Mike Pesca is an American writer who is a recurring guest on anti-trans podcast Blocked and Reported. Pesca has also voiced support of other anti-trans writers, including Emily Bazelon‘s piece on trans youth that helped spark the New York Times trans coverage crisis of the 2020s.
Background
Michael G. “Mike” Pesca was born on December 29, 1971. Pesca earned a bachelor’s degree from Emory University in 1994.
In 1997, Pesca began as a producer at WNYC, working on the NPR and WNYC program On The Media. Pesca then became New York correspondent for Day to Day. Pesca was an early adopter on podcasts, becoming the first NPR reporter with one, titled “On Gambling with Mike Pesca.”
Pesca was podcast host of The Gist for Slate until 2021, when an internal company discussion of the use of a racial slur led to Pesca’s suspension and ultimate departure.
Pesca and first spouse Robin have two children, Milo and Emmett. Pesca later married former architect Michelle Hunter Pesca, who is COO of Peach Fish Projects Inc. dba Peach Fish Productions, founded in 2021.
Anti-transgender activity
In 2022 Pesca was attacked on a Mastodon journalism forum by trans media activist Parker Molloy. Molloy was enraged after Pesca praised a 2022 anti-trans piece by Emily Bazelon that appeared in the New York Times during their anti-trans coverage crisis. Molloy later apologized.
As the political winds shifted on trans issues in 2024, Pesca became more emboldened in discussing transgender athletes.
References
379 Hawthorne LLC (2024). Matter of 379 Hawthorne LLC v Hunter, 2024 NY Slip Op 51451(U) https://law.justia.com/cases/new-york/other-courts/2024/2024-ny-slip-op-51451-u.html
Pesca, Mike (November 27, 2024). Dem’s Point Lost in Translation. Pesca Profundities https://mikepesca.substack.com/p/dems-point-lost-in-translation
Pesca, Mike (November 18, 2024) [Criticism of a “fact sheet” about trans athletes]. X https://x.com/pescami/status/1858553922194968947
Urquhart, Evan (November 28, 2022). Ouroboros: Evan Urquhart Becomes the Anti-Trans Propagandists’ Muse. Assigned Media https://www.assignedmedia.org/breaking-news/ouroboros-evan-urquhart-becomes-the-anti-trans-propagandas-source
Bernstein, Joseph (November 21, 2022). Chaos on Twitter Leads a Group of Journalists to Start an Alternative. New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/21/style/mastodon-twitter-adam-davidson.html
Pesca, Mike (November 19, 2022). [documentation of attacks by Parker Molloy] X https://x.com/pescami/status/1594004079227068416
Robertson, Katie; Smith, Ben (February 22, 2021). Slate Suspends Podcast Host After Debate Over Racial Slur. New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/21/style/mastodon-twitter-adam-davidson.html
Resources
Mike Pesca (mikepesca.com)
Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)
X/Twitter (x.com)
- SlateGist [deleted]
- pescami
LinkedIn (linkedin.com)