Quote of the Day: “Is this okay to say to a person?”

People are people. End the hate.Drawing on interviews with our own Jos and Feministing friend Janet Mock, Poynter has compiled nine useful tips for journalists writing about trans folks

As Janet points out, responsible and respectful coverage of trans people is not just about getting your pronouns right: “You can still completely be dehumanizing using the right words.” Which stories are told, what details are included, how the narratives are framed–all these things matter. And while there’s been tons of really exciting progress on trans issues–including increasingly varied representations of trans people in the media–it is truly amazing how often news organizations still do a really shitty job.

The Poynter piece ends with a great tip from Jos:

“It’s not actually all that complicated,” Truitt said, offering a simple question for journalists reporting on transgender people to ask themselves: “I’m speaking to someone who is a person — is this okay to say to a person?”

Ah yes, the old “treat people like people” principle. Jos can always be counted on to keep it simple. But if you need more guidance, read the rest here.

Image via.

Maya DusenberyMaya Dusenbery is an Executive Director of Feministing.

St. Paul, MN

Maya Dusenbery is executive director in charge of editorial at Feministing. She is the author of the forthcoming book Doing Harm: The Truth About How Bad Medicine and Lazy Science Leave Women Dismissed, Misdiagnosed, and Sick (HarperOne, March 2018). She has been a fellow at Mother Jones magazine and a columnist at Pacific Standard magazine. Her work has appeared in publications like Cosmopolitan.com, TheAtlantic.com, Bitch Magazine, as well as the anthology The Feminist Utopia Project. Before become a full-time journalist, she worked at the National Institute for Reproductive Health. A Minnesota native, she received her B.A. from Carleton College in 2008. After living in Brooklyn, Oakland, and Atlanta, she is currently based in the Twin Cities.

Maya Dusenbery is an executive director of Feministing and author of the forthcoming book Doing Harm on sexism in medicine.

Read more about Maya

Join the Conversation