Posted in: Comics | Tagged: jk rowling, Spectator

No, The Guardian Didn't Pull JK Rowling From "Person Of The Year" Poll

Published Mon, 03 Jan 2022 09:57:10 -0600

Last updated Mon, 03 Jan 2022 11:44:58 -0600

It's JK Rowling time! When Time Magazine published their Person Of The Year for 2021, naming Elon Musk, the Guardian newspaper posted an article on their website requesting readers nominate their own Person Of The Year, and stated that they would publish some of them. And on the 30th of December, that's just what they did. But yesterday, longstanding UK political magazine The Spectator ran a piece from their columnist Steerpike that stated "Guardian pulls poll after JK Rowling wins". The original article, preserved on WebArchive, reads;

Oh dear. There seems to be something of an ongoing campaign against JK Rowling at the moment. The Harry Potter writer has dared to continue speaking out about her views on sex and gender in recent months, earning the ire of the Twitter commentariat in the process.

First, her credit was downsized to being barely visible in the trailer for the forthcoming Fantastic Beasts sequel. And now the Guardian has pulled entries to its online 'Person of the Year' competition after Rowling proved to be the runaway favourite from supporters writing in to nominate her name. Whoops!

The newspaper launched its poll on 15 December in an article about Time magazine's decision to award Elon Musk the title of 'person of the year.' At the end of the article was a poll, asking readers 'Who would be your 2021 person of the year, and why?' Responses flooded in, with Rowling quickly taking the top spot.

But then the Guardian mysteriously closed all entries, deactivating its submission form without any reason or explanation. Could it be because right-on hacks wanted to be spared the embarrassment of recognising Britain's most famous living writer? Graun hacks themselves have strong views on this issue – as Mr S has reported previously in 2021.

Disapparation isn't just confined to Hogsmeade it seems.

Which wasn't true, of course. But it didn't stop plenty of people on Twitter from claiming that it was. There was no poll of course, and the article that ran on the 30th of December, included JK Rowling, nominated by Michelle, 45 of Wiltshire, thus;

JK Rowling. Superb writer and it's her way of writing that has/still does, encourage children to read. Despite having experienced domestic abuse in her personal life, she uses her experiences and voice to centre women and children so that a wide audience is aware of the vulnerabilities children and women can face in today's society. She donates to charities so is aware of her hard earned position and wants to give back to those in need. She is very inspiring for women and is supportive of women's rights, despite people trying to drag her down.

The article has now been amended on the website, though the amend isn't noted as one, stating;

A false alarm, it seems. For the Guardian gets in touch to say that the decision to close the survey form was unrelated to any write-in campaign. A Guardian News and Media spokesperson said: 'Contrary to what you may have read on Twitter, there was no poll, and the Guardian does not run a person of the year feature. Nothing has been cancelled. We regularly invite readers to share their views on issues in the news.'

It is good to know that Bleeding Cool has slightly more thorough editorial processes than The Spectator. Only slightly, mind. But still. Expect all sorts of reactions for Bleeding Cool's returning Power List later this week…

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