Jen Psaki criticizes the message of Novig’s Sydney Sweeney ad
Jen PsakiMS NOW television host and political commentator
Jen Psaki said the message of Novig’s Sydney Sweeney ad was the problem and said it reinforced what she described as misogynistic sexualization of women’s sports.
“But the problem is the message an ad like this sends about women in sports.”
Original video
Where this statement fits
Sydney Sweeney’s Novig "Just Sports" ad draws backlash over sexualizing women’s sport
Novig, a U.S. sports prediction market in which Sydney Sweeney is a strategic partner and equity holder, released a "Just Sports" ad campaign on September 9, 2026, in which Sweeney appears nude or minimally clothed while covering herself with sports equipment. The ad drew public criticism from a number of female athletes, who said it sexualizes women’s sport; Novig’s CEO and at least one columnist publicly disputed that characterization.
Source and context
Original video
About this source
In this MS NOW video, Jen Psaki says she does not object to Sydney Sweeney’s choice to use her body, then argues that the Novig ad’s message reinforces what she describes as misogynistic sexualization of women’s sports.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Psaki says she does not object to Sydney Sweeney’s choice to use her body and says, “She looks great. Good for her.”
After the quotation
Psaki says female athletes have fought what she describes as misogynistic sexualization of women’s sports and says the ad reinforces it.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Case 39 concerns the criticism that the ad sexualizes women’s sport. Psaki explicitly calls the ad’s message a problem and says it reinforces misogynistic sexualization of women’s sports. That is a substantive criticism of the ad rather than a challenge to its characterization.
- Recorded on
- Published here
More from this case
Read the full caseFortinsky renews his defense of Novig's Sweeney ad
“Ultimately, I think we have nothing to apologize for and are very proud of the work that we did,”Read statement
Sophie Cunningham on the backlash: “Why are girls mad?… Go do your thing sis”
“Why are girls mad? That is literally what she does… Men, sports, naked women. Of course that’s gonna draw attention… Go do your thing sis”Read statement
Ron Elfenbein defends the Novig ad's "aspirational" approach
“advertising being aspirational again... is a good thing... you want people to look at your product and say, I want to feel good.”Read statement
Share or embed this statement
The embed keeps its attribution link to The Dispute Index. Credit the image to The Dispute Index and link to the statement page.
Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Jen Psaki criticizes the message of Novig’s Sydney Sweeney ad
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/1243-jen-psaki-said-the-message-of-novig-s
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Jen Psaki criticizes the message of Novig’s Sydney Sweeney ad". First published: 2026-09-20. Last updated: 2026-09-20. https://disputeindex.com/events/1243-jen-psaki-said-the-message-of-novig-s