Podcast Summary

Pablo Torre Finds Out: "The Teenage Athlete at the Heart of America's Culture War... Isn't Very Good at Sports"

Date: November 24, 2023
Host: Pablo Torre (with segments featuring producers, co-hosts, and guest Ember Zelch)
Main Guest: Ember Zelch, Ohio high school softball player

Episode Overview

This episode explores the reality behind the political and media frenzy about transgender girls participating in girls' sports by focusing on a real-life teenager, Ember Zelch, who became the specific target of Ohio's anti-trans athlete legislation. Pablo Torre visits Ember to uncover her actual sports ability, lived experiences, and the disconnect between public rhetoric and reality.

The narrative interrogates the broader "culture war" around trans athletes, exposing how policies and outrage often target a largely invisible, minuscule population, and in this case, a single teenager who simply wants to belong.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Real vs. Perceived Threat of Trans Athletes

• Opening Context – The National Narrative

  • Pablo and his colleagues set up today's "most urgent story in sports," not as Deion Sanders or Aaron Rodgers, but as the supposed crisis of "biological boys playing in girls' sports," a talking point dominating political discourse (03:16).
  • Clips from politicians and cable news highlight the intense rhetoric:

    “The idea that we have biological boys playing in girls sports. It is the women’s issue of our time.” (03:16)
    “Transgenderism is a lie. You don’t get to choose your own gender...” (03:26)

• Statistics vs. Public Perception

  • The public wildly overestimates the number of trans people:

    “One study found that the average American now believes that 21% of American adults identify as trans... Do you know... what the real percentage is?” – Pablo (07:51)
    “0.5%. According to UCLA’s Williams Institute, the actual answer is 0.5% of American adults are trans.” – Pablo (07:55)

  • The number of trans kids in sports is even smaller; in Ohio, at the time of legislative debate, there was exactly one trans girl playing varsity sports.

Introducing Ember Zelch (10:13)

• Who Is Ember?

  • Not a prodigy athlete but a soft-spoken, animal-loving, self-proclaimed nerd who happens to be the sole trans girl on a high school sports team in Ohio.
  • Her bedroom is filled with animal care paraphernalia and a single participation trophy (11:23):

    “The only thing that’s even metal here is the foil that’s all over your bed.” – Pablo (10:26)
    “That foil is to prevent [my cats] from peeing on my bed.” – Ember (10:42)

• Fact-Checking the Myth

  • Pablo meets Ember’s mother, who bluntly confirms Ember’s utter ordinariness as an athlete:

    “How would you describe Ember’s athletic prowess?” – Pablo (14:00)
    “There really isn’t much.” – Ember’s mother (14:12)
    “No, she’s never hit a home run in her life.” – Ember’s mother (14:14)

Ember’s Experience: Identity and Bureaucracy (19:01–25:28)

• Coming Out and Wanting to Play

  • Ember recounts coming out in 5th grade (pushed back into the closet by a friend’s comment), finally coming out at home in 7th grade.

    “I told a friend of mine at the time, I think I’m a girl... She told me, ‘You’ll always be a boy to me.’ And that ended up pushing me in the closet for two more years.” – Ember (19:01)

  • Her mother shares the pain and concern:

    “You hug her, you love her... going to bed at night and just crying yourself to sleep... because we knew how much harder it would make her life.” – Ember’s mom (19:35)

• The Medical and Regulatory Gauntlet

  • To play on a girls’ team required a year of hormone therapy, regular medical evaluations, and an invasive verification of physical metrics.

    “For me, it meant a testosterone suppressant and taking estradiol for a year... nine pills in the morning, nine pills at night.” – Ember (21:44)

  • The compliance process is bewildering and humiliating:

    “It was incredibly invasive. And ultimately, it just creates the feeling of just like, they don’t view me as a real girl.” – Ember (24:50)

The Local vs. Legislative Response (25:38–34:05)

• Team Acceptance vs. Political Hostility

  • Teammates barely noticed, let alone cared, about Ember being trans.

    “...everyone got into a circle... I was like, I am Ember Zelch, upcoming freshman in college, and I am trans. Half of the facial expressions just like, ‘Okay, I’m gay.’... Not that I was trans, but that I told them I was trans, like it was a big deal.” – Ember (27:26)

  • The only real opposition came from “mostly older male politicians” (28:36).

    “They are doing their damn best to make it illegal for me to play.” – Ember (28:50)

  • Pablo sums up the irony:

    "The entire state, again, was organized against one trans girl, which was you.” – Pablo (31:53)

• Testifying before Politicians and Encountering Absurdity

  • Ember repeatedly testifies at the State House, facing demeaning treatment:

    “It’s demeaning, and it’s horrifically painful to have to look up at people who are in these big chairs above you and essentially plead to them to not take away your rights.” – Ember (32:29)

  • At times, opposition arguments veer into religious territory:

    “The only thing that makes sense for what’s going on in this country is that demons are influencing people, allowing their bodies to be possessed to run satanic agendas.” – “Demon dude” (35:35)

• Legislative Dishonesty

  • Lawmakers lie about "countless complaints" concerning trans students in sports; the Ohio High School Athletic Association confirms there have been zero (37:45).

