories. Silicon Valley characters were deemed realistic and sometimes annoying. Stanley Jobson from Swordfish was both annoying and unrealistic. Sheldon Cooper was often labeled annoying and sometimes realistic.

Comparing responses across categories highlighted distinct preferences.

Characters from shows like CSI, NCIS, Arrow, and Criminal Minds, along with Hackers, were deemed least realistic. Office Space, Dilbert, and Halt and Catch Fire were considered most realistic.

Analyzing character choices relative to overall responses revealed further distinctions.

Kung Fury‘s Hackerman was among the least realistic, while Snow Crash‘s portrayal was considered highly inspiring. Examining gender differences revealed preferences for same-gender characters.

Women favored characters like Penelope Garcia and Lisbeth Salander. Men preferred characters like Mark Zuckerberg, James Bond villains, and Tony Stark. This highlights the importance of representation. Mr. Robot resonates with the developer community, offering a compelling portrayal of a programmer. The survey reveals diverse opinions on realism and inspiration in fictional tech portrayals, underscoring the complexities of representing the tech world on screen.