Evan Urquhart 🏳️‍⚧️

Daily coverage of anti-trans propaganda in US right wing media on assignedmedia.org

Member of the volunteer journa.host moderation team!

he/him transgender

I'd *still* rather be playing pinball

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Last Notes

2024-06-27 12:26:42

Before the Trans Agenda existed there was... The Gay Agenda!
Today on Assigned Media, journalist Mira Lazine has a look back at the history of these two peculiar phrases. Would you believe that there is, in fact, a clear line between the two and that it passes right through the most aggressive anti-trans legal organization active in the US today?
#LGBTQ #trans #journalism #news
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/myth-of-the-gay-agenda

2024-06-17 17:12:23

Indictment for Eithan Haim has been unsealed:
https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdtx/pr/doctor-charged-unauthorized-access-personal-information-pediatric-patients-texas
Haim is a doctor who did part of his residency Texas Children's Hospital. He used his access to look up records of young trans patients and leaked them to right-wing activist Chris Rufo.

2024-06-12 14:39:51

The Olympics haven't protected the ability of trans and intersex athletes to compete, but when it comes to advising media outlets on correct use of pronouns and terminology, they're all over that level of performative, substance-less allyship. #trans #transgender #news #sports #olympics
Alyssa Steinsiek isn't having it. Here's her latest for Assigned:
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/ioc-issues-trans-media-guidelines

2024-06-11 15:46:05

Assigned Fact Check:
A right-wing Canadian site claimed the Canadian Cancer Society apologized for using the "cervix" instead of "front hole."
The word cervix is found on 314 pages of the society's website. Front hole appears once, on an info page for trans people, and not as part of any apology. #trans #journalism #news #transgender #FactCheck
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/canadian-cancer-society-cervix-front-hole-fact-check

2024-06-10 15:49:19

BREAKING: Doctor who leaked trans kids' medical records faces four felony counts.
Eithan Haim, who claims to be a victim of political persecution, maintains the records did not contain identifying information. However, an expert in US healthcare law told Assigned this doesn't appear to be the case. #trans #news #science #medicine #media
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/haim-rufo-leaks-indictment-felony-charges

2024-06-05 17:26:34

NEW: Not one but TWO major US media outlets have been taken over by Brits who previously headed anti-trans culture war obsessed outlets in the US and UK.
Robert Winnett of the psychopathic Telegraph and Hugh Dougherty of disinformation-peddler NY Post will head the Washington Post and Daily Beast. #trans #news #LGBTQ #media #journalism
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/new-york-post-telegraph-take-over-washiington-post-daily-beast

2024-06-05 12:28:13

A lesbian dating app that scans faces for true womanhood with 99 percent accuracy, you say? And trans people are *checks notes* oh, huh, it says here we're... roughly 1 percent of the population?
Well! Isn't THAT interesting?
Alyssa Steinsiek gives this wacky new gender critical dating app idea the full roasting it deserves on Assigned Media today.
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/transphobic-dating-app-sucks

2024-06-04 14:02:05

The Epoch Times is under investigation for money laundering, but the site's role in spreading anti-trans misinformation has gone unmentioned in mainstream coverage of the case.
An Epoch Times link that showed up in a story for the Atlantic is a particularly clear example of the laundering process on trans stories that goes fringe right -> far right -> mainstream.
#trans #news #journalism #media
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/epoch-times-falun-gong-money-laundering-trans-misinfo

2024-05-22 10:58:27

On Assigned today, Alyssa Steinsiek has a story about a ban on women in specific events for a sport that is more typically mixed gender and has no particular gender advantages or disadvantages. #trans #news #sports
Way to go, sailing. Ride that anti-trans bandwagon!
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/world-sailing-bans-trans-women

2024-05-15 12:30:52

NEW: The Cass Review conducted focus groups with gender diverse youth and young adults who had personal experience with gender-affirming care in England. Then it buried them.
Read about the hidden youth perspectives and experiences of the Cass Report on Assigned Media.
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/surfacing-cass-report-youth-focus-groups

2024-03-13 21:15:29

The death of 16 year old Nex Benedict, who spoke of being bullied for his queer identity, has been ruled a suicide.
I would like to see more information clarifying how this determination was made, in light of all the strange ways officials have behaved in the wake of this child's death. #trans #news
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/nex-benedict-suicide-death-oklahoma-student-lgbtq-rcna143298

2024-03-13 16:03:28

I am seeking transgender people from Finland to speak about their experiences with transition in that country.
I know that Masto has a lot of Euro users, so please boost for visibility.
About me: I'm a transgender US journalist interested in exposing barriers to treatment experienced by trans people in Finland bc some Finnish researchers are making a big splash in anti-trans activism internationally.
It would be particularly valuable to find someone who attempted to access care as a minor.

