Matt Calkins, a sports columnist for the Seattle Times, announced his resignation on Thursday, stating the newspaper refused to publish his column about the 'Save Women's Sports' movement. Calkins, who spent 11 years with the Times, explained that his decision stemmed from the paper's alleged refusal to run his piece, which he believed challenged the newsroom's dominant narratives.
The column was prompted by an event supporting Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham, who had publicly stated her opposition to biological males competing in women's sports. Calkins attended a rally outside Climate Pledge Arena where he spoke with supporters, including 16-year-old Ahnaleigh Wilson. Wilson recounted an experience of losing a track and field race to a biological male in eighth grade. Another student-athlete, Frances Staudt, shared similar sentiments about facing verbal abuse for not wanting to play against a biological boy in basketball.
Calkins stated that the central thesis of his column was that supporting the separation of biological females and males in sports does not inherently equate to transphobia, and he aimed to reduce the casual use of such labels. He submitted a draft of the column after discussing it with his editor. Over several days, the column was reviewed by multiple editors, but Calkins reported receiving no direct feedback. On Thursday, his editor informed him that the piece would not be published, citing Calkins' failure to inform the paper in advance of his intention to write the column.
Calkins found this reasoning unconvincing, believing that if it were the sole issue, the column would have been rejected immediately rather than undergoing extended editorial review. In response, he resigned.
This was not the first instance of his work being halted, according to Calkins. He noted previous instances where columns were spiked, including one questioning the U.S. Women's Soccer Team's equal-pay lawsuit claims and another on cancel culture in sports. A piece written after George Floyd's death, featuring a Black coach's perspective on avoiding stereotypes of police, was also reportedly not published. Calkins suggested a common thread among these pieces was their challenge to prevailing newsroom narratives.
He expressed gratitude for his time at the Seattle Times, acknowledging the talent within the newsroom and the freedom he had for other stories. However, he felt he could no longer properly perform his duties as a columnist, which he views as generating discussion on significant issues. Calkins cited a quote attributed to Albus Dumbledore, "We must all face the choice between what is right and what is easy," as influential in his decision.
Calkins plans to continue writing on his own platform. He acknowledged uncertainty about his future career path but emphasized his commitment to speaking freely, stating, "The best things in life are free — speech being at the top of the list."