This piece was published in collaboration with the Press Gazette

LGBTQ+ journalists have spoken of their dismay at Meta’s controversial changes to its Hateful Conduct policy, with some planning to phase out using platforms owned by the technology company in their journalism practice.

The world’s leading LGBTQ+ sports publication, Outsports, has celebrated its 25th anniversary, marking a quarter of a century of game-changing journalism.

The online news outlet – which is owned and operated by San Francisco LGBTQ+ media company Q.Digital – was launched in November 1999 by Cyd Zeigler and Jim Buzinski, two “gay NFL fans looking to have some fun and find other fans like us”.

Award-winning journalist Ben Hunte, formerly the BBC’s LGBT correspondent, has joined CNN as an international anchor and correspondent.

As per a press release shared by the broadcaster, Hunte will host CNN Newsroom at weekends for morning audiences in EMEA, afternoon viewers in Asia, and late-night audiences in the U.S. on CNN International.

He will also work across CNN programming as a correspondent, with a particular focus on social justice and LGBTQ+ issues.

LGBTQ+ Journalism Network partner QueerAF is launching the first ever Trans+ History Week alongside trans non-binary creative Marty Davies and key stakeholders from across the LGBTQ+ sector. 

The inaugural Trans+ History Week will take place from May 6 to 12 2024, the date coinciding with the anniversary of the 1933 Nazi raid on the world’s first trans clinic – also the site of one of the most infamous and well-documented book burnings of the Nazi regime. 

Coming just before Pride Month, the week will be a reflective period to learn and celebrate the history of transgender, non-binary, gender-diverse and intersex people through content, events and exhibitions.

By Isabelle Truscott

A “pioneer” of LGBTQ+ journalism and a ‘towering figure’ in the fight for LGBTQ+ rights, that is how admirers of Andrew Lumsden have described him following his death on 1 November.

Lumsden, born in 1941, was a powerhouse – co-founding Gay News in 1971, one the UK’s first leading LGBTQ+ publications; joining the Ga Liberation Front (GLF) as an activist in 1970; and helping to organise the first Gay Pride event in 1972.

The LGBTQ+ Journalism Network was invited by the government to attend a special reception at 10 Downing Street, as it set out new plans to boost protections for journalists against hate and abuse. 

Founder Sophie Perry attended the event – which marked the start of the News Media Association’s Journalism Matters Week – on Monday (30 October).

She was invited alongside editors, industry personnel and journalists from across the UK who were brought together to “celebrate their contribution to UK democracy”. 

The Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) has released new guidance on reporting on sex and gender, to mixed reaction from trans journalists. 

The new guidance follows a four-week consultation period earlier in the year, which led to responses from the LGBTQ+ people, members of the public, charity workers and civil servants, and aims to take into account “nuanced and widely held views across society”. 

The regulator said some respondents had noted the press coverage of the trans community was “disproportionate to the number of transgender individuals living in the UK” and believed misgendering happens all too often. 

The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup is well underway in Australia and New Zealand, with one sports journalist describing how cultural sensitivity is key to exploring LGBTQ+ topics at the tournament.

The World Cup kicked off on 20 July and boasts a record number of publicly out LGBTQ+ athletes according to Outsports, with at least 95 queer players – nearly 13 per cent of all the athletes competing – taking to football’s biggest stage.

With the sheer number of LGBTQ+ athletes taking part, discussions around inclusion, representation, equality and wider human rights are not far removed from the actual football.