Pink News: Alleged sexual misconduct by bosses

The article linked above by @RoyalCorgi states that:

The [Pink News] website, set up in 2005 when Cohen was the Channel 4 News technology correspondent, has, at times, wielded its influence for positive change in British LGBTQ+ life. It was part of a successful campaign to legalise same-sex marriage, and the outlet’s dogged reporting pressed Stonewall into campaigning on transgender issues at a time when the rights group refused to do so.

So Pink News was responsible for Stonewall’s change of heart towards transgender issues and away from LGB?

Guardian for Predatory Behaviour. I could t read it all, makes me sick 🤢

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/dec/23/uncertain-future-of-pinknews-sparks-fears-for-lgbtq-media-in-uk

Well I never.

So what is/was the police investigation about?

They must have really annoyed Mr Parry or his friends for their reply to still be pride of place on the BBC news page.

The statement by the accused on their own website: https://www.thepinknews.com/2024/12/17/pinknews-statement/

In short, they're the victims of a malicious conspiracy.

I expect JKR will be invoked at some point.

Update today

PinkNews bosses deny 'malicious' sexual misconduct claims www.bbc.com/news/articles/crmn4kwpkydo

😆😮(I can't seem to replace the laughing emoji)

Perhaps he identified as a sexual predator so his rights became paramount

I'm keen on social justice I do think we've taken things too far in some areas and the UK has wandered into very dark territories

Don’t forget they are all? woke tra types working there , probably debating if the behaviour was a new addition letter to LGBTQI “BA” boss action. They are weak the lot of them bar those who blew the whistle initially.

Thanks for the info but I couldn't give a shit how high and mighty he stood, someone could and should have intervened.

It wasn't as though it was just one person standing watching, there was a group of them who knew about it, and they could have called the police if they didn't feel able to physically intervene albeit a waste of time

And before anyone asks yes I have stood up for others being abused by more prominent/influential colleagues, several times and one very early on in a career too. The career blips were minor and no where near as regrettable as allowing abusive men to coerce and assault young or vulnerable team members.

Dr James was a Mermaids trustee until 2019.

https://rebeccastwitter.substack.com/p/mermaids-trustee-doctors-and-their

Meanwhile, Ben Cohen’s husband Dr Anthony James was a Mermaids trustee until December 2019 and simultaneously had an active role in developing LGBT education for all GPs in the UK. In this article of June 2019, Dr James said he was ‘developing a new programme of work with the Royal College of GPs on improving outcomes for the LGBT+ community [which includes] new e-learning resources, face-to-face teaching events and a national campaign to make general practice more inclusive’.

In November 2019, Dr James’ influence in the Royal College of GPs increased when he became the national Chair of Trainees, overseeing a committee of over 60 reps and representing over 14,000 GP trainees. There appears to have been some overlap between this and the role of Mermaids trustee, as Dr James stepped down as a trustee in December 2019.

In January 2020, Dr James and the Royal College of GPs’ ‘trailblazing new scheme’ was promoted in Pink News. The article stated that ‘Publicly and privately funded health centres, which treat millions of people each year, have been urged by activists to ask the […] gender identities of their patients and better equip themselves with the knowledge they need to treat queer patients’. This appears to explicitly acknowledge that changes to the taxpayer-funded NHS are being made by inherently biased activists.

We also cannot overlook the fact that Dr James and the Royal College of GPs launched this scheme in partnership with the Government Equalities Office. Did this government department know that they were working so closely with a Mermaids trustee on this national LGBT education scheme for all GPs?
Mermaids and associated gender identity activists have also taken part in training NHS GPs, as seen below when Dr Anthony James, Susie Green, Jake Graf, Sarah Brown, Katie Cornhill and Jay Hulme took part in a GP training session in February 2018.

This was celebrated by Ben Cohen, who proclaimed that it was ‘one of the first ever training sessions on gender identity for GP trainees’. We must ask how much further inappropriate involvement Mermaids has been allowed to have in national UK medical education over the intervening 5 years and what the effects of its extensive influence have been on our taxpayer-funded health service.

So at last the rumours of many years are finally being made public. Shame on those who looked the other way for so long. Thanks also for the mention of LangCleg's comment posted upthread, I remember that at the time. A truth speaker who many did their best to shove off these pages. Good women can't be silenced though.

It took courage for people like Stephan to speak up and well done for doing so.
Stephan, I wish you better days ahead.

Stephan quoted in the article is a TM. Whether jobs were really at risk or not, well done Stephan for speaking out.

I seem to recall reading about the staff at Pink News complaining about the management backpedalling on their support for TRAs (which would be understandable if they can see the tide turning and don't want to lose business/money) so this may be motivated by punishing them for that
of course it can also be true that rich entitled powerful men will use their power to control people they see as inferior to them, twas ever thus, sexuality notwithstanding

If so, this is somewhat depressing. Also machiavellian on the part of TRAs demonstrating a ruthlessness to dominate the best known LGBTQ+ media site.

This really stood out for me.

A former PinkNews staff member, who we are calling Gary, said Dr James had led the junior colleague behind a tree. "Anthony was just forcing himself on somebody who wasn’t able to make that decision for themselves because of how intoxicated they were," he said.

People at the event said they helped the alleged victim get home in a taxi.

But several former members of staff who said they witnessed the incident told us they were too scared to complain. One person said: "It’s the CEO’s husband, what are you going to do? Lose your job?"

WTF, you'd rather continue to work for a sexual predator than help someone clearly being abused?

Aren't people who work for news agencies the type to self congratualate frequently for being the kind of person who is brave enough to "Speak truth to power", especially in cheap misogynist publications like Pink News

I know not everyone can afford to lose their jobs but is it really beyond people to go up and interrupt by saying something like "Oh there you are, X was looking for you", not going away when told to and then help the person being assaulted to get away.

It wouldn't suprise me if some of those acting shocked watched the assault and popped it in their wank bank.

I would have agreed with you if you'd said "LGB", or even, "LGBT", spaces.

All bets are off when it comes to "queer" spaces, though.

They don't tend to be mistrustful of "outsiders" (even LGB ones), they tend to feel existentially superior to everyone else who doesn't share their mindset, regardless of sexual orientation ("queer" heterosexual are not just welcome, they're probably the majority).

All LGB non-"queer" spaces I've ever had contact with have been very mindful of safe-guarding.

Only in "queer" spaces who didn't believe that sexual orientation isn't "fluid" have I been propositioned by polygamous bi women married to men, or harassed by straight / bi men who think lesbians don't actually exist.

"Any organisation where safeguarding is poor" and where behaviour may not be questioned; whether the reason you can't question it be that God will be angry and you will be shunned, your employer will be angry and you'll lose your job, or your abuser will DARVO and you'll be accused of racism/transphobia - and be shunned/lose your job.

This was just on LBC but I tuned in slightly too late to hear who they were discussing. When I found out I was not in the least surprised.

There could be more than one factor at play.

It is not about it being a queer space. Sexual abuse is more common in any organisation where safeguarding is poor. That tends to be particularly true in organisations with a them and us mentality and a distrust of outsiders. It is why sexual abuse is more common in religious organisations, home schooling organisations, boarding schools, etc.
Pink News is the kind of place that is more susceptible to sexual abusers.

Gosh, more people who try to trample safeguarding and shout bigots at the (mostly) women who say no turn out to be predators. I’m shocked I tell you!
I view anyone who wants to get rid of safeguarding for children with suspicion, before they get found out.