Another day, another story about J.K. Rowling and transphobia. It seems like the two are inseparable lately, and to that point a BBC broadcaster was recently forced to apologize after making that connection.
On the BBC Good Morning Scotland radio show, transgender writer and broadcaster Carrie Marshall was talking about the much-discussed new video game Hogwarts Legacy on Feb. 10 and whether it’s being utilized to forward an “anti-trans” movement, according to Deadline.
“This is having a measurable effect on trans people’s lives and potentially our safety too,” she said, “I think that’s why so many trans people are concerned about this game.”
The BBC released a statement apologizing and saying that Marshall’s views were presented as fact and not opinion and didn’t meet the broadcaster’s editorial standards.
“The debate got into the issue of gender identity and claims were made about JK Rowling’s views. We accept that the programme failed to challenge these claims and acknowledge that our contributors gave their opinion as fact,” BBC said. “This fell below the rigorous editorial standards we’ve applied to our broad coverage of trans and gender recognition stories across BBC Scotland’s news and current affairs output, and we apologise for that.”
The BBC made this decision despite someone else on the show – a gamer named Rob Lee – claiming that it’s “possible to separate the art from the artist.”
This isn’t the first time the BBC has apologized over the game, either. On the Radio 4 PM show, a trans gamer named Stacey Henley said Rowling had “nasty views” about the topic and host Evan Davis was accused of letting it happen. The organization received hundreds of complaints about the incident, it said.
“This is a difficult and contentious area which we do try very hard to cover fairly and well on the BBC. However we should have challenged Stacey Henley more directly on her claims and apologise that we did not,” the BBC said.
In a new podcast called The Witch Trials of JK Rowling, the author said she was misunderstood by the public and wasn’t worried about her legacy because she would be dead anyway.
“I never set out to upset anyone. However, I was not uncomfortable with getting off my pedestal,” she said about the issue on The Free Press show.
Hogwarts Legacy has been a huge hit and developers intentionally tried to distance themselves from the franchise creator. In a Frequently Asked Questions section on the game’s website, it says the following:
“J.K. Rowling was not involved in the creation of the game, but as creator of the wizarding world and one of the world’s greatest storytellers, her extraordinary body of writing is the foundation of all projects in the Wizarding World. This is not a new story from J.K. Rowling, however we have collaborated closely with her team on all aspects of the game to ensure it remains in line with the magical experiences fans expect.”
Hogwarts Legacy is available everywhere.