In recent months, Fox News and Fox Corp.’s sports property OutKick have dedicated online and on-air coverage to a trans high school track-and-field athlete competing in California. Now President Donald Trump has seemingly referenced the athlete in a Truth Social post, making her the target of his latest attempt to elevate state policy on trans athletes to the level of a national crisis.
Andrea Austria / Media Matters
Research/Study
Fox has been covering a trans high school athlete in California for months. Now it looks like Trump is posting about her.
Fox News aired a segment on the athlete less than an hour and a half before the president posted
Written by Alyssa Tirrell
Published
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A California high school track-and-field athlete has garnered national attention amid efforts to exclude trans athletes from women's sports
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- After she was doxxed by a school board official and former gym teacher, 16-year-old AB Hernandez has faced protests and outrage but has continued to compete. In February, Chino Valley Unified School District President Sonja Shaw doxxed the student, “revealing her name, her high school and the fact that she is trans.” Since then, Hernandez has faced heckling from protesters and scrutiny in the national media. The California Interscholastic Federation supports her right to compete in the girls division in compliance with California law. [Capital & Main, 4/2/25; 5/15/25; OutSports, 5/19/25]
- Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk named Hernandez on California Gov. Gavin Newsom's podcast earlier this year. In a March interview, Kirk asked Newsom about the athlete's performance in a then-recent triple high jump event where she had outpaced her competitors. Newsom responded, “I’m not wrestling with the fairness issue. I totally agree with you.” Nevertheless, California state law continues to allow trans athletes to compete on teams consistent with their lived gender. [USA Today, 3/6/25; CBS, 5/27/25]
- This week, Trump seemingly posted about Hernandez on Truth Social but didn't actually name her. Trump also seemed to reference Newsom's statements about Hernandez and threatened to rescind federal funding if an executive order barring trans athletes from competing as their lived gender was not “adhered to” in California. He also claimed that Hernandez was “practically unbeatable” and ordered “local authorities, if necessary, to not allow the transitioned person to compete in the State Finals.” [Truth Social, 5/27/25; NBC, 5/27/25]
- Following the post, the California Interscholastic Federation changed the rules of the state championship in favor of cis athletes and the Trump administration escalated its investigation into the state's policies. The CIF altered the rules of the championship such that “athletes assigned female at birth will receive medals based on where they would have finished if a transgender athlete had not competed in the same event.” The Department of Justice has announced plans to ramp up an investigation into California’s policies, joining an existing investigation led by the Department of Education. [USA Today, 5/28/25; The New York Times, 5/28/25]
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Fox News and OutKick have been covering the story for months
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- On March 3, OutKick published an article about Hernandez titled “California Male Sets America's Top High School Girls' Triple Jump Mark.” The article named Hernandez and claimed that “California, which is run by far-left Democrat Gavin Newsom, is one of several states that have already said they do not plan to adhere to President Donald Trump's executive order, Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports.” [OutKick, 3/3/25]
- On March 5, Fox anchor Harris Faulkner named Hernandez on the air, saying she had “won the girls triple jump event by staggering 8 feet late last month.” Contributor Steve Hilton called trans inclusion a “war on women.” [Fox News, The Faulkner Focus, 3/5/25]
- On March 6, OutKick published an article on Newsom's interview with Kirk and named Hernandez. The article was titled “Gavin Newsom Squirms When Asked If Men Should Be Allowed To Play In Women's Sports.” [OutKick, 3/6/25]
- On April 17, OutKick published an article titled “California Still Allowing Males To Win Girls' High School Track & Field Events.” The article named both Hernandez and a trans swimmer competing in the state. It also referenced Newsom's interview with Kirk, noting, “Even though Newsom has publicly admitted that males competing in girls' sports is ‘unfair,’ he has taken no action to stop it in his own state.” [OutKick, 4/17/25]
- On May 10, Fox News published an article about a protest against Hernandez' inclusion in her sport. The article highlighted cis athletes who opposed trans inclusion in women's sports but did not name Hernandez. [Fox News, 5/10/25]
- On May 18, OutKick published an article about a cis student athlete who had protested Hernandez. The article named Hernandez and referenced the national pressure being applied to California in light of the president's executive order. [OutKick, 5/18/25]
- On May 20, Fox News published a similar article, also about the cis student athlete. The Fox article also outlined California's break from the president's order and underscored the praise the student had received. [Fox News, 5/20/25]
- On May 21, Fox News hosted a cis student athlete who had lost to Hernandez. The student athlete appeared on America Reports and discussed the competition. Fox News also published a digital article on the segment. [Fox News, America Reports, 5/21/25; Fox News, 5/21/25]
- On May 26, OutKick published an article about Hernandez' state finals qualification. The article named Hernandez, writing that it was “a name you may be familiar with.” [OutKick, 5/25/25]
- On May 27, Fox & Friends dedicated a segment to Hernandez' state finals qualification. Guest Jennifer Sey cited Newsom's interview with Kirk, saying, “Gavin Newsom, governor of California, said it was unfair for boys to compete in girls sports, but he has done nothing about it.” The interview aired around 7:50 a.m. ET, less than an hour and a half before Trump made his post. [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/27/25; Truth Social, 5/27/25]
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Right-wing media have repeatedly spotlighted trans student athletes in the past, including minors
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- Last fall, OutKick repeatedly targeted trans student athlete Blaire Fleming. Fleming was doxxed by Reduxx, a so-called “pro-woman, pro-child-safeguarding” website, prompting further attention from right-wing media. OutKick contributor Riley Gaines was a vocal supporter of teams that forfeited their matches against Fleming's team and even offered to potentially financially compensate those who refused to play. [Media Matters, 10/9/24; The New York Times, 4/20/25]
- Early that year, Gaines called an eighth-grade trans athlete a “mediocre man” in an appearance on Fox. Gaines told Fox News, “This is becoming more and more common. It's seemingly a mediocre man who decides to switch to the women's team who becomes a record smasher and that's exactly what we have seen here.” [Media Matters, 5/21/24]
- In 2023, Media Matters reported on the Independent Council on Women’s Sports, a group that had promoted backlash against two trans student athletes with the help of right-wing media outlets. The trans high school runners were also competing in California and “were targeted with protests, threats, and days of right-wing media coverage — for races they did not win.” After ICONS elevated their inclusion in their sport, “right-wing media outlets and personalities including National Review, OutKick, Stephen Crowder, and Riley Gaines blasted the names and images of one or both of the two minors to their sizable audiences, misgendering the high schoolers and accusing them of cheating simply for competing with other athletes of their gender.” [Media Matters, 7/6/23]
- In early 2022, Fox News frequently covered then-college swimmer Lia Thomas. Fox News aired 32 segments discussing Lia Thomas from December 3, 2021, through January 12, 2022. A year later, Gaines – who had competed against Thomas during their NCAA career – continued to mention Thomas on Fox News. [Media Matters, 1/13/22; 6/13/23]