Culture

Netflix Made “Troubling Compromise” to Keep Saudi Arabia From Banning LGBTQ+ Shows


 

Netflix Co-Founder Reed Hastings revealed that the streaming service made what he called a “troubling compromise” in order to keep its LGBTQ+ oriented shows available in Saudi Arabia.

In a recent interview with CNN, Hastings said Saudi officials objected to its since-cancelled news talk show Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj, which criticized the country for its role in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Officials told Netflix that the content violated the country’s cybercrime laws and that it had to be removed.

“It was a difficult decision,” Hastings said last week.

But in agreeing to comply with the demand, the company was allowed to keep other content in place that might otherwise have run afoul of the country’s restrictive laws. He specifically cited shows like Queer Eye, Sex Education, and Orange Is the New Black, all of which heavily feature LGBTQ+ content.

“It is a troubling compromise,” Hastings said. “It is not something we approached easily or lightly, but on balance, we think it’s a good move.”

Saudi Arabia has strict laws banning homosexuality, with harsh penalties that include jail time, torture, and even execution. The climate of hostility and danger has led many LGBTQ+ Saudi citizens to flee the country. In 2019, two Saudi journalists earned notoriety after requesting asylum in Australia. They were detained until a campaign by LGBTQ+ activists brought attention to their plight, leading to their release.

Under the Obama administration, the State Department created programs to incentivize countries to decriminalize homosexuality. Those policies were opposed by then-Congressman Mike Pence, and the Trump administration has taken almost no action on its own decriminalization push.

This week is not the first time, however, Saudi Arabia has been implicated over its anti-LGBTQ+ policies, which include restrictions on media depicting queer lives. Earlier this year, the country joined Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar in banning the Disney film Onward, which includes a brief oblique reference to a same-sex relationship. Disney changed the dialogue for Russia, replacing “girlfriend” with “partner.”

Patriot Act, meanwhile, is still available in Saudi Arabia on Netflix’s YouTube channel. Hasan Minhaj, host of Patriot Act, criticized the censorship last year by pointing out that the government’s actions would only make people more eager to watch the show.

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