Politico staff were warned the term MOTHER could be offensive, new book says trends now
Reporters at the political news website Politico were warned the word 'mother' could be offensive during a row over transgender coverage, according to a new book.
It also details how a reporter was told her stories should be vetted by colleagues acting as 'sensitivity readers' after complaints that she had used the term 'biological women' in a story.
In 'The Snowflakes' Revolt: How Woke Millennials Hijacked American Media,' journalist Amber Athey claims to lift the lid on how liberal activists have pressured news organizations into following their agenda.
It comes as the idea of 'sensitivity readers' has hit the headlines. It emerged at the weekend that Ian Fleming's James Bond books have been rewritten with modern audiences in mind, and that hundreds of phrases had been altered in Roald Dahl's children's stories on the advice of sensitivity experts.
Athey writes that a new generation of 'woke' reporter has taken over American newsrooms.
A March 2021 Politico article about the way Republicans hoped to capitalize on transgender issues triggered internal complaints and a newsroom review, according to a new book
The Snowflakes' Revolt: How Woke Millennials Hijacked American Media by Amber Athey is published by Bombardier Books on March 21
'They create a culture of fear in which everyone — including the adults who are supposed to be in charge — is terrified of stepping out of line and becoming a target of the bullies.'
At Politico, she describes how a March 2021 piece by Gabby Orr, entitled 'GOP seizes on women's sports as unlikely wedge issue,' attracted criticism and triggered an internal review.
Athey reports Orr was summoned to a meeting with Politico's Director of Editorial Diversity Initiatives Robin Turner. He said two colleagues had voiced concerns.
'During the course of that meeting, Orr was probed about her employment history at the Washington Examiner, a center-right outlet, and asked why the story omitted any transgender voices—though the piece had quoted Kate Oakley, senior counsel at the Human Rights Campaign, an activist organization dedicated to LGBTQ+ issues, extensively.
'Orr's colleagues also complained that she quoted conservatives, such as American Principles Project director Terry Schilling and former White House policy adviser Stephen Miller, without "contextualizing" their comments.'
Schilling played down the risk of violence to transgender people, while Miller said the Left's position would drive 'non-ideological voters' to the GOP.
'Orr, her colleagues argued, should have explicitly told readers that those remarks were offensive and transphobic,' writes Athey.
A meeting attendee also took issue with the use of the phrase 'biological women' by interviewees as it was offensive to transgender readers.
Newsrooms across the country have grappled with how to deal with transgender issues and the evolving language around it against a highly charged backdrop
Athey is Washington editor of The Spectator. She writes that a new generation of 'woke' reporter has taken over American newsrooms in her forthcoming book
