Why J.K. Rowling Isn’t As Controversial As You Think

The authors’ defenders include some prominent transgender people

HBO Max is partnering with the formerly untouchable J.K. Rowling to produce a series based on her Harry Potter books. But the executive tasked with facing the press wasn’t eager to discuss the world’s most successful author. 

At a Q&A session at the Warner Bros. Burback studio, Content Head Casey Bloys sidestepped a question from a reporter who asked about how Rowling’s stance on trans issues might affect the show.

“No, I don’t think this is the forum,” said Bloys. “That’s a very online conversation, very nuanced and complicated and not something we’re going to get into.”

He departed from the over-the-top gushing that usually accompanies the announcement of a partnership with a celebrity as accomplished as Rowling: “She’s an executive producer on the show. Her insights are going to be helpful on that.”

The tepid endorsement shows how heavy the controversy still weighs on the company. 

But just how controversial is Rowling?

It may seem like all the people on “The Right Side of History” revile Rowling.

Loud voices on Twitter condemn her and media reports often frame the issue as Rowling vs The Trans Community. They tend to describe Rowling’s alleged transphobia as fact—IndieWire refers to the author’s “extensive history of transphobia”—not as a matter of dispute. 

But the loud don’t necessarily represent the many. That’s true with the Rowling row, as well as countless other issues. 

It might seem like America is split between extremists on the left and right, but you’ll find most Americans in the middle.

What about college students? 

They’re all wild-eyed wokesters, right? Nope. 

They skew left more than the general population, but 48% describe themselves in non-leftist terms (moderate to extremely conservative). 

Surely, racial minorities really find microaggressions deeply offensive. Not exactly. 

Strong majorities of and black and Latino people tell pollsters they’re not bothered by many statements universities tell us we should never utter. 

For instance, 94% of African Americans aren’t offended by the statement, “America is the land of opportunity.”

Contrary to the story told so often in the media, Harry Potter fans haven’t turned on Rowling en masse. 

Millennials came of age with Harry Potter books and so in some important sense that generation is Rowling’s target audience. It turns out 57% of Millennials like her. Gen Xers like her a little more and Baby Boomers like her a little less, but she wins majority support from those groups as well. (Gen Zers weren’t included in that poll.)

News reports often fail to mention the prominent observers—including former critics like E.J. Rosetta—who examined the evidence against Rowling and now regard the “transphobia” charge as unfounded. 

Even some trans people defend Rowling. 

Take transgender superstar Dana International, who advises that “we must not jump too fast with accusations of transphobia.” 

Or comedian and actor Eddie Izzard:

I don't think J.K. Rowling is transphobic … Women have been through such hell over history. Trans people have been invisible, too. I hate the idea we are fighting between ourselves, but it's not going to be sorted with the wave of a wand. I don't have all the answers. If people disagree with me, fine, but why are we going through hell on this?

Or economist and author Dierdre McCloskey, who joined with Rowling in signing the 2020 Harper’s magazine open letter defending free speech:

I’m a transwoman. She and I disagree—but we both believe in free speech …I do not want to ban her from conferences or stop people from reading her childish books … I want to correct what I believe are her mistakes, as she can then correct mine. Nice. As an economist, I approve of mutually advantageous exchange … [I]t is more important than ever to listen to the other side.

They’re all prominent figures, but maybe they represent a fringe opinion within the trans community. 

Or maybe not. 

You’ll find many polls that ask respondents about trans issues (like whether trans athletes should be allowed to participate in women’s sports), but far fewer polls survey trans people themselves. And although it’s possible I’m overlooking something, I haven’t found any polls that ask trans people about Rowling. 

I’m totally willing to believe that most trans people don’t defend Rowling. 

But until some reliable evidence about the trans community arises, we can’t make confident declarations in either direction. 

So what can we do? 

I’m going to assume that trans people are more like the rest of us than not. 

If that’s the case, there’s good reason to believe that, when it comes to Rowling, the voices we hear are disproportionately skewed toward the louder activist types. 

There’s also good reason to believe that many within the trans community figure they’re better off biting their tongues than risking being branded a traitor to the cause.

College students and Americans in general often admit to self censorship, and it’s no surprise that they’re especially likely to clam up about hot-button culture war topics. Is it a stretch to assume that self censorship is also prevalent among the trans community?

Surely, HBO Max conducted plenty of market research before embarking upon what, to some, seems like a perilous venture. Perhaps the profit motive helped the company realize the venture may not be that controversial after all. 

Hollywood is beginning to realize that activists don’t necessarily represent the groups they purport to represent, and that Twitter doesn’t necessarily represent real life. 

Ted Balaker is a filmmaker, and former network newser and think tanker. His recent work includes “Little Pink House”starring Catherine Keener and Jeanne Tripplehorn, “Can We Take a Joke?” featuring Gilbert Gottfried and Penn Jillette, and a forthcoming feature documentary based on the bestselling book, “The Coddling of the American Mind,” by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt.