Hanging with Craig of Craigslist

SAN JOSE, Calif. — In the press room with Craig Newmark, the ‘Craig’ of [Craigslist](http://craigslist.com), who’s prepping for his talk here at the [User Generated Content Conference and Expo](http://www.ugcxevent.com/). He’s chatting with a few reporters and Evan Forster of [TuffBreak](http://tuffbreak.com) who will be introducing him. No CEO title for him, Newmark is careful to note, his title is Customer Service Rep and founder. The site’s CEO is Jim Buckmaster.

It was a busy morning for Newmark who drove down from San Francisco to speak at the event after checking his many bird feeders. Newmark’s a big Kindle fan and said he already ordered the new model announced today. “I’ve already read 44 books on the Kindle so it’s paid for itself,” he said. Last book read, The Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly.

Someone asks if she can connect with him on LinkedIn. “You can,” says Newmark in his distinctive, well-modulated voice. “But I don’t use LinkedIn much and I probably forgot my password. I’m not a good networker.”

In his talk, Newmark said he grew up a classic nerd, complete with pocket protector and the issues of social skills.

So what helped drive the creation and growth of Craigslist? “You grow up and feel what it’s like to be left out,” said Newmark. “That very much informs what Craigslist is. The thing about the Internet is it’s about inclusion. No one should be left out, it’s he biggest tent possible.”