The Sunday Telegraph. | Photo: Sav Ferguson / Twitter
Australian newspaper The Sunday Telegraph is under fire for a transphobic headline in today’s (15 July) edition.
It’s a story about Scarlett Johansson stepping down from a role in which she was due to play a transgender man. She was cast in Rupert Sanders’ new movie Rub and Tug earlier this month, which saw her playing the real-life figure of Dante ‘Tex’ Gill.
The Sunday Telegraph headline read: ‘Scarlett dumps tranny film role.’
Aussie journalist Sav Ferguson posted a photo of the headline to Twitter with the caption: ‘Hey, @dailytelegraph What the FUCK made you think this was an acceptable thing to print?’
CW: T slur
Hey, @dailytelegraph What the FUCK made you think this was an acceptable thing to print? pic.twitter.com/R4JjuIJFZD
— Sav Ferguson🏳️🌈 (@TimesNTroubles) July 15, 2018
Ferguson also wrote: ‘IN WHAT WORLD IS THIS OKAY?’
In response to the headline, many Twitter users responded to the tweet with disgust.
One wrote: ‘Wow. That’s appalling. Solidarity against this horrible shit.’
Another tweeted: ‘good lord, what kind of rock d’you have to live under to think this is okay?’
You can lodge complaints with the press council online here: https://t.co/HoV8OVxgfp
— SKYLXRK (@skylxrksays) July 15, 2018
Gay Star News reached out to The Sunday Telegraph for comment.
Newspaper under fire yet again
It’s not the first time the Rupert Murdoch-owned newspaper has come under fire from the LGBTI community.
Last year, The Daily Telegraph (the daily version of the Sunday Telegraph) linked same-sex attraction with health issues such as obesity, alcohol and drug use.
The Daily Telegraph published a story on a report about young people by the New South Wales Department of Health.
The report found 18-24 year olds drank lots of alcohol and took a lot of drugs. 37% of that age group were overweight or obese. The study also found that 22% of women and 12% of men suffered from psychological distress.
But it was the statistics around same-sex attracted people that has the community worked up.
The report found 16.8% of secondary school students in Australia identified as same-sex attracted. This number was about 10 times higher than any other age group.
An infographic with the headline ‘Fat Chance of Being Healthy’ included the statistics about same-sex attracted young people.
