What Future for Trans Media?
An upcoming event for trans journalists hopes to provide a touchstone for media workers caught in the malestrom.
by Valorie Van-DIeman
On Friday and Saturday, November 14th and 15th, The Objective, a nonprofit that covers diversity and representation in media, will host Trans Media Convening, a virtual conference for people interested in media and journalism of trans issues. Organizers say the event is a response to increasing hostility facing trans people in the media—something that has only escalated in recent weeks with layoffs of trans and queer journalists at Teen Vogue and NBC Out.
The event is organized by James Salanga of the Objective with an advisory council of six other trans people in media and journalism. (Disclosure: Assigned Media founder Evan Urquhart was part of the advisory council.)
In an interview, Salanga explained that the event is intended to bring together trans journalists and allies interested in covering trans issues. “It feels like an urgent time to just figure out how to meet with other trans journalists across the country, especially because coverage is not so regionally specific. It can never really be a monolith, even as we're talking about the impact of national anti trans legislation or transphobia across the country. It just looks so different in different pockets of the US,” they said.
The event is free because financial accessibility was a core concern. “A lot of these panels and these discussions happen at conferences that cost an arm and a leg to try and get to,” Salanga said.
Another key goal was improving educational accessibility in journalism. “I think that it's really hard to find your footing and to find other journalists when you didn't go to a school with a major journalism program,” Salanga said. “Traditionally trained journalists have their own way of speaking that you’ve got to learn.”
The core of the Trans Media Convening will be two panels: one on workplace solidarity moderated by former Teen Vogue politics editor Lex McMenamin; and another on narrative change, moderated by V Starks, a documentarian for the Southern Memory Workers Collective.
When asked about the workplace solidarity panel, Salanga said “A lot of people will hopefully be thinking about the loss of Teen Vogue in terms of political coverage. Because Lex and Allegra Kirkland, who were kind of the leaders of the politics section of Teen Vogue, were doing a lot of really solid work to take youth, and specifically trans youth, really seriously when it came to political attacks on their rights..”
This year has seen dramatic rollbacks of progressive policies across America, with LGBTQIA+ people and especially trans people targeted. “It's bad for all of journalism to see this retreat of these 2020 promises around inclusion and equality, especially when it comes to trans people,” Salanga said, “I'm hoping people will take away from this that we need each other.”
In the midst of these policy reversals, major news organizations have failed to cover trans issues in an informed or responsible way. On the value of quality coverage, Salanga said, “I am pretty cynical about the reform of juggernauts like the New York Times, but I am really hopeful about other forms of independent media and other movement journalists that have been trying to create this alternative media ecosystem.”
As attacks on trans Americans by the Trump regime escalate, it’s more critical than ever for people in journalism and media to have a clear understanding of trans people and trans issues. To that end, Salanga said, “In this political climate, when less than 1/3 of people in America know a trans person personally, really thoughtful reporting can make such a big difference.”
Valorie Van-Dieman (she/they) is the Associate Editor at Assigned Media. Find her on Bluesky @valorievandieman.bsky.social