After the death of transgender Oklahoma teen Nex Benedict, broadcast and cable news coverage held right-wing figures to account for anti-trans rhetoric
In February 2024, transgender teenager Nex Benedict was pronounced dead one day after a fight with three other students in their high school bathroom. Though Benedict’s death was officially ruled a suicide weeks later, national TV news contextualized the story within an increasingly hostile culture for trans people.
Beyond the scope of Benedict’s death — which received 85 minutes of total coverage across broadcast and cable news outlets — fatal violence against transgender Americans was covered for only 3 minutes throughout 2024.
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