BBC Pride activists demand right to vet transgender news stories on Radio 4’s Today programme

[Hazycoffeek]

Apologies for the Daily Mail link but I’m glad that they are bringing sunshine to this.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9728735/BBC-Pride-activists-demand-right-vet-transgender-news-stories-Radio-4s-Today-programme.html

Members of the BBC's Pride Board, which comprises LGBT staff, want to attend commissioning meetings and play a role in 'editorial processes' on the show, according to documents seen by The Mail on Sunday.

I used to work with Tim Davie. I’ve sat on my hands so far, but I’m going to drop him a line about this. I think he knows the BBC has been captured and is gradually trying to reverse it.

There are editorial guidelines across programming, news programming has more detailed guidelines.

Why would trans stories need special guidelines? Is it like social media forums where special, unspecified rules apply?

Let them try I say, let this Pride Board go to the meetings and show themselves up. There are plenty of gay men and lesbians who don't accept opposite sex partners based on 'gender' working at the BBC, perhaps there is a silent network of gender critical thinkers who will be in those meetings...

Now I think this is a case for Ofcom except Ofcom has been captured!

I can now see why the BBC hasn't reported anything GC in recent years. I wonder, with the fact that they realised their agenda had become very politically skewed, this sort of stuff might allow the organisation to see how far from centre they have strayed.

I find it truly staggering

and as for this

The board also consulted a colleague with a transgender son about discussing the 'impact of these types of negative news stories' with him

someone has made a choice to treat their child as if they were a member of the opposite sex and so they should be able to vet the contents of the Today program?

what the actual?

The BBC often has programmes that have impact e.g. suicide, DV etc. who do they consult for impact? Surely getting out the information is the essence, offence is part of a free speech democracy. The right not to be offended, is not

Perhaps the BBC could broadcast the Global Butterflies training live?

I’d like to see it as a W1A episode.

@ItsAllGoingToBeFine

Perhaps the BBC could broadcast the Global Butterflies training live?

That would be brilliant

I’d love to see the training

I think the BBC have realised the lack of balance past the Forstater judgement and are suddenly having lots of gender critical speakers and not allowing ‘No Debate’.

This is just the backlash from the TRA lobby. Hopefully some of these toxic staff networks get told where to go.

I’m so pleased this has got into the papers. There’s obviously an insider who felt this needed sunlight. Thank you to them whoever you are.

Justin’s reply is priceless

*The board also consulted a colleague with a transgender son about discussing the 'impact of these types of negative news stories' with him

someone has made a choice to treat their child as if they were a member of the opposite sex and so they should be able to vet the contents of the Today program?*

Also, since when did not upsetting children become a necessity of news journalism? Should Today just cover amusing stories about skateboarding dogs?

Wasn’t there an editor on R4 who said that they wouldn’t have nasty t* women on the show?

I definitely want to see the Global Butterflies training publicly broadcast, ideally live.

Their demand was made a week after Today ran an item about Stonewall's controversial Diversity Champions scheme for employers, which did not feature a transgender guest.

No D&I bodies within the BBC are asking why there were no women experts on the recent Moral Maze?

What is their record for caring about people with disabilities or other protected characteristics?

@WinterTrees

*The board also consulted a colleague with a transgender son about discussing the 'impact of these types of negative news stories' with him

someone has made a choice to treat their child as if they were a member of the opposite sex and so they should be able to vet the contents of the Today program?*

Also, since when did not upsetting children become a necessity of news journalism? Should Today just cover amusing stories about skateboarding dogs?

Their child doesn't have to listen to the Today programme. It's a programme supposedly made for adults. And if they want to cover the issue but are worried about a child overhearing something on the radio on the way to school, Radio 4 could instead cover it late in the programme or on Woman's Hour at 10am, or the Radio 5 post 9am phone in, an hour to fill every morning, but strangely this issue never comes up.

Why actually ask a child (teen?) to decide on content policy? Hide debate and biology from this kid - that’s going to work out isn’t it?

I find some of the pro- nonsense in the media pretty upsetting. I only get really riled when it misquotes law or tells porkie pies. The rest is free speech.

Sometimes stories come on the Today programme that I think my children might find distressing. So I turn the radio off. Amazing!

I’d like to see it as a W1A episode.

Oh yes!

Nope. As if!

@SmokedDuck how are they harassing libraries? I worry about the drag queen story times as Leeds have already had this and someone at the library I work at thought it was a brilliant idea. Also, we were emailed demanding for JK Rowling's books to be removed from shelves.

Who is harassing libraries? Like the one on SanFran with the display of anti woman ‘items’ (pretty baseball bates and fake-bloodied t-shorts advocating violence to women - and none of this actually condemned)?

Wow. It really says something about the culture at the BBC if this group thinks it even has half a leg to stand on to demand that ideology should trump journalism.

ideology should trump journalism.

Why wouldn't they think that? Look at Stonewall's eye-watering ability to set the agenda, propagate a misinterpretation of the law and then present reform to the law as necessary to bring it in line with current best practice etc.

Plus, for good or ill, within the BBC there are well-off young people who are well placed to believe that they can coerce organisations into falling in line with their demands.