The Trump administration's press office has been accused of disregarding inquiries from journalists who include their gender pronouns in their email signatures.
The press office claims that such reporters are denying "biological reality" and are therefore incapable of producing truthful reports.
According to Fox News, Michael Grynbaum, a reporter for the New York Times, has revealed that the press office has dismissed emails from journalists who use gender-identifying labels on "three recent occasions." Press secretary Karoline Leavitt has been quoted as stating this as a policy.
Leavitt reportedly told a Times reporter who had included pronouns in their signature and had sought information about a climate research observatory, "As a matter of policy, we do not respond to reporters with pronouns in their bios."
Grynbaum also cited an instance where Katie Miller, senior adviser to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), allegedly declined to respond to a reporter who had included pronouns in their signature, regarding DOGE records. Miller was quoted as saying, "As a matter of policy, I dont respond to people who use pronouns in their signatures as it shows they ignore scientific realities and therefore ignore facts." In a separate message, she added, "This applies to all reporters who have pronouns in their signature."
When Grynbaum sought clarification from Leavitt on whether this was an official press office policy, she responded, "Any reporter who chooses to put their preferred pronouns in their bio clearly does not care about biological reality or truth and therefore cannot be trusted to write an honest story."
White House communications director Steven Cheung also weighed in on the matter, stating, "If The New York Times spent the same amount of time actually reporting the truth as they do being obsessed with pronouns, maybe they would be a half-decent publication."
Grynbaum noted that journalists from other media outlets have received similar responses when they included pronouns in their email signatures. He cited an "experiment" by Crooked Media reporter Matt Berg, who included pronouns in his email signature to see if the White House would comment on them and reject his question. Berg's experience mirrored the others, leading him to comment, "I find it baffling that they care more about pronouns than giving journalists accurate information, but here we are."
The Trump administration has been known to focus on gender identity issues throughout his second term, implementing executive orders that ban transgenders from serving in the U.S. military, prohibit trans women from participating in womens sports, and eliminate gender identity language across the federal government.
A spokesperson for the New York Times commented on the press office's email policy, stating, "Evading tough questions certainly runs counter to transparent engagement with free and independent press reporting. But refusing to answer a straightforward request to explain the administrations policies because of the formatting of an email signature is both a concerning and baffling choice, especially from the highest press office in the U.S. government."
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