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You can only expect so much objectivity from a podcast with a title like The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling. Its latest installment, however, still somehow manages to lower the bar from floor level. This week, we’re apparently diving into a toilet before giving it a good flush. It’s time (once again, for some reason) to discuss J.K. Rowling’s ongoing and already widely debunked “concerns” about trans women in public restrooms.
For the uninitiated, The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling comes from Bari Weiss’ new media company The Free Press and purports to explore the ongoing controversy surrounding the Harry Potter author and the many anti-trans remarks she’s made over the years. We began with a mind-numbing two-episode premiere filled with digressions that established Rowling as the podcast’s clear protagonist, and last week we pivoted to the online “culture wars” (with a lot more dog whistles and digressions).
This week’s episode finally arrives at what might just be the meaty section of the podcast. At least, the title—“TERF Wars”—leaves little mystery about its content. As for its perspective? Let’s just say it’s telling that Rowling is allowed to call the word “TERF” a slur without further “debate” while simultaneously raising one questionable point after another. Near the beginning of the episode, The Atlantic critic Helen Lewis—whose own writing about trans people has stoked controversy in the past—tellingly informs us that in her estimation, “‘TERF’ is basically ‘witch.’”