‘I never set out to upset anyone’: JK Rowling opens up about trans controversy in podcast teaser
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JK Rowling to give rare interview addressing her controversial remarks on transgender rights.
In an upcoming seven-episode podcast titled The Witch Trials of JK Rowling, the Harry Potter author sits down with US writer Megan Phelps-Roper at her Edinburgh home.
Phelps-Roper is the granddaughter of Fred Phelps, pastor of the infamous Westboro Baptist Church. Since leaving the church in 2012, Phelps-Roper has become a prominent critic of its philosophy and practices.
The host of the Free Press podcast describes The Witch Trials of JK Rowling, out Feb. 21, as an “audio documentary examining some of the most controversial conflicts of our time through the life and career of the world’s most successful author” .
“I never set out to make anyone angry. Still, I didn’t feel uncomfortable stepping off my pedestal,” Rowling says in the trailer.
“What has interested me in recent years, especially on social media [is when fans say], ‘You’ve ruined your legacy. Oh, you could have been loved forever, but you chose to say it.’ And I think, ‘You couldn’t have misunderstood me more deeply.'”
Follow the latest updates below:
Key points
Show latest update 1676900062
Everything we know about podcasting
From how to stream it to what to expect from its host and subject, find the full story below:
Ellie HarrisonFebruary 20, 2023 at 1:34 pm
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JK Rowling and the NYT controversy
The New York Times published an article this month titled “In Defense of JK Rowling,” defending the Harry Potter author’s reputation against accusations of transphobia.
Read Julia Bell’s thoughts on the matter here…
Ellie HarrisonFebruary 20, 2023 at 12:55pm
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What we know about host Megan Phelps-Roper
Megan Phelps-Roper is 37 years old and lives in rural South Dakota. She is best known for escaping what Louis Theroux called “America’s Most Hated Family” in his 2007 documentary about the extremist Westboro Baptist Church, led by Phelps-Roper’s grandfather, Fred Phelps.
The hate group, founded in Topeka, Kansas, has been picketing the funerals of soldiers and AIDS victims. He is known for his hate speech against atheists, Jews, Muslims, transgender people and numerous Christian denominations. Their theology and practices have been almost universally rejected by the Christian churches.
Phelps-Roper distanced herself from the group in 2012, thanks in large part to discovering other viewpoints on Twitter, which she had joined three years earlier to spread the church’s message.
She wrote a book about her experience, Unfollow, and is now a speaker and activist.
For the podcast, Phelps-Roper traveled to Rowling’s Edinburgh Castle and, over six days in May and August, conducted intimate interviews with the author.
The podcast comes out on February 21st.
Ellie HarrisonFebruary 20, 2023 11:40am
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Listen to the podcast trailer here
The Witch Trials of JK Rowling will premiere on Tuesday, February 21, 2023. The first two episodes arrive that day, with the rest airing weekly.
Hear the Harry Potter author speak in a trailer for the podcast below…
Ellie HarrisonFebruary 20, 2023 11:07am
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What Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe had to say about Rowling’s views on transgender issues
“Transgender women are women,” she wrote. “Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health associations who have far more experience on the matter than both [Rowling] or me.
“It is clear that we need to do more to support transgender and non-binary people, not invalidate their identities and not cause further harm.”
Ellie HarrisonFebruary 20, 2023 10:20 am
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Megan Phelps-Roper says the new podcast was “never intended to vindicate” the author
Phelps-Roper gave an interview on the new podcast, in which she said: “This has never been a defense of JK Rowling. It was never intended to avenge her.
“It’s an attempt to understand what’s going on, and to do that you need the perspectives of so many other people — from all sides — because the issues are so complex.”
Read the full story below…
Ellie HarrisonFebruary 20, 2023 at 9:45am
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JK Rowling said she agreed to the interview hoping it would be ‘constructive’
Posting to Twitter last week, Rowling wrote: “Last year I received a long and thoughtful letter from @Meganphelps, inviting me to take part in an in-depth personal discussion with her on the issues that have interested me over the past years.
“Megan proposed engaging other voices and looking at the bigger picture, bringing her unique perspective as a former fundamentalist who has dedicated her life over the past decade to difficult conversations.
“I agreed to sit down with Megan because, after reading her wonderful book, Unfollow, I thought the two of us could have a real, interesting, two-sided conversation that could prove to be constructive.”
Ellie HarrisonFebruary 20, 2023 at 9:15am
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What we know about host Megan Phelps-Roper
Megan Phelps-Roper is 37 years old and lives in rural South Dakota. She is best known for escaping what Louis Theroux called “America’s Most Hated Family” in his 2007 documentary about the extremist Westboro Baptist Church, led by Phelps-Roper’s grandfather, Fred Phelps.
The hate group, founded in Topeka, Kansas, has been picketing the funerals of soldiers and AIDS victims. He is known for his hate speech against atheists, Jews, Muslims, transgender people and numerous Christian denominations. Their theology and practices have been almost universally rejected by the Christian churches.
Phelps-Roper distanced herself from the group in 2012, thanks in large part to discovering other viewpoints on Twitter, which she had joined three years earlier to spread the church’s message.
She wrote a book about her experience, Unfollow, and is now a speaker and activist.
For the podcast, Phelps-Roper traveled to Rowling’s Edinburgh Castle and, over six days in May and August, conducted intimate interviews with the author.
The podcast comes out on February 21st.
Ellie HarrisonFebruary 20, 2023 8:45 am
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Listen to the podcast trailer here
The Witch Trials of JK Rowling will debut on Tuesday, February 21, 2023.
Hear the Harry Potter author speak in a trailer for the podcast below…
Ellie HarrisonFebruary 20, 2023 8:11 am
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JK Rowling to discuss trans views in new podcast
JK Rowling is addressing the controversy surrounding her stance on transgender rights in an upcoming podcast titled The Witch Trials of JK Rowling.
The Harry Potter author has faced sustained backlash in recent years for statements she has made about gender ideology that critics and prominent voices in the LGBT+ community have described as “transphobic.”
“I never set out to make anyone angry. Still, I didn’t feel uncomfortable stepping off my pedestal,” Rowling says in the trailer for the podcast, hosted by the Free Press.
Free Press is the independent media company founded by former New York Times opinion editor Bari Weiss, known for writing provocative columns on “awakening culture” and gender issues.
Ellie HarrisonFebruary 20, 2023 7:49 am