2023-12-27 19:03:57

- reply

It's also a sort of independent confirmation of what smart ppl have said about these LLMS, which is that they aren't close to achieving sentience and thinking they are is either hype or delusion.
The choices betray a lack of understanding of the topic. It's just words relating to it put together without knowing what's relevant or interesting about a subject.

2023-12-27 19:01:20

I may have spoken too soon in saying that AI didn't seem to have made the sort of inroads into journalism I expected. I just clicked on two trans stories that gave of heavy AI-written vibes to me.
There's a voice to AI stories, but that's not the real tell for me. It's these weird choices of facts, odd omissions, half-truths. The result is something not necessarily false, but something a human who understood the territory wouldn't have constructed.

2023-10-03 14:42:20

The way the mainstream is approaching gender-affirming care isn't normal.
In a normal process, questions about a treatment lead to further research, and if the evidence bears out the idea that something is amiss, then the treatment approach is adjusted.
With gender-affirming care, we're skipping the evidence step and acting as if the act of raising questions alone creates a problem for a treatment with decades of evidence behind it. #trans #journalism #science
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/the-only-reason-gender-affirming-care-is-controversial-is-prejudice

2023-10-02 18:58:02

The latest outrage in academia is over a bunch of obvious culture war grifters who failed to get their anti-trans nonsense into a major #anthropology conference and are being celebrated as the latest victims of cancellation by the right wing outrage machine, aided by our good friends, the New York Times.
#academia #trans #News #journalism
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/anthropology-rejects-attempt-to-inject-culture-warring-into-major-conference

2023-09-22 11:50:17

It's conservatives worst nightmare: A trans girl so popular with her peers she stole the homecoming crown by winning it fair and square.
Our TWIBS columnist Alyssa Steinsiek points and laughs at the right wing tears being shed over a trans girl who was apparently too pretty and nice and well-liked by her peers. #trans #news #journalism #transgender
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/this-week-in-barrel-scraping-one-trans-girl-is-so-popular-its-national-news

2023-09-21 16:00:07

My favorite social media moment is when I see a clever reply or RTed post and think "This person's smart, I recognize the name but I'll just double check to make sure I'm following them" and it turns out we're mutuals.

2023-09-18 14:53:47

The entire conversation about Biden feels flummoxing to me because a big part of why I was so downhearted about Biden being the nominee in 2020 was that, obviously, it meant the best case scenario was 8 years of a Joe Biden presidency.
I'm not sure why that wasn't obvious to everyone. A party who went with the "safe" choice of Joe Biden in 2020 was never, ever going to go against the "safe" conventional wisdom that incumbents get a huge boost with the electorate and nominate someone else.

2023-09-12 11:07:22

Amazing support! The Trans Data Library has passed 50 contributors, raising more than $8000 towards our $20,000 goal, which will support the project for its first year.
Please, keep sharing and chip in if you can. Together we're creating a better source of information on anti-trans organizations and activists to help journalists, politicians, and the public understand who these bad actors are and where all this moral panic is coming from. #trans #transgender #journalism
https://fnd.us/82DFHf?ref=sh_7CYPb4

2023-09-08 13:40:24

This week Assigned Media's big story was the terrible treatment of parents of trans kids by an NYT reporter.
Our Trans Data Library aims to help reporters get the story right, uncovering the agendas of activists and their connections to anti-trans orgs.
https://fundrazr.com/contributions/eKTQv7?ref=tw_7CYPb4

2023-09-04 12:02:16

I had a HUGE response to my story yesterday on the unsavory behavior of New York Times reporter Azeen Ghorayshi in her dealings with the families of transgender youth.
My source described Ghorayshi at one point following her and her husband to their car, standing in the car door to stop them from driving away.
It's a holiday weekend, so here's the link again. You don't want to miss this one. #trans #journalism #news
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/you-betrayed-us-azeen-parents-of-trans-youth-reeling-after-speaking-to-the-nyt

2023-09-03 11:01:49

Parents of trans youth spent hours pouring their hearts out to an NYT reporter. They thought she empathized with them, and trusted her with their stories. But as publication approached, one mom began to grow suspicious of the reporter's closeness to the very anti-trans activist she'd proven to Ghoraysh had lied in a sworn affidavit.
The story of an aggressive NYT reporter who played hardball with a vulnerable family, and won. #trans #news #journalism #transgender
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/you-betrayed-us-azeen-parents-of-trans-youth-reeling-after-speaking-to-the-nyt

2023-08-28 15:37:19

Some GOOD DANG NEWS:
A lawsuit against Artemis Langford and Kappa Kappa Gamma has been dismissed by a US District Court judge.
This shitty lawsuit, which spent only 6 percent of its words on actual legal claims and the rest on smears and insinuations against Langord which were picked up and widely disseminated by the right-wing press, is no more. #trans #news #law #journalism #transgender
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/judge-rules-kappa-kappa-gamma-can-interpret-own-bylaws

