Caitlyn Jenner Has Been On I’m A Celebrity For One Day And An ITV Presenter Has Already Misgendered Her

In last night’s episode of I’m A Celebrity: Extra Camp, host Joel Dommett referred to campmate Caitlyn Jenner as a ‘guy’ in a comment that has since caused criticism. It comes as fears rise within the transgender community about how trans viewers will be affected watching the show.

‘Two athletes, Caitlyn and James ended up in Snake Rock, I can’t believe that the two fittest guys, you know?’ Dommett said in conversation with fellow host Emily Atack, alongside guests Alison Hammond and John Barrowman, on the spin-off show.

The comment has since received backlash online, with at least one Twitter user complaining to Ofcom about it (Ofcom is yet to release their figures about the actual number of complaints). ‘Disappointed and angered by this comment tonight,’ Corrie David tweeted. ‘Can’t believe itv2 didn’t brief their staff on trans issues and how damaging comments like this could be before allowing them to present? Lazy and disrespectful.’

‘This is so gross, and so humiliating for her,’ another added. ‘I feel like I’m A Celeb this year is gonna make everything so difficult for the trans community, but more importantly trans women. There’s no level of basic respect.’

While some are defending Dommett’s comment as a ‘slip of the tongue’, many are pointing out that using someone’s correct gender is the bare minimum he can do. Because, while learning and understanding issues within the trans community is a process that can result in slip-ups, this man is a professional TV host whose entire job revolves around researching and commentating on campmates. We should be able to expect a basic understanding of gender identity and a respect for the campmates' pronouns from him.

The comments come alongside greater fears within the trans community around Jenner’s appearance on I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here. Shortly after it was announced that she would appear on the show, trans activists shared their concerns that her appearance will prompt offensive and/or incessant questions that many young trans people still processing their own journey may feel unqualified to answer.

More explicitly than that, Jenner’s appearance has undoubtedly led to many transphobic comments being made online. In fact, the hashtag Bruce Jenner was trending last night as so many people refused to call Jenner by her actual name. While Caitlyn does often refer to herself as Bruce, this practice is called deadnaming and is often used in an attempt to discredit transgender people’s identities.

While it’s impossible to avoid offensive trending hashtags, it is possible to remove problematic comments from your personal timeline – by unfollowing transphobic people. After all, your social media is an echo chamber; other than adverts and promoted content it is completely designed by you and who you choose to follow. So, if you’re seeing offensive posts on your timeline, it is entirely within your remit to unfollow or block those people. Just like sometimes it’s time to cut off your problematic friends, now is the time to cull your social media of those you don’t want to associate with.

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