As it nears its 20th anniversary next year, PinkNews should be celebrating a period that has seen remarkable progress for some but not all LGBTQ+ people in Britain. Instead, the future of the world’s largest LGBTQ+ website looks uncertain after multiple allegations of sexual misconduct were made against Benjamin Cohen and Anthony James, the couple who run the outlet.
The 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.
But often, when one looks behind the scenes, one finds everything isn't as rosy as it appears. And then, the great and good begin to rethink their approbation:
Last week, Downing Street called the claims against Cohen and James “very concerning” and James was suspended from his role at the Bedfordshire hospitals NHS foundation trust. The potential downfall of an influential title that bills itself as a safe space for LGBTQ+ journalists has caused dismay and sparked wider fears about the state of queer media in the UK.
Maybe we don't need a specifically 'queer media'?
“It’s horrific to hear these allegations, especially for the journalists working there. There’s not many LGBTQ+ publications in the UK, especially ones with this sort of financial backing and influence,” said investigative journalist Finbarr Toesland. Last year, Toesland authored a study, commissioned by the Sir Lenny Henry Centre for Media Diversity (LHC) at Birmingham City University...Ha ha ha ha! No, really? Good God!
...that found LGBTQ+ journalists face an increasingly hostile environment in the UK. Seventy-eight per cent of those surveyed agreed that it is becoming more dangerous to be an LGBTQ+ journalist in the UK.
What sort of 'hostility' are we talking about, anyway? Any examples?
“I was quite surprised at the time to hear their experiences and how challenging they had found it. There was one example of a journalist who was working in sports media. When they walked into a press briefing, they overheard someone say: ‘That’s that gay journalist from x publication.’ There are examples of people feeling singled out because of their sexuality and facing homophobic abuse,” he said.
People whose self-image appears to rely entirely on them being recognised as 'gay journalists' consider overhearing the fact that they are being referred to as 'gay journalists' some sort of 'hostility'?
3 comments:
People fearing for their jobs or careers cause many a blind eye to be turned.
I don't like the idea of any outlet belonging to Cohen or James!
While I don't really care what someone wants to do with their genitals, as long as it doesn't involve children or animals, and is fully consensual, I DO care about someone constantly banging on about it, shoving their sexuality/peccadilloes/perversions in my face, and demanding special treatment by virtue of their oddity. Why should I even be aware of how they get their rocks off? Keep it to yourself, there's a good fellow!
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