2023-08-25 14:59:23

Mastodon, I'm bringing this one to you first.
Earlier this week the New York Times claimed to have partially corroborated some of Jamie Reed's allegations against a clinic for transgender youth in St. Louis.
Their story did not back up the assertion that they corroborated Reed's claims. I know that because I looked at every single one of the 69 claims. #trans #transgender #news #journalism #Newstodon #bias
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/jamie-reeds-allegations-are-not-even-partially-confirmed

2023-08-25 10:31:30

It's This Week in Barrel Scraping and man do we need a break from the serious stories today.
Our columnist Alyssa Steinsiek writes about Alice Cooper and Carlos Santana, why aging has-beens keep running their mouths about transgender kids, and how all the actually relevant singers are on the side of team good guys. #trans #news #entertainment #TWIBS
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/this-week-in-barrel-scraping-why-do-these-has-beens-keep-talking-shit

2023-08-21 22:44:31

- reply

I'm afraid there's been some bad news added to this good news. 3 Trump-appointed judges of the Eleventh Circuit reversed an order that had stopped Alabama's ban on gender affirming care from taking effect. While it doesn't immediately reverse this ruling, Georgia is in the Eleventh Circuit as is Florida.

2023-08-21 12:54:32

Good morning, good news! A Georgia district court judge has acted to block the state's ban on gender-affirming care for youth.
Judge Geraghty heard testimony from both sides' expert witnesses, and her ruling addresses 2 major anti-trans talking points: That gender-affirming care has low-quality evidence and that European countries have conducted systematic reviews that support imposing substantial new restrictions on gender affirming care. #trans #news #law
read more: https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/georgia-ban-stayed-judge-geraghty

2023-08-18 19:32:03

This is definitely wrong, but in my comment moderation job with Slate I have a semi-secret unwritten rule that treats comments on a Friday with more leniency than any other day.
Like, if something is flagged for being off topic (something we remove/tamp down when people complain but don't go actively looking for) I will delete it every day of the week... except Friday... bc it's Friday, relax, it's just a bit of OT what's the big deal?

2023-08-18 18:19:01

- reply

@npub1ddp…2tax right, I think that's what I'm trying to get across.
It's a bad regulation, and it certainly sends a bad message, but for actual players the effects are somewhat limited by the fact that women's tournaments sound like they're somewhat niche, and the restrictions don't impact eligibility for open tourneys.

2023-08-18 17:50:56

It's a little interesting to see how much confusion there is over exactly what the International Chess Federation's regulations on transgender players mean.
The thing that's causing the confusion, I think, is that there's no men's only chess. There are open tournaments (which is most of them) and some women-only tournaments.
All trans people can play in open tournaments. The regulations seems like it may make it more difficult to get a gender change officially recognized.

2023-08-16 15:50:09

EXCITING ANNOUNCEMENT!
For months I have been working on an upcoming project, and today's the day I'm finally announcing it to the world.
With the help of an amazing team of transgender writers and a trans dev, Assigned Media is creating the Trans Data Library, a repository of information (a bit like a wiki) on anti-trans activists, "expert" witnesses, and organizations. #trans #journalism
Here's a link with more info, including how you can lend your support:
https://fnd.us/82DFHf?ref=sh_7CYPb4

2023-08-16 15:14:47

- reply

@npub1sat…8vnx I agree- and you can see how people with genuine mental illness, like Kanye, can be taken up by that ecosystem but then flame out bc if you're actually struggling with reality you don't know how to play the game.

2023-08-16 14:21:44

Did you see this piece in the Guardian? Senior managers at Vice apparently blocked a story about how the Saudi government helps families harass and threaten transgender Saudis living overseas. Vice now gets a lot of Saudi money, and it seems like the editorial independence of their news team was part of the deal.
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2023/aug/15/vice-blocked-news-stories-that-could-offend-saudi-arabia-insiders-say

2023-08-16 13:48:09

Joe Rogan isn’t skewing the facts to influence people’s opinions, he's skewing his opinions to cater to tickle the fancies of his fans. His fans find dumb-guy-transphobia entertaining, so he performs it. How else do you think a self-proclaimed libertarian become the voice of screeching moral panic over pornography in public schools?
#trans #news #JoeRogan #misinfotainment
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/rogan-is-misinfotainment

2023-08-14 13:19:08

Ray Blanchard's autogynephilia research continues to hold sway as transphobes' preferred explanation for why and how people become trans.
You may have heard about autogynephilia, but did you know Blanchard's measure of sexual orientation scored respondents as more attracted to men if they were under 25?
This and other irregularities have led PhD student Christa Peterson to believe the papers deserve to be retracted, after all these years of poisoning the science.
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/ray-blanchard-retraction-proposed

