Human Rights Campaign Removes LGBTQ Preferred Employer Status from Fox News

The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, has removed Fox News its Corporate Equality Index as an LGBTQ preferred employer after nearly one week of relentless attacks on transgender Americans.

“Fox News has a history of sharing misinformation and disinformation about the LGBTQ+ community. We know from our own research, which we put out earlier this week, what their disinformation and misinformation means for the LGBTQ+ community: perpetuating stigma and marginalization of transgender and non-binary people,” Aryn Fields, senior press secretary at HRC, said in a statement.

“At a time when transgender people – especially transgender children – are under attack in statehouses across the country, rhetoric has real consequences,” Fields added.

Fields told The Hill that the network’s coverage of the LGBTQ community within the last 72 hours had contributed to a drop in its Corporate Equality Index score, which dropped from 100 to 75.

“We can no longer allow Fox Corporation to maintain it’s score if Fox News personalities and contributors continue to deny the existence of transgender people, minimize the violence transgender individuals face, refer to parents of LGBTQ+ youth as perverts, or equate leaders of LGBTQ+ diversity and inclusions efforts with sex offenders,” Fields said. “Each of these actions happened in the last 72 hours. Enough is enough.”

Following Disney’s response to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” legislation and the company’s effort to be gender inclusive, right-wing and extremist media watchdog group Media Matters for America reviewed Fox News’ obsessive coverage and found that the network has spent more than 3 hours this week – mentioning the company more than 350 times – alleging Disney is grooming, indoctrinating, and sexualizing children.

Fox has been laser-focused on the story and between midnight March 28 through 9 a.m. EDT April 1, Media Matters reviewed the network’s coverage and found that:

  • Fox News mentioned “Disney” over 350 times, dedicating over 3 hours of coverage.
  • Fox News aired at least 53 segments about this story.
  • Fox & Friends committed the most time to the topic, with 14 segments and 42 minutes dedicated to creating a backlash against Disney.

“This wall-to-wall coverage has overshadowed potentially damaging news about right-wing figures, such as the revelation that former President Donald Trump asked Russian dictator Vladimir Putin to release more dirt on presidential son Hunter Biden, which received just 2 minutes of coverage on the network,” Media Matters Deputy Director of Media Intelligence Tyler Monroe noted.

Fox in defending itself pointed out that the network hired Caitlyn Jenner to an on-air contributor role with her first appearance this past Thursday on Hannity.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott said in announcing Jenner’s hire, “Caitlyn’s story is an inspiration to us all,” Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott said in announcing the hire. “She is a trailblazer in the LGBTQ+ community and her illustrious career spans a variety of fields that will be a tremendous asset for our audience.”

Jenner’s appearances on the Fox News Network over the past two months however, have been unrelenting attacks on Trans athletes, especially University of Pennsylvania Women’s Team swimmer Lia Thomas. Jenner also appeared on the network to defend her attacks on Trans athletes.

“We must protect women’s sports. We cannot bow down to the radical left wing woke world and the radical politically charged agenda of identity politics,” Jenner tweeted. In another tweet she said;

“Thank you @seanhannity and @HeyTammyBruce for having a conversation grounded in common sense. All we want to do is protect women’s and girls sports! It’s that simple. And calling out the libelous, defamatory lies of @PinkNews and @emilychudy@benjamincohen

Jenner has been asked about her position on the multiple pieces of anti-Trans youth sports legislation across the United States. She responded that she saw it as a question of fairness saying that she opposed biological boys who are Trans- competing in girls’ sports in school.

“It just isn’t fair,” Jenner said adding, “and we have to protect girls’ sports in our school.”

Story courtesy of the Washington Blade.