CNN has issued an apology for using male pronouns to refer to transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney after a backlash from the left.
CNN anchor Kate Bolduan delivered the mea culpa at the end of Wednesday’s edition of “CNN News Central,” a day after national correspondent Ryan Young referred on the air to the female-identifying Mulvaney as “he” and “him.”
“Before we wrap up today, we do want to make an important note,” said Ms. Bolduan in a clip posted by the New York Post. “Yesterday in a segment about transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, who was featured in Bud Light’s recent campaign, she was mistakenly referred to by the wrong pronoun.”
Ms. Bolduan continued: “And CNN aims to honor individuals’ ways of identifying themselves, and we apologize for that error.”
The correction came after Media Matters for America critic Ari Drennen kicked off the backlash Tuesday on Twitter by denouncing the “[u]nbelievably bad CNN segment,” saying that it “misgenders Dylan Mulvaney” and “could’ve run on Fox News!”
The story was pegged to Bud Light’s 28% drop in sales in the last month, continuing a monthslong slide blamed on the brand’s decision in March to send the 26-year-old Mulvaney a custom can to celebrate “365 Days of Girlhood.”
A sample of the reactions included “CNN has really gone down the tubes lately,” “the pundit couldn’t even correct the misgendering of Dylan. This makes me sad.”
“That sucked,” Media Matters research director Craig Harrington tweeted.
Unbelievably bad CNN segment
-fails to interrogate where the Bud Light boycott came from
-launders perspectives of people who think their grandchildren will be harmed by the knowledge that trans people exist
-misgenders Dylan Mulvaney
This segment could’ve run on Fox News! pic.twitter.com/dBc9xVeR3Q
— Ari Drennen (@AriDrennen) July 11, 2023
Others swung back with comments such as “Dylan is a dude straight up” and “CNN actually got something right!!”
Neither of the two “CNN News Central” hosts appeared to notice the gaffe when the segment first aired. Co-anchor Sara Sidner said afterward, “Ryan Young, that was a great story.”
The debate over pronouns has pitted left against right. Supporters argue that misgendering shows a lack of respect and disregards a person’s gender identity, while opponents say insisting on opposite-sex pronouns flouts biological reality and represents compelled speech.
