Prominent author Malcolm Gladwell has voiced his opposition to transgender women playing in women’s sports and shared that he regrets being objective when hosting a discussion panel on the topic a few years ago.
Gladwell is the author of many best selling books including The Tipping Point, Blink, Outliers, What the Dog Saw and David and Goliath. His books focus on how information spreads and how people make judgements and form opinions.
In a podcast released this week the author said he regretted being objective when he hosted a 2022 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference on the topic of transgender women participating in women’s sports saying he’d been “cowed” by public pressure and was “ashamed” of his performance.
“I’m ashamed of my performance at that panel because I share your position 100 percent and I was cowed,” Gladwell told “The Real Science of Sport” host Ross Tucker, who had also appeared on the panel and argued against trans inclusion.
Tucker recounted that he’d not got a warm reception at the event, and the audience had been vocally supportive of the speakers who argued for trans inclusion in sport.
Gladwell said he believed most of the audience were in agreement with Tucker but too afraid to show it.
“My suspicion is that 90 percent of the people in the audience were on your side but 5 percent of the audience was willing to admit it,” Gladwell said.
“Everything I said was met with deathly silence, while everything the other two said got cheered.” Tucker said.
Gladwell, whose work in The Tipping Point explores how and when ideas take hold and spread, said the moment for support for transgender inclusion in sport had now passed.
“It was a particular moment, that has passed.” Gladwell said, arguing that if the same discussion was held today it would have the opposite reaction from an audience.
“If we did a replay of that exact panel, at the Sloan conference this coming March, it runs in exactly the opposite direction. I suspect there would be near unanimity in the room that trans athletes have no place in the female category.” Gladwell said.
Do you need some support?
QLife: 1800 184 527 / qlife.org.au (Webchat 3pm – midnight)
QLife are a counselling and referral service for LGBTQIA+ people.
DISCHARGED: info@discharged.org.au / discharged.org.au
Discharged is a trans-led support service with peer support groups for trans and gender diverse folks.
Lifeline: 13 11 14 / lifeline.org.au
Beyondblue: 1300 22 4636 / www.beyondblue.org.au
