If you thought the Fox News obsession with the WNBA and Sophie Cunningham was out of control during the summer, it’s gone to another level after the 2026 midterm elections.
Fox News transformed itself after Cunningham came out against transgender athletes, taking to the controversy like a shark seeing a drop of blood in the culture war waters. The channel dedicated so much time to the issue that even its own hosts were wondering aloud why the network cared about the WNBA so much.
The whole issue has been exposed as a farce, capitalized upon by bad actors like Enes Kanter and others to sow division over a hot button issue that got completely out of control and wasn’t based in reality. But one thing it did do was firmly establish Cunningham’s cause célèbre on the right side of American politics.
So after Republicans suffered a historic shellacking at the ballot box during the 2026 midterm elections across the country, Fox News is turning to Sophie Cunningham as a ray of hope.
On the Wednesday after the election, Fox News dedicated multiple segments throughout the day to Cunningham according to media and politics chronicler Aaron Rupar.
Of course, the news value of anything to do with Cunningham should be at a low point. The WNBA season is over and a historic election cycle literally just took place. Political news should be at a high point. The country is grappling with the end of the Trump Era and two years of divided politics in Washington DC. There’s also the matter of resolving a disastrous war in Iran and getting the economy back on track and surely a flurry of investigations from a Democratic-controlled congress to come.
But who wants to talk about that when you’re Fox News and you can talk about what Sophie Cunningham reshares on her Instagram profile!
The cable news network doubled down on Friday’s Fox & Friends, ignoring what was going on in the rest of the world to do not one but two extended segments all about their chosen star and a message that wasn’t even hers, but was originally written by nutritional supplement CEO Andy Frisella.
“This message isn’t cope” — you can’t make it up — Fox & Friends is coping with Republicans’ historic midterm destruction by having daily Sophie Cunningham segments, including treating her social media posts like they are news. Sophie 2028! 😆
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) November 6, 2026 at 9:29 AM
beyond parody — Fox & Friends this morning had not one BUT TWO lengthy Sophie Cunningham segments based on her cliche-packed social media post that was vaguely meant to cheer up conservatives
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) November 6, 2026 at 9:31 AM
Of course, positive messages of hope and unity are great. Buuuuuut… that’s not exactly what Fox News has stood for over the years. And there’s no better way of signaling to the world that this is your way of coping with election results by insisting that it “isn’t cope.”
Sophie Cunningham is quickly becoming Fox News’ version of the Dallas Cowboys to ESPN. Why talk about whatever is actually happening in the world when you can play the hits and feel good about yourselves? It’s hilarious to think what the progressive alternative would be, perhaps MS Now spending hours on Steve Kerr’s doppelganger?
If anything, Fox News should dive even deeper into this content in the months ahead. The possibilities are endless. You can do Sophie Cunningham’s Instagram post of the day, where she might play next year in free agency, even 2026 Fever highlights from her 7.9 points per game this season. And if all else fails, there’s always the classic pointing meme. That should kill several hours so the channel doesn’t have to talk about the new political landscape. Give the people what they want!
But perhaps the 2026 midterm elections are a message from Americans everywhere that it’s time for everyone to move beyond the vitriol, polarization, and cruelty of the Trump years. And if this is a step in that direction for Fox News, then that’d be great for them and for everyone. At the very least, it’s better and less expensive than spending $787 million in a settlement for helping perpetuate lies the last time Republicans lost in nationwide elections.