Britt McHenry is out at the State Department a month after she joined, after a video showed her throwing a drink in a fan’s face at a Washington Wizards game.
Story Highlights
- Her exit from her press adviser job was reported Friday, October 23, two days after the game.
- McHenry said she signed a resignation letter, and the State Department said it does not comment on internal personnel matters.
- A source says she had been promoted the same day as the game.
- People close to her say fans nearby were making crude remarks about a player’s fiancée.
What Happened At The Arena
The clash came on Wednesday, October 21, at Capital One Arena in Washington, where the Wizards opened their home season against the Milwaukee Bucks. Video published the next day appears to show McHenry throwing a drink into a man’s face as fans chanted “Get her out!” The video also appears to show her being walked out of the stands. According to reports, fans threw things at her as she left her seat, and she waved and blew kisses on her way out.
Former ESPN reporter Britt McHenry resigned Friday as a U.S. State Department press adviser after video appeared to show her throwing a drink at someone during an NBA game at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. McHenry had been appointed to the position last month. pic.twitter.com/r9bfJVnt7B
— Playoff Media (@PlayoffMedia) October 24, 2026
McHenry’s side says the trouble started with heckling. According to reports, a fan was taunting Bucks player Kyle Kuzma, who used to play for the Wizards. A source said the fan claimed Kuzma played badly because of how his fiancée looks. She is the model Winnie Harlow, who has vitiligo, a skin condition that causes patches of lost color. McHenry told the fan to “ease up,” which drew attention to her. People close to her also say fans behind her made other crude remarks aimed at women. The man in the video has not been publicly named.
The Resignation And The Timeline
McHenry, 40, is a former ESPN reporter who covered the NFL from 2014 to 2017 and later worked as a Fox News commentator. She joined Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s department in September as a press adviser, a staff member who helps deal with reporters. According to a source, she was promoted to a new role on the same Wednesday as the game.
By Friday, she was gone. McHenry confirmed she signed a resignation letter. A source familiar with the matter put it more bluntly: “She was forced to resign,” the source said, adding, “She was promoted and fired within 24 hours.” The State Department has not said why she left. A department official called it “an internal personnel matter” and declined to comment further.
Why It Mattered For Her Job
A press adviser speaks for the government, so public image is a big part of the job. A viral clip of a government spokesperson in a fight with a fan pulls attention away from the work and toward the person. The video spread fast, and her exit followed within two days.
It is not the first time a viral video put McHenry in the headlines. In 2015, ESPN suspended her for a week after a video showed her berating a worker at a towing company. That clip resurfaced when she took the State Department job in September.
How The Trump Administration Responded
The administration kept its answer short. Beyond calling it an internal personnel matter, the State Department did not describe what kind of action it took or whether the game played a part. McHenry has not spoken publicly about the incident beyond confirming her resignation, and reporters who reached out for comment did not get a response.
The result is a quick end to a short run. A communicator who had been handed a bigger role on Wednesday was out of government by Friday, and the clip that ended it is still circulating online.
Sources:
frontofficesports.com, abc7news.com, pagesix.com, washingtonsun.com
