A former Newsmax reporter quickly found himself at the center of brutal mockery this week when he posted a celebratory photo of himself proposing to his girlfriend alongside the caption: “Pride month is so defeated.”
Addison Smith, a former One America News host who was reportedly ousted from Newsmax last month, has relished the backlash to his gay-bashing tweet. Speaking to The Daily Mail on Monday, Smith rejoiced that his engagement announcement “triggered an entire army of libs” and he couldn’t “think of a better way to cap off pride month.”
In an obviously blatant attempt to bait the queer community, Smith took to X on Sunday to announce that he had popped the question to Charis Edwards, a booking producer for former Fox host Lou Dobbs. Smith wrote that his heterosexual betrothment somehow “defeated” the month devoted to LGBTQ pride.
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Edwards, meanwhile, reacted to her beau’s tweet by referencing Donald Trump’s campaign slogan: “Make June Great Again,” she posted.
While Smith received scant support from right-wing social media trolls including Ian Miles Cheong, the 24-year-old MAGA journalist was largely ridiculed for making his future marriage about gay people.
“I, too, thought only about the gays when I, a very heterosexual person, got very heterosexually engaged to another heterosexual,” CNN columnist Jill Filipovic tweeted. “You proposed to your girlfriend and your first thought was gay people? Weird flex, babe,” noted liberal influencer Chris Evans (no, not that Chris Evans).
Others were just outright confused why Smith felt compelled to blast Pride Month during his “ostensibly straight engagement announcement,” adding that it was “even more hilarious” that he was so obsessed with it.
“It’s actually crazy that these two commemorated their love for one another by taking a shot at queer people instead of saying literally *anything* nice about each other—and can’t see how massive that self own is,” healthcare advocate Kendall Brown pointed out.
Many also poked fun at Smith over his choice of engagement attire, which included a blue floral button-down shirt and blue knitted sneakers. When asked “what is this shirt,” Smith responded: “A hand-me-down from my black friend (true story).” Naturally, more hilarity ensued over the ex-Newsmax correspondent invoking the “I have Black friends” defense. “This is why I can never quit Twitter,” Fillipovic declared.
Besides boasting to the Mail that his tweet had “triggered” the libs, Smith has spent the past 24 hours relentlessly insisting that he has not been owned. All the while, he has attempted to troll his detractors with some cringey MAGA chest-puffing.
“Hundreds of thousands of views. Endless angry comments😂. The libs are triggered. PRIDE MONTH IS DECIMATED!! HUGE WHITE BOY SUMMER W,” he tweeted, invoking a meme that has been co-opted by white nationalists. “Make June not gay again,” Smith added.
Needless to say, Smith’s antics and tripling down on his original post have only induced more eyerolls. “Politicizing your engagement and then spending the whole next day arguing with people online is maybe the saddest thing I’ve ever seen on Twitter and there are some real idiots here,” one observer sighed on Monday.
Of course, going viral on social media appears to be Smith’s only mission, much to the detriment of his actual employment. Last month, it was reported that he was fired as a Newsmax correspondent because he was sharing clips of his man-on-the-street videos to his personal Twitter account before they aired on the network.
