History鈥檚 Secret Heroes, Radio 4, 21 June 2023

Complaint

The programme was about two French artists who had lived in Nazi-occupied Jersey as a lesbian couple while also frequently posing as men.聽 A listener complained about the聽 statement that 鈥淭he Nazis brutally persecuted gay, lesbian, trans and gender non-conforming people鈥 on the grounds that the Nazis had enacted no laws against trans people and the reference to them minimised 鈥渢he real persecution of tens of thousands of same sex attracted people鈥.聽 The ECU considered the complaint in the light of the 大象传媒鈥檚 editorial standards of accuracy.


Outcome

Although different terminology was used at the time, there was ample evidence that the Nazis had targeted those who were assigned male sex at birth but later identified as women.聽 The statement in question was therefore accurate, as well as relevant to a story which included exploration of gender identity under Nazi occupation.

Not upheld