In a statement released on Tuesday, Media Matters and GLAAD revealed that the New York Times did not receive remarks from transgender people in 66% of its reporting on anti-transgender policy, highlighting a lack of transgender voices in stories about topics that directly involve trans people.
The New York Times presented anti-trans propaganda without clarifying the information in 18% of its stories about anti-trans policy, as it did when the news site quoted Florida governor Ron DeSantis (R) stating that gender-affirming care is equivalent to “sex change operations,” something Media Matters pointed out is highly misleading.
Ari Drennen, the LGBTQ program director at Media Matters and co-author of the Media Matters press release, said that “the record of history has an obligation to provide to its readers the full human impact of the anti-trans legislative assault.” More than conceptual conundrums that need to be debated from afar, “trans people are living, breathing individuals whose voices deserve to be heard and whose stories deserve to be told in every anti-trans bill.
Additionally, it found six instances where the sources used for the article had their anti-trans background obscured or hidden. The media site mentioned Dr. Grazie Pozo Christie and misrepresented her affiliation with the Catholic Association, a conservative Christian organization, as well as giving her a platform. Chloe Cole is a well-known anti-trans activist who has traveled extensively throughout the nation to speak in favor of anti-trans laws, such as when she testified in favor of S.B. 233, a gender-affirming treatment ban in Kansas.
Following backlash against the New York Times over accusations of platforming anti-trans voices and for biased reporting on transgender issues, this report was published. The New York Times’ policy on transgender issues was addressed in an open letter signed by GLAAD along with over 150 other organizations and individuals. Signatories included activist Jameela Jamil, advocate Alejandra Caraballo, WPATH, and the Human Rights Campaign.
Additionally, their coverage of trans issues was criticized in a separate open letter signed by thousands of individuals to the New York Times. After the release of either of these open letters, there is no indication that the New York Times has changed its internal reporting practices.
From February 15, 2023, to February 15, 2024, researchers combed through every New York Times article to search for content that included trans issues as a major focus. They made clear that only news reports were included, and that letters to the editor and opinion pieces were excluded.
In the press release from GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis, the New York Times was criticized for stating that “the majority of their articles about anti-trans policy in the past year did not include any transgender individuals.” The New York Times “failed that fundamental lesson 101,” and instead showed a pattern of obscuring sources’ transgender affiliations and allowing their misinformation to spread unchecked. The commitment to improving the Times’ coverage of transgender people is unwaveringly supported by more than 150 organizations, community leaders, and prominent LGBTQ individuals and allies.
