Former NY Times editor says anti-trans coverage was a deliberate push...

[Jessica_Rose ✅]

Former NY Times editor says anti-trans coverage was a deliberate push from the top

https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2026/01/former-ny-times-editor-says-anti-trans-coverage-was-a-deliberate-push-from-the-top/ 🔗

Molly Sprayregen (5 Jan 2026)

Trans journalist and former New York Times editor Billie Jean Sweeney recently revealed the deliberate strategy behind the paper's tidal wave of anti-trans stories, an effort she said came all the way from the top and "legitimized" and "mainstreamed" misinformation.

In an interview with Trans News Network, she alleged the misconduct began in 2022, when Joe Kahn became executive editor. Before then, Sweeney explained, the paper didn't have particularly great trans coverage, but there also wasn't a "sustained, single-minded focus on promoting disinformation and legitimizing bias," as there started to be around that time.

When Kahn took the helm, Sweeney said the Times released a series of anti-trans stories that she now realizes were "intended to win prizes."

They "challenged every aspect of being trans," she said. "It even challenged small things like gender-inclusive language and somehow made a case that undermined women and abortion rights issues. Which, of course, is a stretch."

Sweeney didn't take this lying down, though. She said she wrote several notes to the publisher, A.G. Sulzberger, slamming both the anti-trans coverage and the fact that trans reporters and sources were rarely consulted (One 2024 report found that the paper failed to get comment from a transgender person in 66% of its stories regarding anti-transgender legislation).

And she wasn't the only one.

[Lori Dee ✅]

The media (including social media) has always been a propaganda machine. It is not just clickbait to generate advertising dollars and increase circulation. The various Intelligence Agencies use them to disseminate false or misleading information intentionally by submitting "leaked" documents, press releases, and "anonymous" informants. This is usually unnoticed by the general public because the Average Joe does not question why a source within some agency would willingly discuss classified information, with or without anonymity.

If one takes a close look at the ownership of these media and social media outlets, it is not difficult to determine their political motivation. A perfect example is the VIP attendees to the recent Presidential Inauguration. They were not there just because they are rich. They were there because they own major propaganda outlets that the government uses routinely.

[Rayna]

Those transphobic stories were why I unsubscribed from the NY Times after many years. I loved many of their columnists, and was delighted over time to find them again on Substack as they left the Times too.

[Lori Dee ✅]

Those transphobic stories were why I unsubscribed from the NY Times after many years. I loved many of their columnists, and was delighted over time to find them again on Substack as they left the Times too.

Hi Rayna!

That is also the reason I deleted all of my social media accounts. Too much toxicity for my tastes.

Hugs!