Formal Complaint To RNZ Regarding the Erasure of a Young Person's Identity in "Teenager starves to death alone in emergency accommodation" (Published June 13, 2024)

Tēnā korua Mr Stephens and Mr Thompson,

Subject: Formal Complaint Regarding the Erasure of a Young Person's Identity in "Teenager starves to death alone in emergency accommodation" (Published June 13, 2024)

I am writing to formally complain about and condemn the decision-making process behind Ruth Hill's article, "Teenager starves to death alone in emergency accommodation," published this morning. While the circumstances of the death are of public interest, the manner in which the story is executed constitutes a grave ethical breach and a betrayal of public trust.

Your article states you are calling the young person "Vanessa" at her parents' request, while also acknowledging the teen was transgender. Let's be unequivocally clear about what has occurred here: it is understood that this young person identified as V. It is also understood that he identified as a young man. In no way did V identify as a woman when they tragically passed away.

By choosing to use the name "Vanessa," you have not simply made a minor error in judgment. You have actively participated in the erasure of a young person's identity in death. You have allowed the publicly documented narrative of V's life to be defined by parents whom your own article suggests were unaccepting of their child's identity. This is a journalistic failure of the highest order.

This decision shows that RNZ, when faced with a choice, will put the opinions of cisgender people over the fundamental rights of a transgender or non-binary individual to be known as who they are. You are allowing other people to erase V's preferred identity. This is not just disrespectful; it is a posthumous violation of V's autonomy and dignity. Tikanga survives death, and you have violated V's mana.

Your actions are in direct conflict with established ethical guidelines:

• The Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA) Guidance on Reporting on Gender Identity Issues exists precisely to prevent such harm. It cautions against misgendering and deadnaming. By using the name "Vanessa," you are deadnaming V. By using female pronouns, you are misgendering them. You have ignored these standards in favour of appeasing grieving parents whose views, in this specific matter, contradict their child's own reality.
• The New Zealand Media Council's Principle of Accuracy has been breached. The most accurate representation of a person is how they identify themself. By any credible journalistic standard, V's asserted identity is the accurate one. The parents' preference is an opinion; V's identity was their reality.
• Respect for Individual Autonomy: At 17, V had significant legal and personal autonomy in New Zealand. The framework for self-identification on official documents for 16 and 17-year-olds confirms this. Your organisation has decided that this autonomy is void in death, a decision that is both cruel and baseless.

The claim that V may have "abandoned" their identity must be seen for what it is: an unsubstantiated assertion from a conflicted party. For RNZ to platform this view without giving precedence to V's most recently known, self-professed identity is irresponsible.

Once again, the media has shown that the rights of transgender and non-binary people are negotiable. You have sent a clear and chilling message: that a trans person's identity is not their own, that it is a preference that family can veto, and that media organisations like RNZ will be complicit in that erasure.

This must be corrected, and you must be held accountable. I demand the following actions:

1. Immediately amend the article. Remove the name "Vanessa" and all female pronouns. Refer to the young person as 'V' and use 'he/him' pronouns throughout the article. This is the only ethical path forward.
2. Publish a prominent correction and a sincere apology. This apology must acknowledge the harm caused by deadnaming and misgendering V, and explicitly state that you were wrong to prioritise the parents' wishes over the deceased's identity.
3. Conduct an immediate and transparent review of your editorial policies. Your "Rainbow Communities Reporting and Content Guidelines" have clearly failed. You must strengthen them to ensure that a person's self-declared name and pronouns are treated as sacrosanct and non-negotiable, regardless of outside pressure.

You have caused immense pain to the transgender and non-binary community and have dishonoured the memory of a vulnerable young person. Nothing can undo that, but you can, and must, rectify the public record and commit to doing better.

I expect the article to be amended by 5 pm today or we will consider supporting swift legal action in this matter.

Ngā mihi nui,

Paul Thistoll
CEO
RIghts Aotearoa