One might have assumed that the first ever transgender beauty pageant in Israel (and presumably in the entire Middle East) would have been a newsworthy story for the self-styled “standard-setter of international journalism”. However, last weekend’s event received no coverage on BBC News’ English language website.
“The first ever “Miss Trans Israel Pageant” packed an auditorium at the Bima National Theater in Tel Aviv on Friday, to mark the beginning of the 2016 Pride Events in Tel Aviv. The winner of the event – 21-year-old Ta’alin Abu Hanna, a Christian Arab from Nazareth, will represent Israel at the Miss TransStar International pageant in Barcelona in September.”
The Times of Israel adds:
“A Christian Arab-Israeli ballet dancer, Abu Hanna told reporters she is “proud to be an Israeli Arab,” noting, “If I had not been in Israel and had been elsewhere — in Palestine or in any other Arab country — I might have been oppressed or I might have been in prison or murdered.””
One BBC department did however report on the competition in its earlier stages and, interestingly, that was BBC Arabic.
