Kim Mulkey, The Washington Post , and a Stealing Thunder Pseudo-Event During the 2024 NCAA Tournament

Abstract

Louisiana State University (LSU) basketball coach Kim Mulkey held an unorthodox press conference in March 2024 to discredit The Washington Post , journalist Kent Babb, and the state of journalism while addressing an unreleased news article. Mulkey’s scripted moment was constructed as a mediated pseudo-event that positioned her and the newspaper in opposition through a crisis communication approach known as stealing thunder. Interestingly, this press conference was constructed for a traditional media audience, though one that circulates the message through social media for interpretation. This discourse analysis traces unfolding digital conversations on the social media platform X across 4209 tweets as users co-construct their reactions. This vacuum of information allowed social media users to construct three discourses around Mulkey’s press conference: curious hype, polarizing Mulkey, and journalistic merit. These discourses served express purposes that generated user-based hype, reiterated existing opinions that users had about Mulkey and/or The Washington Post , or considered the broader role of journalism in reporting about sports. Implications for public relations practitioners are discussed.