On the morning of Aug. 8, ABCs “Good Morning America” was celebrating the Womens National Basketball Association. ABC is one of several networks that air WNBA games nationwide. ABCs Rachel Scott asked: “What’s the biggest WNBA story right now that fans should be paying attention to?” ESPNs Holly Rowe replied, “Its going to be really hard to make the playoffs.”
Within hours, a bigger story erupted: Indiana Fever basketball player Sophie Cunningham was brutally whacked in the face going up for a layup after the press decided she was controversial for wanting to keep women’s basketball limited to women. Chicago Sky player DiJonai Carrington was ejected from the game. She then rushed into the locker room and blamed “White privilege” for the ejection.
The broadcast networks didnt want to cover this development, either as a sportsmanship or culture-war issue. There was one network willing to report a few times on the WNBA facing the issue of men in womens sports: CBS, which might explain why liberals cast aspersions on its editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss.
On July 29, “CBS Evening News” fill-in anchor Matt Gutman reported on how the WNBA suspended Seattle Storm co-owner Celeste Keaton for yelling at two girls supporting Cunninghams position when the Fever came to town. The girls said Keaton called them “f—ing insane.”
Reporter Jan Crawford explained: “Cunningham, known for fearlessly defending teammate Caitlin Clark on the court, is the first active professional female athlete to speak out against transgender females in women’s sports. In an ESPN profile earlier this month, Cunningham says girls in sports shouldn’t have to go against biological men.”
Then came a sound-bite of Cunningham: “I said what I said. I think it’s kind of common sense. And I think I’ll always believe in that.” Crawford added that when Cunningham was asked if her words could sound “anti-transgender,” she replied, “I have never once said I hated the trans community. Like I said, I think there’s space for everyone.” Men always have the space of mens sports.
The “CBS Evening News” and Crawford returned to the story on Aug. 10, two days after Cunningham was whacked on the court. Crawford relayed: “Fans on both sides of that debate have been vocal. And trying to prove a point, two former NBA players said they would identify as women and declare for the WNBA draft.” After a soundbite of Enes Kanter Freedom saying he declared for the WNBA draft, Crawford added: “The firestorm has put a harsh spotlight on the WNBA with critics saying the league wasnt ready for its explosion of popularity.”
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NPR sounded annoyed when they raised the issue briefly in a s
