Addison Rae Gives Update on Her UFC Reporting: "Y’all Got Me Fired"
Published July 11 2021, 11:47 a.m. ET
Either Addison Rae was fired from a UFC reporting job, or she never had one to begin with. Either way, her post about landing a job reporting on the Ultimate Fighting Championship after “three whole months” of college didn’t go over well on Twitter.
On July 9, Addison posted photos of herself with a UFC microphone on a red carpet, looking every bit the reporter ahead of UFC 264’s match between Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor in Las Vegas.
“I studied broadcast journalism for three whole months to prepare for this moment,” she wrote, captioning the pics with a reference to her short-lived college career.
Two days and many online critiques later, the TikTok star gave fans an update. “Never mind, y’all got me fired,” she tweeted.
Twitter users clapped back at Addison’s “audacity” when they thought she got a UFC reporting job that others “work their asses off for.”
Commenters on Addison’s original post were quick to say that Addison skipped the line, so to speak, just because she’s a TikTok superstar.
“This is disrespectful to all the people who go to college and work their asses off for jobs like this and sometimes don’t even get them, but because Addison has clout, she gets them over qualified sports journalists,” one person tweeted.
“The audacity,” another Twitter user wrote. “Do you know how many people who are more trained and qualified who have been studying this and putting their whole life savings into college that you took this away from? I have a friend who studied for six years only to have thus shoved in her face. Disgusting.”
But Addison had a defender in Twitch star Krtzyy. “People mad at Addison as if she really stole a job from someone,” Krtzyy tweeted. “She’s obviously there for publicity, and if it wasn’t her, it was gonna be a different celebrity. This is not a new concept.”
KALB-TV morning news anchor Javonti Thomas also came to Addison’s defense, writing, “I work in broadcast as a news anchor. I don’t understand the outrage. Companies can hire who they choose. Being an influencer or having a big social media following can sometimes be a plus. There’s nothing wrong with someone getting a shot at something new.”
And YouTuber and musician Tyler Layne split the difference, expressing happiness for Addison while also offering feedback. “It’s the way you worded the caption for me,” he tweeted, adding a weary-face emoji. “Very exciting that you got this opportunity, but many broadcast journalism majors who spent four years studying won’t ever get a chance like this because they aren’t social media famous. Still happy for you, though!”
But Addison’s UFC gig reportedly entailed just one “social activation.”
An E! News source tried clearing up the situation, claiming that Addison was never a gainfully employed correspondent.
“She did one social activation for UFC where she interviewed Dustin because they’re from the same town, Lafayette, [La.],” the source contended. “She’s not, nor was she ever, a correspondent. She’ll be at the fight tonight but just as a spectator. There were never any plans for her to have any further official responsibilities.”