Actual rating 3.5 stars

Such an interesting book filled with carefully sourced and detailed information about the NYT's "reporting" on trans kids. There was a lot of depth here and I appreciate the passion of the author, but writing-wise it was lacking a coherent structure, had frequent repetition, and a somewhat mixed writing style. When the author let herself be present in her own writing, it was witty and packed way more of a punch than in the more impersonal sections. A decent start for the topic to be covered more at length but left me wanting more.

Bad Ink by Riki Wilchins is an interesting look at how The New York Times went from backing trans teens to pushing harmful narratives. It’s well-researched, eye-opening, and calls out how politics have skewed the paper’s coverage. A powerful read that stands up for trans youth and the truth.

3.5 stars

This is an interesting look at the very troubling descent of the New York Times into its relentlessly negative, concern-trolling coverage of trans issues over the past decade.

I do feel like this could have used another edit to tighten up the structure, reduce repetition, and work towards greater consistency of tone. I didn't mind the snarky comments, and thought they were sometimes warranted, but it does raise questions of who this book is for - is its intention to convince fence-sitters, or to present the evidence to people like me who already understand the issue and agree with the author's perspective? There were also multiple typos and grammatical errors in the copy I received, which I'm mentioning only because this didn't say it was an uncorrected proof. It is possible, however, that these have been cleaned up in the version available for purchase.

I do think this is worth reading, but it would present its case more compellingly with some stronger editing.

4/5 Stars
Good read on the rise of transphobic news coverage in the New York and the strategies transphobic groups in general will use. Also does a good job debunking the common claims or statistics these groups will use when the rights of trans people.
Looks at various claims made by articles from the NYT (trans people in sports, the "risks" of HRT and transitioning for trans kids, ect) and while it doesn't go super in depth on any one topic and doesn't explore every single article from the NYT (the author admits in the book doing so will make this book way too long) does a great job covering the topics it does and provides a good overview of the common tactics transphobes will use for their arguments and debunking them.
Thank you Riki Wilchins and Riverdale Avenue for this eARC!

This book is great, especially if you've ever wondered how that weird uptick in anti-trans/gender affirming care sentiment came to take so much room even in historically fairly progressive/neutral medias. Wilchins has a good sense of humor and knows how to communicate information that could be quite depressing in a way that's bracing and dare I say hopeful. There's a great balance of concrete examples, debunking and commenting in there so it never got as daunting as it could have been (it certainly didn't feel like a 300 pages long read).

Wilchins brilliantly makes the case for how The New York Times, in a bid to attract a wider (more conservative) readership, joined and in some regards lead the gender affirming care for teens moral panic. It's bleak how utterly unsurprising and easy it is for a company to sell the safety of a small group of people.

I received a digital review copy of this book, many thanks to Riverdale Avenue Books | Magnus for the opportunity to read and review this title.

Thanks to NetGalley and Magnus for the eARC!

This is a fantastic resource, especially if you are looking for facts and data to rebut anti-trans rhetoric. Wilchins lays things out really well and includes TONS of footnotes, so you can see how well-researched and thoughtful the book is.
It's also a history of how the Times has covered trans people. I also appreciated the Wilchins included some ideas about why the coverage changed.

Riki provides an in-depth & frankly harrowing account of the New York Times' prolonged & devastating attacks on the trans community over recent years, & the direct harm it has caused. The book is thoroughly researched, & each false or inaccurate claim by the Times is countered with the real statistics & evidence. It doesn't make for cheerful reading, but at a time when the trans community is in more danger than ever, it's a really important account.

