NYT didn’t quote trans people in 66% of articles on anti-trans legislation in one-year period: Report

About two-thirds of stories published by the New York Times about anti-trans legislation excluded the perspectives of trans people, in the year that followed public criticism for its handling of the subject, according to a study by American media watchdog Media Matters and LGBTQI media advocacy outfit GLAAD.

In February last year, the paper had received two open letters: one from a coalition of over 150 outfits, including GLAAD, and another by NYT contributors over the American outlet’s alleged contributions to an anti-LGBTQ culture war. NYT had dismissed these as “protests organised by advocacy groups”.

In February last year, the paper received two open letters: one from a coalition of over 150 outfits, including GLAAD, and another by NYT contributors over the American outlet’s alleged contributions to an anti-LGBTQ culture war. NYT had dismissed these as “protests organised by advocacy groups”.

Between February 2023 and February this year, the NYT published at least 65 articles that mentioned American anti-trans legislation in either the headline or lead paragraphs. 

But the research by Media Matters and GLAAD suggested that 66 percent of the articles did not quote even one trans or gender-nonconforming person. “Eighteen percent of the articles quoted misinformation from anti-trans activists without adequate fact-checking or additional context. Six articles obscured the anti-trans background of sources, erasing histories of extremist rhetoric or actions,” Media Matters said.

“When the Times covered North Dakota’s decision to ban transgender girls from playing sports with other members of their lived gender, the article didn’t give any of those girls space to talk about how it might impact them. The Times covered Missouri’s heavy restrictions on treatments for trans people without providing its readers a reaction from somebody who would be losing access to the health care they rely on.”

“The Times also covered President Joe Biden’s speech to a Pride celebration at the White House without speaking to any of the trans people who attended.” 

In its coverage of a Florida law banning gender-affirming care for minors, the Times repeatedly quoted DeSantis spreading anti-trans misinformation. In one instance, the Times quoted the governor’s false claim that  “gender-affirming care” is a euphemism for “sex-change operations”, according to Media Matters.

“Sex change” is an outdated term for some forms of gender-affirming care, specifically bottom surgery. The term ‘gender-affirming care’ is used instead to encompass a broader range of treatments that do not necessarily include surgery. As the Human Rights Campaign explains: “It is not a single category of services but instead is a range of services, including mental health care, medical care, and social services.”