Photo by Jacob Kupferman/NCAA Photos via Getty Images
The Cavinder twins fired back at a writer for ‘sexist trope’ after they said they were deceived for an interview.
Haley and Hanna Cavinder were a major talking point when it came to the NCAA and Name, Image and Likeness (NIL). They’re extremely popular on social media and also were a part of the Miami Hurricanes’ women’s basketball team that made the Elite Eight in the 2022 NCAA tournament.
The twins were the subject of a new profile at Bari Weiss’ The Free Press by writer Ethan Strauss this week, and they didn’t like how they were portrayed. Shortly after the profile was published, Hanna Cavinder posted a statement on Twitter saying her and her sister were deceived by the outlet for they thought would be a positive story about their transformation into NIL pioneers. Instead, the story focused on how the twins were making money only because of their appearance.
Here’s the statement from Hanna Cavinder.
Minimizing the Cavinder Twins to two “hot girls” without recognizing their accomplishments on the court is gross, and has a lot of people calling the outlet out on for sexism, including the Cavinder twins themselves.
The part that really stands out the most in Cavinder’s statement is in the second paragraph.
“Haley and I welcomed this man into our home. He followed us throughout the entire weekend asking us questions and what goes on in our daily lives. After the weekend we had a sit down interview in our kitchen for over an hour and was only asked one question about physical looks.”
The Cavinder twins go on to say they were “disappointed and disgusted by this journalism practice and blatant sexist trope.”
There are a LOT of issues with the story and what Strauss wrote. Here is a look at some of the reaction from Twitter.
The article is about when “hot” athletes like @CavinderHaley and @CavinderHanna make more NIL money than other athletes who are better than them (and presumably “uglier?”)
That misunderstands what NIL is. It’s not supposed to be about athletic prowess, but about brand value.
— Amanda Christovich (@achristovichh) June 14, 2023
I’ve covered the Cavinder twins since Day 1 of NIL. They’re savvy business women.
Being “hot” doesn’t give you success. To reduce their success (and that of other female athletes) to their looks is insulting.
— Amanda Christovich (@achristovichh) June 14, 2023
The other bizarre part of this article is the assertion that many Black female athletes aren’t benefiting.
Angel Reese has as many combined followers as the Cavinders across platforms. Saying the only women’s NIL success stories are white blondes is self selection. https://t.co/24cDwv0jUC pic.twitter.com/Rsd8kGesD3
— Shehan Jeyarajah (@ShehanJeyarajah) June 14, 2023
Not surprising given the writer/dipshit and the outlet, but that was a shameful and embarrassing article.
If you still support that dude after the last year and change, buddy… https://t.co/8a3dtM7Szb
— Mark Schindler (@MG_Schindler) June 14, 2023
There needs to be a deeper conversation around women’s sports and the NIL. After the Cavinder twins’ response, it’s clear everyone has some work to do.
