Canada’s state broadcaster pulls documentary for quoting critic of transgenderism

TORONTO, December 14, 2017 (LifeSiteNews) — Critics are blasting Canada’s state broadcaster for kowtowing to the transgender lobby after it pulled a BBC documentary on transgender children from its lineup just hours before it was to air.

The documentary “Transgender Kids: Who Knows Best” includes interviews with Dr. Kenneth Zucker,  an expert in child gender dysphoria who was fired as director of the gender identity clinic at Toronto’s Center for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) for his opposition to “gender affirmation” for children.

Zucker is among those, including renowned American psychiatrist Dr. Paul McHugh, who cite evidence that 80 percent of children with gender dysphoria revert to identifying as their biological sex by the time they reach adolescence.

CBC Docs was besieged by over a dozen Twitter users, notable among these self-identified “non binary” and trans activist Joshua Ferguson.

“Please do not air this documentary. It disseminates inaccurate information about trans youth and gender dysphoria, and will feed transphobia,” Ferguson tweeted.

Ferguson also tweeted out to others to “Join me & appeal to @CBC @cbcdocs to pull tonight’s broadcast of this harmful documentary. The film has been widely discredited by experts & will feed transphobia with its unbalanced representation”.

There was a Change.org petition and a letter from Trans Media Watch objecting to the documentary, according to the CBC.

CBC Docs announced Tuesday it was pulling the documentary.

“In light of our own further review of the doc, coupled with audience reaction, we have decided not to air Transgender Kids. We think there are other docs that better offer insight into the realities of the  transgender community and we look forward to airing those in the future,” it tweeted.

CBC spokesman Chuck Thompson reiterated this in a statement to the National Post.

“We felt that we were not in a position to adequately support the conversation and debate that would be sparked by the airing of the doc and so, made a decision to pull it from the schedule,” he said.

But CBC Docs now faces backlash for capitulating to the transgender lobby.

“An act of staggering cowardice from CBC Docs,” tweeted free speech advocate and clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson, who rose to fame for publicly warning Canada’s transgender rights bill, C-16, would lead to compelled speech.

Sam Bagnall, creative director of BBC current affairs television, and executive producer of the documentary, also denounced CBC for folding to political pressure, tweeting:

He questioned CBC Docs’ stated rationale for its decision.

“The more you read this the more disturbing it actually is. Incredible that they responded to ‘audience reaction’ before the film was aired. Feels like political interference in @cbcdocs editorial integrity or else why schedule the film in the first place?” Bagnall tweeted.

He pointed out that Trans Media Watch had attempted to stop the BBC from airing the documentary.

But its “detailed complaint was thrown out point by point by the BBC Trust’s independent Editorial Complaints Unit” which ruled the documentary “explained the controversy with due accuracy and with due weight given to both sides of the argument” Bagnall tweeted.

“For the record I have no strong views about transgender people. I have an interest in free speech and the ability to discuss alternative viewpoints without censorship. The film has been found to be duly impartial and balanced,” he tweeted Thursday.

Pundit Jonathan Kay, formerly editor-in-chief of The Walrus and one-time editor with the National Post, also took to Twitter to deride CBC Docs.

But the CBC decision has, in effect, “turned into a win-win,” tweeted Kay.

It “raised awareness about the doc, so ppl can see the free version online….only the ceeb looks like crap.”

Pro-life activist and writer Jonathan Van Maren cited the incident as evidence that the tide may turning against trans activists, and that “people are becoming fed up with their bullying, censorship, and attacks on any expert, columnist, or scientist—and there are huge numbers of them—who disagree with trans ideology.”

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