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The WNBA has been embroiled in a culture war in recent weeks, sparked by Sophie Cunningham telling a reporter she wants “to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn’t have to go against biological men.”
Several players have been asked about the issue following Cunningham’s comments in the late July ESPN article, including her teammate Caitlin Clark, who deflected when asked about the topic. The players’ union posted a statement Friday denouncing “hate, abuse, and demonization of any people, including transgender people.”
Cunningham made additional comments on the issue following an incident in Seattle between a fan and a Seattle Storm team owner. But she told reporters earlier this week that she wants the media’s focus to shift back to the sport: “I want to get back to basketball.”
But the media storm has continued, including from outlets that don’t regularly cover the WNBA.
Fox News host Jesse Watters said earlier this week that he was tired of covering the league. “This is week three of The Five covering the WNBA, and I have to say, I’m done,” Watters said.
OutKick, a conservative sports media company owned by Fox, is one of the outlets that has glommed onto the topic. Its reporters have consistently posted video clips of player reactions to the issue across social media.
The outlet’s reporters have consistently sought credentials to Fever games since the ESPN article dropped July 21 and have mostly been rejected.
Last week, OutKick reporter Dan Zaksheske posted a screenshot of his rejected credential application for the Fever’s road game against the Minnesota Lynx on July 31. An OutKick spokesperson says the outlet received rejections from the Lynx, Fever, Atlanta Dream, Dallas Wings, and Washington Mystics, but was accepted in Phoenix (July 9) and Portland (July 31).
Teams that rejected their application either provided no explanation or said they were “at capacity,” according to OutKick. The outlet also said the Mercury originally rejected its credential but approved after OutKick pushed back. A source close to the Mercury said they opened up seating that allowed for more media members at the game.
The Fire did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
On Friday morning, OutKick also told Front Office Sports two reporters—including one from Fox—were rejected by the Chicago Sky ahead of their home game against the Fever on Saturday. A team source told FOS that as of Friday morning, no decision had been made about OutKick’s credential; OutKick would not share a rejection email from the Sky when asked by FOS.
When asked about the situation, the league only said, “As indicated in the 2026 WNBA Media Access Policy, both Tier 1 and Tier 2 credentials are issued at the discretion of the home team.”
Those tiers are part of a new media policy the league rolled out before this season in an attempt to create uniform standards for who can report on the league in person. According to the policy, Tier 1 credentials are given to local and national outlets that regularly cover teams. Tier 1 media are granted access to team shootarounds, practices, pregame player interviews, and press conferences.
Tier 2 credentials are given to outlets that “cover the WNBA” and fit the following criteria:
- The outlet or individual produces consistent/quality reporting.
- The outlet or individual consistently attends games/practices/shootarounds.
- If the individual recently obtained an editor and is subsequently subject to a standard editorial process under which they are governed.
A league source told FOS that the media policy distributed before the season was the last time the WNBA issued blanket communication on credentialing. Teams are able to reach out to the league to advise on specific credential requests.
Multiple team sources confirmed the WNBA has not provided any blanket communication to the teams since the newfound media attention from Cunningham’s statements. One team source told FOS they are left in a “no-win” situation when making a credential decision on outlets like OutKick.
Another team source said they view it as their job to prepare players for whatever may come in a press conference.
The Fever have 13 more games before the end of the regular season, and they will visit six more cities: Chicago, Atlanta, Toronto, Dallas, New York, and Minnesota.
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