Yesterday, Pink News published this Twitter thread. It explains why people are upset about recent BBC coverage of trans topics.
The BBC has recently come under fire after publishing an anti-trans article, which generated thousands of complaints. The controversy deepened when one woman quoted in the article called for the 'lynching' of trans women. Here's the story – and all our coverage – so far: (1/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
Firstly, some background: the BBC is regularly criticised for its coverage of trans people. Last year, senior MPs branded the BBC “institutionally transphobic“. It has also been called out for “uncritically platforming” anti-trans groups https://t.co/o9mOwiWw9o (2/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
On 26 October, the BBC published an article titled “We’re being pressured into sex by some trans women”, which was widely condemned, in part because it was based on a survey of 80 people conducted by a known anti-trans group. https://t.co/6VVWq2HKoe (3/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
More than 20,000 people signed an open letter to the BBC criticising the article for suggesting that “transgender women generally pose a risk to cisgender lesbians" and calling the study "deeply flawed" https://t.co/WbroEetL3p (4/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
One person who complained was @LindaRiley8, publisher of lesbian magazine DIVA ,who said: “I don’t understand why BBC News has published an article perpetuating the idea that trans women are sexually preying on lesbians https://t.co/GTnSi8VE8l (5/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
One person who complained was @LindaRiley8, publisher of lesbian magazine DIVA ,who said: “I don’t understand why BBC News has published an article perpetuating the idea that trans women are sexually preying on lesbians https://t.co/GTnSi8VE8l (5/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
A BBC journalist was then criticised after praising the much-reviled article and appearing to compare it to the broadcaster’s investigation into Jimmy Savile. Guardian journalist @OwenJones84 described the comparison as "Beyond belief, frankly." (6/11) https://t.co/DW4dWs0lPX
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
Despite the searing backlash, the BBC doubled down on defending the article, claiming that it went through 'a rigorous editorial review process'.https://t.co/5wcs4ScyGR (7/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
The journalist behind the article claimed that nobody with an opposing view point would speak to her. However, one trans woman told PinkNews that she was interviewed by the BBC but her interview was not included as it ‘didn’t fit their narrative’. https://t.co/kbxb9P6Qbl (8/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
One of the people who WAS quoted was porn actor Lily Cade, who said she once declined to shoot a porn scene with a trans woman. After publication, Cade began posting extreme and horrifying calls for violence against trans women on her blog: https://t.co/Wo28iJGiTF (9/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
After Cade – accused by multiple cis women of sexual assault – called for trans women to be 'lynched' and 'executed', the BBC removed her from the article and admitted that it was aware of her “inappropriate behaviour” before publication https://t.co/TDWUjer3Nq (10/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
Where next for the BBC? We'll have to wait and see. However, whatever the next developments are, You can rest assured that PinkNews will cover them in depth. You can find all of our BBC coverage here: https://t.co/imc8y8GmfR (11/11)
— PinkNews (@PinkNews) November 5, 2021
Please also note that the BBC made this podcast series.
Update: Here's what's happening at the New York Times in 2023:
"The New York Times is racked with internal dissent over internal dissent — a development stemming from multiple open letters sent last week to newspaper management taking issue with the paper’s recent coverage of transgender youth.
* * *
The NewsGuild of New York, which represents Times journalists, tells the Erik Wemple Blog that Times employees have been called into 'investigatory meetings' related to their participation as signatories. An informed source says that disciplinary actions are underway.
The tough talk from management prompted a rebuke from Susan DeCarava, president of the NewsGuild, which is in the midst of contentious collective bargaining negotiations with the Times. The coherence of the don’t-attack-your-colleagues rule is questionable, noted DeCarava, since the paper in 2020 published a critique by op-ed columnist Bret Stephens of the Times’s own 1619 Project."
— "The New York Times newsroom is splintering over a trans coverage debate." (unpaywalled) Opinion by Erik Wemple. Washington Post. 24 Feb 2023.
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