from Seen in Journalism
SEEN in Journalism began the week with a letter to Amnesty International UK – demanding a correction and public apology relating to its now-withdrawn report, “A Growing Threat: The Anti-Rights Movement in the UK.”
We were listed as an “anti-rights” group in the report – alongside 51 gender-critical organisations – including Sex Matters, For Women Scotland, LGB Alliance, Transgender Trend, Women’s Rights Network and Beira’s Place – JK Rowling’s support centre for women affected by sexual violence.
It rather set the theme for the week: where is the boundary between journalism and activism?
Should Amnesty Be Advising Journalists?
This was not our first encounter with Amnesty’s increasingly activist approach to sex and gender.
In May, Amnesty published Like a Snowball: The Growth and Impact of the Gender Critical Movement in the UK, claiming four media outlets had published 17,000 negative articles about trans people over four years.
It was difficult to take seriously as a critique of journalism. Because it read more like a dossier on a dangerous extremist network than an examination of women who simply do not want to get undressed in front of men.
The report claims phrases such as “biological sex” and “single-sex spaces” have helped normalise gender-critical ideas – and increase negativity towards trans people.
The final section urges journalists to publish more “positive” stories about trans people, platform more trans voices and avoid “gotcha questions” such as: “Can women have a penis?”
Amnesty is a human-rights organisation, not a journalism regulator or training body. So why is it attempting to dictate how journalists report one of the most contested issues of our time?
This is not helpful advice for journalists – it’s activism.