2023-08-13 19:41:38

Ray Blanchard's autogynephilia research continues to be relied on by keyboard warriors and the right wing press as the transphobes' favorite explanation for why trans women exist.
It's antiquated, it's dumb, it's been undermined by multiple subsequent findings that contradict its key claims, but is it REQUIRING RETRACTION level bad?
One woman says it is. #trans #science #journalism
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/ray-blanchard-retraction-proposed

2023-08-11 17:15:00

A Tennessee hospital that turned over private medical records of transgender patients is being investigated by the federal government for possible civil rights violations.
https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/tennessee-hospital-faces-civil-rights-investigation-release-transgender-102199267

2023-08-11 11:13:34

Haha so, uh, Grimes thinks hormones cause cancer?
Also, according to the pop star, Elon Musk's big problem with trans people is that some of us might not be able to have babies which is extremely legitimate, definitely his business, not gross or eugenics-adjacent at all.
On Fridays, our This Week in Barrel Scraping column takes a look at one of the sillier stories in anti-trans propaganda. This week the source of the silliness is Grimes (or 𝔊𝔯𝔦𝔪𝔢𝔰). #trans #news
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/this-week-in-barrel-scraping-thinks-hormones-cause-cancer

2023-08-10 13:40:48

There's a new study following up with trans patients who recieved double mastectomies 2 or more years ago, and it found astoudingly high satisfaction and low regret compared to other procedures.
This is, ofc, in line with other studies on transgender surgeries.
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamasurgery/fullarticle/2808129?guestAccessKey=43a62af8-3042-4678-b29d-3430c3ff98c1&utm_source=For_The_Media&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ftm_links&utm_content=tfl&utm_term=080923
https://cdn.masto.host/journahost/media_attachments/files/110/865/589/203/369/579/original/b09d8ef5f9581ec9.png

2023-08-09 23:23:32

A lawfirm with a track record of pushing the Supreme Court towards more and more extreme positions under the guise of protecting religious liberty is bringing a suit in MA on behalf of a Catholic couple who weren't licensed as foster parents because they stated they would not affirm an LGBTQ youth.
I think this one is going to be big. #LGBTQ #news #SupremeCourt #law
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/couple-sues-ma-asserts-religious-right-to-reject-lgbtq-foster-youth

2023-08-08 14:31:10

Another anti-trans essay by Helen Lewis appeared in the Atlantic this morning. Lewis claims to be a moderate, but somehow only one side of the debate over trans rights are described as "activists" (and they're described that way six times).
Do ordinary readers fall for this sort of faux-moderate cosplay? I wish I could believe they don't, but I betcha they do. #trans #journalism #propaganda #media
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/ideologue-helen-lewis-cosplays-as-a-moderate

2023-08-04 11:47:02

I don't want to ALARM anyone or anything but I just read this Fox News story about how the Black Panther Party is offering sex changes to 11-year-olds and it is SUPER SERIOUS you guys. /s
#trans #News
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/the-black-panther-party-is-back-theyve-got-hormones

2023-06-17 18:48:19

- reply

I've been meaning to look in to whether a medical info bracelet might work here.
Not sure if ambulance techs would even understand or honor one directing them not to take us to Catholic hospitals.
At any rate, something to have on your radar. The rule isn't written, but the smart money is on them banning any continuing prescription for HRT in any circumstances, which would mean forced medical detransition in cases where one of us is stuck in one of their facilities for an extended period.

2023-06-17 18:43:34

This one's been a bit under the radar, but the US Conference of Catholic Bishops are moving ahead with plans to force Catholic hospitals to refuse any sort of gender affirming care, which would include maintenance doses of hormone therapy for emergency patients such as stroke victims who were unlucky enough to be brought to a Catholic hospital.
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/qgqzzx44bmfatwh70u4n5b4rfs7bar

2023-03-19 11:55:58

For US trans folks, ProPublica is looking at barriers to gender affirming care. (These are the investigative big guns, so people with good documentation this goes double for you.)
https://www.propublica.org/getinvolved/have-you-faced-barriers-gender-affirming-care

2023-03-10 13:25:25

What happened at NPR?
Unfounded allegations from Jamie Reed, whose account of a clinic in St. Louis has been disputed by nearly two dozen families, shared space with an activist who has crusaded against gender affirming care in the UK for years. #[0] #[1]
Hannah Barnes, who seems to have passed herself off as a legitimate journalist to On Point, is known for her misleading writing against gender affirming care in the UK.
https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/anti-trans-propaganda-comes-to-npr