The relationship between print media and the transgender community has always been a difficult one and for the most part an annoyingly superficial and deeply unsatisfying one. However, recently the animosity between the two has gone into hyperdrive, supercharged for a large part by mainstream political opportunism reacting to a resurgent and virulently transphobic far right.
This is not a particularly novel observation and there are many great commentators out there who have made similar points but as a long-standing campaigner for trans rights (and author of several essential texts on the subject), Riki Wilchins is a pretty well placed to conduct a much-needed long-form investigation.
Given the huge scope of the issue currently, the first question to tackle must be where on earth to begin. Tackling the phenomenon in the round, as it were, is counterproductive as the generalities that demands often means that the precise detail of the discussion often gets overlooked. And so, Wilchins’ decision to do a deep dive on one particular title is the correct, and possibly inspired, one.
From a British perspective, the choice of the New York Times might be an oddly parochial one. Not that Wilchins can be blamed for this because (as they point out) it’s their ‘local’ paper. But there’s also a strong rationale for using the NYT as their case study.
While the paper’s circulation might be confined largely to the eastern US, it nevertheless does command a lot of influence globally, thanks in no small part to the internet (and as Wilchins’ points out, the drive for clicks was in large part the rationale for the NYT’s lurch into ‘gender critical’ territory.
Another reason is that the story of the office politics behind the paper’s drift to transphobic clickbait is interesting in itself (or is if you’re a news nerd like me) and can perhaps be seen as a localised case study for the battle that has been playing out across many parts of the world, perhaps most notably recently at the highest level of international politics. That the NYT’s story also contains an (admittedly inconclusive) revolt against management by the paper’s staff and readers offers not only a nice element of narrative bite to the story but also some much-needed hope for the future.
The structure of the book is largely chronological and it’s here that Wilchins’ decision for each chapter to break down one or two of the paper’s most egregiously biased examples pays dividends as it allows them to forensically dismantle the factual and journalistic errors and rhetorical sleight of hand upon which much ‘gender critical’ argument relies.
It’s this that makes the book possibly a good one to recommend to anyone seeking to do their own research on the often overheated debate around trans rights because not only is it highly readable narrative in its own right but it also does a pretty good job of calmly and even-handedly dismantling the arguments contained with the original articles themselves.
If the book in unsatisfying in any way, it’s perhaps because it feels slightly unfinished. Again, this is no reflection on Wilchins but is rather a reflection upon times which were living through where the fight for trans rights and acceptance is still going through one of its toughest periods. There’s undoubtedly scope for a revised edition in the future when it finally becomes apparent how the right-wing Christian National political chicanery in the US and elsewhere ultimately plays out but in the meantime it can definitely be considered a useful and important addition to the currently ongoing fight back.
From a British perspective, it would be nice to see Wilchins’ book used as a template for some future works where the UK’s often equally transphobic press could merit from a similar forensic takedown. There are at least one or two mastheads on this side of the Atlantic that come to mind as that deserve this level of journalistic scrutiny, particularly in the wake of the increasingly problematic Cass Report.

Read if: you need some solid facts and figures to rebut all the anti-trans rhetoric or you care about journalistic integrity and want to see bad journalism picked apart.

Riki Wilchins' 'Bad Ink' is both a scathing evidence filled takedown of the anti-trans articles run in the Times and a witty commentary on the many falsehoods and agendas powering the anti-trans movement.
This book excellently explains how the 'concern' about protecting trans children (that claims to be the reason for so many of these articles), is driven less by actual concern for their mental or physical health but rather by the votes right wing politicians can win off this issue, and the number of digital subscriptions the Times can sell by generating outrage.

This book has made me more informed about this topic. Previously when this would come up I would advocate for trans youth and try to point out the falsehoods in reporting about them, but I admit I often lacked the right words or facts. I knew that what I was being told sounded incorrect or biased but I didn't have the facts and figures to fully respond to these anti-trans assertions. Not only has this book excellently highlighted the problems with these narratives, but it has given me the ability to challenge them properly.

Thank you to Netgalley, Riverdale Avenue Books, and Riki Wilchins for a copy of the book. Review also posted on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7380252149

This book offers a comprehensive survey of the NYT coverage of transgender people and issues, arguing that within the last decade, the publication has used trans people as a punching bag in order to court republican readers. This book is thoughtful, well-researched, and incredibly readable. It presupposes a base-level of agreeance among readers and does not dedicate space to debating the legitimacy of trans identities or the necessity of transition. This book is a rough read, emotionally, but incredibly worth it.

