Dear Liberals: There’s a Promotion Named TNA, Which You Ignore or Hate?
If you missed our breakdown earlier this week on how TKO, Trump, and the media machine play the public (check out Working the Marks: How TKO, ESPN, and Modern Politics Play the Same Room), let's pivot to the other side of the aisle.
The internet wrestling community spends half its day agonizing over corporate consolidation, billionaire monopolies, and the political alignment of major promotions.
Yet, the same progressive fans screaming about modern media ethics and inclusive values completely ghost the most forward-thinking major company in the industry: TNA Wrestling.
It is the ultimate blind spot of the online hive mind. For years, the IWC has treated TNA as the punchline of an outdated 2010s meme, parroting whatever talking points Dave Meltzer and Sean Ross Sapp feed them.
They claim they want an alternative to the corporate duopoly, but when a viable, highly progressive alternative is sitting right in front of them on television, they refuse to look.
If you actually look under the hood, TNA has quietly built the most inclusive locker room and executive structure in professional wrestling history—long before it became a corporate marketing checklist for other companies.
The Invisible Alternative
Executive Leadership: Ross Forman serves in a high-level executive role as an openly gay man, representing some of the highest-ranking executive representation for the LGBTQ+ community in professional wrestling.
Creative Pushing & Talent: Long before mainstream promotions figured out how to integrate diverse talent naturally, TNA was giving high-profile television real estate to trailblazers like Gisele Shaw, spotlighting authentic representation without treating it as a token gesture.
Progressive Locker Room Culture: Under leadership like Scott D'Amore, the company fostered an environment where diverse identities weren't just tolerated behind the scenes—they were trusted to carry top-tier television storylines.
Modern Inclusivity: From welcoming non-binary athletes like Mike Bailey to maintaining a culturally diverse roster that consistently punches above its weight class, TNA has walked the walk while the major players just talked the talk.
Yet, the self-proclaimed progressive fans of the internet won't give them a single ounce of credit.
They would rather spend their time regurgitating bad-faith dirtsheet pile-ons than tune into a product that actually aligns with their stated values.
If you are a left-leaning wrestling fan bitching about billionaire-backed wrestling while ignoring TNA, you aren't fighting the system—you're just following instructions from a podcaster.
Drop the lazy group-think, check the bias, and start supporting the promotion that actually reflects the values you claim to care about.