    “We... cross checked this... and yeah, the Ohio High School Athletic Association says in writing that there have been zero filed complaints against any trans students who’ve been approved to compete to date.” – Pablo (37:49)

What Trans Kids in Sports Actually Experience (38:44–41:58)

• Normalcy, Community, and Subpar Facilities

  • Ember’s testimony focuses on her normal experience, emphasizing the camaraderie and ordinariness of playing on a team.

    “Playing on a girls team has been an incredible experience for me... My teams are part of my family.” – Ember (38:44)

  • Real support for women’s sports would prioritize resources, not exclusion:

    “Almost every field was crap... My team had to get on a bus to go to our field. Not for an away game, to our home game.” – Ember (39:29, 40:19)

• Personal Consequences

  • Faced with unending scrutiny, Ember chooses to leave Ohio for college, giving up an in-state $10,000 scholarship to prioritize her mental health (41:08).
  • She jokes about her “athletic scholarship” being for “keeping the bench warm”:

    “They sent some scouts for this Division 3 school and they saw, oh, that girl on the bench… We want her on our team.” – Ember (42:02)

Why Keep Playing? The True Value of Sport (42:54–47:11)

• Refuge in the Game

  • Sports serve as escape and joy, not just competition:

    “On the field, I can put away all the bull, all this legislation, scholarships, all these thoughts... and I can join this group of people who understand my desire to just want to be part of a team.” – Ember (42:54)

• The Reluctance of Visibility

  • Torchbearer status is a burden, not an aspiration:

    “I hate it. I’m not even joking... I don’t want to be the center of focus. I don’t want to have to testify. It sucks. I don’t want that. I hate interviews. I’m an introvert.” – Ember (45:27)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |---|---|---| | 07:51 | Pablo | “One study found that the average American now believes that 21% of American adults identify as trans... the real percentage is 0.5%.” | | 10:13 | Pablo (to Ember) | “I’ve been told that you’re amazing at softball… but the only thing that’s even metal here is the foil on your bed.” | | 14:12 | Ember’s Mom | “There really isn’t much.” (on Ember’s athletic prowess) | | 21:57 | Ember | “That’s not the only thing I’m taking. But, like, altogether, the concoction is nine pills in the morning, nine pills at night.” | | 24:50 | Ember | “It was incredibly invasive. And ultimately, it just creates the feeling of just like, they don’t view me as a real girl, per se.” | | 27:58 | Ember | “Not that I was trans, but that I told them I was trans, like it was a big deal.” | | 35:35 | Demon Dude | “Demons are influencing people, allowing their bodies to be possessed to run satanic agendas.” | | 37:51 | Pablo | “We cross checked... there have been zero complaints against transgender athletes in this state.” | | 42:54 | Ember | “On the field I can put away all the bull, all this legislation, scholarships, all these thoughts... and I can join this group of people…” | | 45:27 | Ember | “I hate it. I’m not even joking... I don’t want to be the center of focus. I don’t want to have to testify. It sucks.” |

Segment Timestamps

• 00:50 – Politicians’ inflammatory rhetoric on trans girls in sports
• 07:55 – Actual statistics on trans people in America
• 10:13 – Pablo meets Ember, begins fact-checking the “dominant athlete” myth
• 14:12 – Ember’s mom on Ember’s sports skills
• 19:01 – Ember’s coming out story and family response
• 21:44 – Medical requirements and transition for sports participation
• 24:50 – Privacy and dignity compromised by state bureaucracy
• 27:26 – Teammate reactions vs. political outrage
• 28:36 – Politicians as the sole source of resistance
• 32:29 – Dehumanizing experience of testifying in the State House
• 35:35 – “Demon dude” and the metaphysical arguments
• 37:51 – Exposing the myth of “countless complaints”
• 38:44 – Ember’s testimony about her true sports experience
• 39:29 – Real problems: Lack of facilities and support for girls’ sports
• 41:08 – Ember’s tough decision to leave Ohio and D3 softball
• 42:54 – Ember explains why she keeps playing despite adversity
• 45:27 – Reluctant figurehead: the personal toll of being a “representative”

Conclusion & Takeaway

The episode dismantles the myth of a widespread, competitive threat posed by trans girls in sports, revealing how political efforts and media hysteria target, in some cases, only one person. Rather than a sports prodigy stealing trophies, Ember is a benchwarmer who must fight state legislatures merely for the right to be included. The episode delivers poignant reflections on belonging, the purpose of youth sports, and the harm of scapegoating a statistically invisible minority for political gain.

"They are not all Lia Thomas. They’re benchwarmers, too. They’re teenagers who just want to be on a team where they belong... just not that good at sports. And just like us human beings who deserve the right to be completely mediocre at the thing they love." – Pablo (49:00)

This episode is essential listening for anyone seeking to understand the human realities behind national debates, and to separate cultural myth from statistical fact and individual lived experience.