I spent more time than usual on this book because I wanted to take seriously the monstrous work done on this book. I research and double check the information provided in the book along my read and it was easy as Riki didn't just wrote a magnificent book but also provide so much sources and fact-check footnote, that it threw me in a rabbit hole of research about Trans care and all the misinformation campaign ran in background (or not so much for some) by the white christian groups. I was already pretty educated on the subject but this book pushed me so much deeper and farther. This book should be required reading at least for people leading to a journalistic career and for those with a media platform in political and social environments. +bonus for the wit and sarcasms here and there.

BAD INK by Riki Wilchins should be required reading for all journalism students--and all journalists working in the field today. The book is infuriating because it's true; Wilchins presents and proves a very persuasive argument that the Times went after (and continues to go after) transgender teens to make the newspaper more palatable to the far right (the far Christian right). BAD INK is a scathing and necessary takedown of what was once an institution representing the very best in journalism. Many thanks to Riki Wilchins for doing this work and putting it all together in a book so that we can learn from it--and hopefully protect instead of harm trans kids.

Interesting look at how the Times paper shifts from being an ally pro-trans rights to attacking the youth. Difficult read especially at the current climate in the US in regards to anti trans bills and a lack of support for those who require medical care.

Bad Ink: How The New York Times Sold Out Transgender Teens by Riki Wilchins is a searing, necessary critique of how mainstream media has failed one of the most vulnerable communities. Wilchins writes with passion and precision, exposing how harmful narratives about transgender youth are shaped, amplified, and legitimized by institutions that should know better.

What stood out to me most was the way Wilchins combines meticulous research with deep empathy. The book doesn’t just critique—it advocates fiercely for the lives and dignity of transgender teens, making it impossible to ignore the real harm caused by sensationalist, biased reporting. The analysis of The New York Times is sharp and well-supported, but the broader exploration of media ethics and responsibility is what really hit home for me.

This is not an easy read—it will make you angry—but it’s an important one. Wilchins challenges readers to question not only what they consume but also how they hold media accountable. For anyone who cares about justice and truth, this book is a must. It’s a gut-punch and a call to action, and I couldn’t put it down.

Very well done and highly informative! I really enjoyed this read and it sent me down a rabbit hole of research into the politics of journalism. Highly recommended!

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Again this book was too consumed by statistics. It wasn’t a book that was easy read and I didn’t understand it. It more consumed by statistics than the actual plot. I am disappointed but this does not take anything away from the book it’s because I just couldn’t follow it.

This was a good and informative book! I like the information about trans people and how there are a lot of things not well known, or that people can learn about. I think the writing was good too, very informative and it kept me engaged while reading this

Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complementary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

Bad Ink is a scathing takedown of The New York Times and the relentless attack on trans teens that it has spearheaded.

Wilchins goes through article by article and debunks, comments or fact checks claims made by journalists or opinion pieces - where NYT have been slacking from their side or straight up ignoring their own rules for good press ethics to underline their own standpoint. This book covers articles that profile trans women in their day to day life, their reports on ballroom culture, their spread of misinformation in terms of gender affirming care and the dealings behind the scenes (which include replacing a trans employee with someone vocally anti-trans, and making another feel they have no choice but to leave the workplace because they will get punished for speaking out). All in the name of clicks and engagement.

Wilchins does a good job of highlighting how the change in how people consume news has led to a change in strategy for papers, and a reliance on clickbait or articles they know will gain traction. This, largely, goes at the expense of trans youth. The list of sources Wilchins uses to back up her claims are extensive and the book is well written, well researched and compassionate whilst still having some snark and humour.

The New York Times is supposed to be one of the leading news sources in America. What happened to the neutrality of this organization? The newspaper went after transgender teens with talking points from the white, Christian right. How can a neutral reporting agency go after a group with only talking points from ONE side? That is what this book investigates.

This is a good expose on a very pressing issue, sounding a clarion call about how a long-respected paper, one treated as the pinnacle of journalism where the best of the best go to play, is being hijacked and could serve to launch a flurry of persecution against a marginalized group, an offense as shameful as their cheerleading of the Iraq War. In the name of centrism and being Fair and Balanced™️, the New York Times has already allowed itself to be warped and transformed and in the name of gaining more subscribers, they’re going to throw trans people under the bus.

My quibble is that this book feels somewhat incomplete, more like an extended article than a proper book.