A former producer for The Young Turks, who is transgender, said Tuesday he left the show over the hosts’ alleged transphobia.
Bennie Carollo, a former producer for the network, released a video on his Youtube channel explaining his decision to part ways with the company. Carollo, a transgender person who identifies as female, said The Young Turks hosts Ana Kasparian and Cenk Uygur became unbearably transphobic in recent months.
Carollo said the pair have pivoted into a “right-wing grift.” (RELATED TO: ‘The Young Turks’ Star Ana Kasparian Admits She Would’ve Done The Same Thing As Kyle Rittenhouse)
Carollo criticized a tweet Kasparian made in April in which she slammed the term “birthing person,” being used to refer to biological women. He also said he had a conversation with Uygur, who allegedly dismissed his concerns the show had gone in a transphobic direction and accused him of “living in a bubble.”
He also griped about the hosts showing apprehension to biological men participating in women’s sports.
“I think Ana Kasparian is genuinely, personally transphobic,” Carollo said.
Carollo also took issue with Kasprian’s defense of journalist Jesse Singal and his show “Blocked and Reported.” Singal, a journalist who reports on the risks of gender transitioning, has long been considered “transphobic” by many trans activists.
“When you take all of this together, it seems like Ana Kasparian is fully engulfed into conspiracy theories against trans people,” Carollo said.
Kasparian responded to Carollo’s decision on The Young Turks while accidentally misgendering him in the process. Kasparian immediately corrected herself and referred to Carollo with his preferred pronouns.
Imagine your trans employee quitting because of your rampant transphobia and still misgendering them in your statement addressing it pic.twitter.com/fMbiNygEqU
— Olayemi Olurin (@msolurin) July 6, 2023
“Bennie has decided to leave TYT. I’m definitely heartbroken over his —over her decision to do that.”