Did The Free Press issue a retraction for 'Hot Girl' article on Cavinder twins? Ethan Strauss under fire following 'sexist trope' piece

The Cavinder twins controversy involving Ethan Strauss' article took another twist when the embattled writer doubled down on defending his article late Thursday.

Hanna Cavinder released a statement on Twitter that called the story "blatant sexist trope" and said she was disappointed at Strauss for reducing them to "hot girls."

The saga began on Tuesday when The Free Press published an article titled, “The NCAA Has a ‘Hot Girl’ Problem.” Strauss was allowed a behind-the-scenes peek at the lives of the ex-women's college basketball players and social media stars.

The Cavinder twins have become a staple at NBA games and the wrestling scene, where they have reportedly signed a NIL deal with NXT, a WWE subsidiary.

Their huge social media following took issue with the piece by The Free Press writer Ethan Strauss and let their opinions be known. So far, there has been no sign of a retraction by The Free Press.

Ethan Strauss' response

The article begins with saying that the twins aren't the best women's basketball players but they might be the best-looking. The introduction has been criticized to no end with fans claiming that it ignores the twin's basketball careers before their social media superstardom.

"The Cavinder Twins, the emerging oligarchs of women’s college basketball, aren’t the best players. But they might be the best-looking," Ethan Strauss wrote.

The debate raged on on Twitter and other social media platforms about the merits of the article all week. Strauss on Thursday released an article on his substack channel responding to the Cavinder twin's press release calling his article sexist.

Strauss seemed to dismiss the controversy:

"Look, I’m not trying to be pedantic or attack our Influencer Overlords. Arguing with 22 year olds seems unappealing."

The press release by Hanna Cavinder accused Strauss of obtaining the interview under a false pretense. She said that Strauss told her that he wanted to take a look at the lives of the most famous faces behind the NIL ruling.

She called the piece sexist, reducing their accomplishments to the sisters' attractiveness instead of their hard work and business acumen.

Strauss refuted Hanna Cavinder's categorization of his article:

"I recorded our entire talk and transcribed the conversation. It’s just made up. I also did not do the article under a false pretense, which I’ll demonstrate later on in the piece."

Strauss' response to the controversy brought forth a fresh wave of anger on Twitter, with one user calling it "cringe."

"I’m mostly out of the loop, and quiver before their viral Zoomer powers. Can they send flash mobs at me?" Strauss wrote. "Are flash mobs even still a thing?"