Former NFL Quarterback Brett Favre, to the dismay of both left-leaning political and sports media, has emerged as a leading conservative voice fighting the culture war. It has not earned him plaudits or popularity among elite institutions and pundits but anyone speaking out against the elites of today cannot expect anything but torment. Favre is a blueprint worth following for conservative celebrities, whether in hiding or publicly out.
Favre could have retired like any other right-aligned athlete. Move to Los Angeles or some other leftist enclave, and play golf all day while living and drinking among people who hate him and what he stands for. He could have sold out and become an ESPN host, parroting Disney’s woke talking points. He could have cashed in on his fame and pushed aside his beliefs.
Favre, a Republican who endorsed Donald Trump for president in 2020, has shown himself unafraid to engage in a culture war that any serious conservative today is cognizant of. He started a podcast with conservative commentator Eric Bolling in February, and it has quickly become popular among sports fans eager for a shift in the suffocating far-left climate.
Sports media, a clustered environment that has revolved around a few big names for far too long, is being democratized. Joining the likes of Clay Travis’s website Outkick (recently acquired by Fox News), as well as Will Cain and other select right-leaning personalities, Favre is in a position to shift the sociopolitical discourse in the other direction thanks to his stature and prior favorability.
One need only look at our former president to understand the effect a non-swamp creature can have on the political conversation. Favre may not be a politician with legislative powers, sure, but media is where narrative building really takes place. If Democrat-allied media was able to promulgate a four-year lie that Trump colluded with Russians and incited a Capitol breach, it seems pretty clear that brave media figures in any industry are in a position to change hearts and minds (for the better).
And so this week, Favre made headlines again. Amid a brewing transgender Olympics controversy, he called out the absurdity of a male New Zealand weightlifter competing in the women’s sports competition. “It’s a man competing as a woman,” Favre said. “That’s unfair.”
“It’s not fair for a man, even if this person wants to be a woman or feels compelled — if you want to become the opposite sex, that’s fine,” Favre continued. “I got no problem with it. But you can’t compete against — males cannot compete against females. If I was a true female — I can’t believe I’m saying that — and I was competing in weightlifting and lost to this person, I would be beside myself.”
Likewise, Favre called out male BMX rider Chelsea Wolfe, who claims to be a female and is set to participate as a female alternate in Tokyo, for anti-American language. Wolfe said in a dug-up Facebook post she sought to burn the American flag atop the medal podium.
“I wouldn’t have her participate in my Olympics; go participate for somebody else,” Favre said. “To say that is such a slap in our country’s face. I can’t believe this person can be allowed to participate for our country. She should be banned.”
Farve’s response channels the precise directness that all public figures on the right must espouse on culture war issues. Effective lawmakers will predictably rally for causes deemed marketable to voters and moral, but Favre’s participation in cultural issues carries the sort of weight one would expect from a, still, respected athlete.
When freshman New York Democrat Rep. Jaamal Bowman lambasted Favre in April for arguing for why sports should be non-partisan, it effectively illustrated the platform he has at his disposal. As a public figure who has inspired people from across the aisle through sheer athletic talent, Favre’s actions should be heeded by all conservative celebrities tired of the radical norms overtaking society.
Instead of remaining silent on today’s issues that are a burden and interest to everyday Americans, and remaining more focused on appeasing morally bankrupt woke overlords, it should be a primary concern of conservative celebrities to speak up. Not doing so, in fact, shows weakness and a willingness to remain comfortable in a society today teetering on law and order dissolution.
There will always be a flood of conservative pundits who have been funneled through the most elite institutions, drinking at the same bars in Capitol Hill, in gingham, sitting atop a decade-old trust fund.
Yet, in addition to the’s right need for people from a variety of backgrounds to step up to the plate, the right also needs cultural figures willing to stand up for Americans who feel disenfranchised by leftism’s institutional intrusion.
