The Footy Show presenter, Sam Newman, is under fire for making transphobic comments directed at Caitlyn Jenner.
Newman refused to refer to Jenner as “she” and even went as far as talking about her like an inanimate object -- not a human being.
By keeping Newman on air, Channel 9 and the Footy Show are letting him attack and cause real harm to a community that has the highest suicide rate in Australia.
It’s time Australia’s mainstream corporate media take responsibility for these hurtful comments. If you add your voice now, we can show Channel 9 that Australians absolutely don’t tolerate this behaviour on TV.
Sign the petition to Channel 9: sack Sam Newman now for his transphobic and sexist comments.
Newman has issued an apology for his transphobic comments, but that’s not enough.
This is not the first time Newman has caused a stir. He has a history of making offensive and sexist comments -- notably about his female co-hosts’ physical appearances and their marital status. Stuff that people just don’t make comments about if you’re a man.
Newman is the host of a national television show on Channel 9. He has an audience of hundreds of thousands of Australians -- which means that his attacks on marginalised groups like the trans community are magnified, and so much more harmful.
The Footy Show has time after time allowed Newman to get away with comments like these.
There is momentum building against Newman from the AFL community -- St Kilda’s chief exec swiftly slammed Newman’s transphobic remarks.
And if SumOfUs members like you add your voice, we can pile on the pressure to force Channel 9 to take transphobia seriously.
Sign the petition to Channel 9: sack Sam Newman now for his transphobic and sexist comments.
After the death of a trans school teacher -- Lucy Meadows -- in the UK, 200,000 SumOfUs members signed a petition asking British tabloid, the Daily Mail, to sack the columnist who claimed that Meadows was unfit to be a teacher because she was trans.
Will you help show the same outrage to transphobia in Australia? It’s time that Channel 9 takes serious action so that people like Newman don’t use our country-wide platforms to spread hate.
Sign the petition to Channel 9: sack Sam Newman now for his transphobic and sexist comments.
More information
Sydney Morning Herald. 22 June 2017.
The Guardian. 22 June 2017.