Dana White’s UFC 309 Comments on Media and Influencers
After UFC 309 in New York on November 16, 2024, UFC CEO Dana White used the post-fight press conference to discuss traditional media, politicians and online influencers. White argued that legacy outlets had lost influence and public trust, and said he had built relationships with internet creators over several years. Those are his views; his remarks do not establish how much people trust different media or why the election turned out as it did.
What White said
White said he had believed for five years that “traditional media is dead” and no longer had the influence it once did. He called media and politicians “the two most hated people in this world,” then added: “Nobody trusts them. Nobody believes them.” He made the remarks at the UFC 309 post-fight press conference after President-elect Donald Trump attended the event.
His argument about influencers
White said he had been building relationships with online influencers for four or five years. He described them as the “true influence right now” and said, “this election was won on the internet.” The comments reflect White’s assessment of the 2024 campaign and his own approach to reaching audiences. The press conference did not provide polling or other evidence to quantify trust in media or compare the influence of creators with news organizations.
White’s remarks drew attention in part because he leads a major sports promotion and had publicly supported Trump. They are useful as a record of how White described the campaign’s media landscape, rather than as an independent measurement of public opinion.
Sources
UFC: Dana White’s UFC 309 post-fight press conference
Fox News: Report on White’s media and politics comments
Associated Press: Trump and White at UFC 309
