“I Am Cait” Transgender Reality Show Banned from MultiChoice Africa’s Lineup after an Influx of Complaints from Nigerian Viewers.

Caitlyn Jenner’s E! reality series has been removed from MultiChoice Africa’s lineup out of “respect” for customers, the company announced in a statement last week, the BBC reported.
MultiChoice cut the show after complaints from Nigeria’s broadcast regulator, outlets said. “MultiChoice recognizes the importance of respecting the views of its customers,” it said in a statement. Caitlyn Jenner’s reality show ‘I Am Cait’ which documents her life after transition from male to female.
MultiChoice, one of the largest satellite TV platforms in Africa, has decided to pull the show from its local E! Entertainment channel following complaints from Nigeria, reportsVanguard.
Last week, the company explains in a statement that it made its decision on the basis of ‘respect’ for its customers:
‘MultiChoice recognizes the importance of respecting the views of its customers and all regulatory environments within which its service operates,’ it says.
This is not the first time the TV company, with a reported customer base of 5.4 million households, bans a transgender-centered show.
In October 2015, ‘I Am Jazz,’ a reality series that chronicles the life of transgender teen Jazz Jennings got taken down too, after complaints came from Nigeria.
It seems that Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa and thus the biggest market, does carry quite some say as to what of Hollywood pop culture is allowed into the region, and which should be kicked out.
It is definitely a waste that ‘I Am Cait’ and ‘I Am Jazz,’ which both won Outstanding Reality Program at the GLAAD Media Awards last month, are banned on African TVs.
For Nigerians as well as other Africans, both shows would have been a great form of educational entertainment that introduces the concept of transgender rights and highlights the plight of many from the community.