As right-wing podcasters who helped get President Donald Trump elected start to retreat in their support of him, a new crop of "sports talkers, a constellation of the podcast bro ecosystem" are filling the void, writes Salon senior writer Sofia Tesfaye.
Criticisms from the most popular podcasters —Joe Rogan, Theo Von, Andrew Schulz — are "reflecting a growing disillusionment among parts of Trump’s base that put him back in the White House," Tesfaye says,
“I feel like the transparency as well is an issue, not just with tariffs, but also feeling like he switched positions when talking about the Epstein files from saying it’s a huge deal to saying that ‘Oh, it’s not really a big deal,’” a 22-year-old Republican from Pennsylvania recently told NBC News.
And while young males comprise a majority of Rogan's massive base, sports talkers, as Tesfaye calls them, started emerging as soon as former New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick had Trump on his own podcast on election eve. When Trump won, he invited UFC CEO and president Dana White to the podium.
Tesfaye points to the growing sports talker MAGA influence in a post-mortem election analysis from a former Kamala Harris staffer who said, “the culture that has been associated with heavy sports-watching has become associated with right-wing culture,” a culture which Harris had trouble tapping into.
This sports-talk industry, Tesfaye writes, tapped into what has now become the "anti-woke" culture back in the day when the late shock jock pioneer Don Imus was fired after describing the Rutgers University womens' basketball team as "nappy-headed h——."
"Many see that event as one of the early flashpoints of the so-called woke era — and Trump’s election to a second term as a final rejection of political correctness," she says.
Trump, "whose fondness for 'locker room talk' was made infamous in the 'Access Hollywood' tape released ahead of the 2016 election, has a long history with professional sports," Tesfaye says, noting his various ephemeral forays into sports ownership and promotion as well as his attendance at various sporting events during his second term.
"Based on Trump’s long history with sports, it’s no surprise the world of sports media is now stepping up with full-throated support," she writes. "The president seems to have found a safer haven for support in the world of sports during his second term than his first."
Trump, who once referred to NFL players who knelt for the national anthem as “sons of b------," has been staunchly defended by Stephen A. Smith, whom Tesfaye refers to as "perhaps America's most famous sports-talker," who regularly criticizes Trump's critics.
"As right-wing influencers sour on Trump, sports-focused media outlets appear steadfast," Tesfaye says, highlighting Fox-owned Outkick founder Clay Travis and Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy.
"These 'sports bros' are helping normalize a culture that aligns with anti-woke sentiments, she writes, adding "like toxic masculinity, that undergird the MAGA movement."
So what happens when they turn on Trump?
"Like their brethren in the 'manosphere,' sports bros may soon see their popularity suffer as a result of their support for Trump," she says. "Ultimately, Trump will simply replace the new influencers — just as he has his disillusioned old influencers."