The New York Times Publishes a Defense of J.K. Rowling One Day After Contributors Call Out Anti-trans Coverage

Former Book Review editor Pamela Paul’s latest column was always going to catch heat. “In Defense of J.K. Rowling,” the New York Times Opinion columnist wrote Thursday morning, in a piece warning that the Harry Potter author’s experience—of being repeatedly criticized for comments seen as transphobic—could lead to that of Salman Rushdie’s, and suggesting the criticisms against her are akin to a QAnon fever dream. It wasn’t just the column itself that had the internet scratching its head, but its timing: a day after more than 370 current and former Times contributors signed an open letter calling out the paper’s coverage of transgender, non-binary, and gender nonconforming people.