Post-Roe Reality: Right Wing Media’s Evolving Coverage of Abortion Puts Pressure on GOP

By Jaden Satenstein

As the 50th anniversary of the historic Roe v. Wade decision approached, thousands of anti-abortion protesters took to the streets of Washington, D.C., on Friday, January 20 to let the country know that overturning that landmark ruling was only the beginning of their efforts to end abortion completely.

It was the first March for Life since the Dobbs v. Jackson decision turned the state of reproductive rights in the United States upside down, and staunch anti-abortion activists used the annual demonstration to mark a new phase in their efforts, holding signs reading, “I will march until abortion is unthinkable” and “I am the post-Roe generation.”

But what does right wing media coverage of this “post-Roe generation” look like? How have conservative news outlets shifted their narrative on abortion since the Dobbs leak last May and the official decision in June?

The Immediate Aftermath

In the wake of the ruling, the country witnessed widespread shock, disappointment and anger, as pro-choice activists protested the Supreme Court’s decision and many large companies offered assistance to employees seeking care.

Right-wing media’s reaction was quite different, as outlets sought to minimize the consequences of the ruling and convince readers that those mourning the loss of Roe were simply being melodramatic.

Fox News host Jesse Walters accused liberals of overreacting, saying that “you might have to, if you practice unsafe sex, drive an hour across state lines to get an abortion. It’s being overblown a little bit. Let’s just keep that in perspective.”

Conservative pundit Ann Coulter had a similar take, calling the outrage against the decision “hysteria” and claiming that Dobbs will have a minimal effect on abortion access. FrontPage made no effort to hide its misogyny, writing that no men would want to impregnate “Green-haired, morbidly obese leftist women” in the first place.

This initial response boiled down to a simple message  – calm down. Women are just being irrational. It really wasn’t a big deal, liberals’ were attempting to incite doomsday-like panic by insinuating that the ruling might actually impact people’s lives. After decades of raging against Roe, conservatives suddenly tried to gaslight the country into believing that the federal right to abortion was never all that meaningful to begin with, and that this vote was simply about reinforcing states’ rights in a federalist society.

Misreading the Midterms

According to right-wing media, liberal hysteria over abortion access was a ploy to win votes in the November midterms. And, they argued, it wouldn’t work.

WND predicted in October that “clueless” Democrats’ focusing on abortion rights would lead to a “GOP landslide.” The National Review falsely claimed that polls showing support for abortion were “garbage,” arguing that Americans largely side with Republican leaders on the issue.

The Federalist asserted that conservatives “shouldn’t despair” following Kansas’ August 2022 vote to reject a constitutional amendment that would remove abortion protections in the state, which Donald Trump won by more than 14 points just two years prior. While many liberals saw this victory as evidence that even Republican-leaning populations were far more pro-abortion than their own party platform, The Federalist insisted that the decision would likely not be replicated in other states. According to the article, the vote was merely a “setback.”

Then, another “setback” occurred – the midterm elections. The “GOP landslide” that was widely predicted didn’t happen. A variety of exit polls revealed that abortion access was a major concern for voters, once again demonstrating the widespread support for reproductive rights. But conservative outlets continued their usual strategy – deny and downplay – and outlets such as American Conservative claimed that “abortion didn’t hold back Republicans.”

What Now, GOP?

While conservative outlets minimize it, the undeniable support for abortion rights (captured for decades in national polls) has caused a crisis within Republican leadership. What does it mean to be anti-abortion in a post-Roe world?

While some Republicans, including Marco Rubio and Ron DeSantis, are receiving praise from right-wing outlets for being “pro-life role models,” many Republican politicians have been attacked by their base for failing to double down on support for all anti-abortion bills. Outlets such as Fox News and The Federalist criticized Trump for his claims that Republicans “poorly handled” the “abortion issue,” costing them countless votes.

Right-wing media may have downplayed the importance of Dobbs early, but conservative media throughout the fall and winter confirmed that overturning Roe was just the beginning.

The Washington Stand attacked a ballot initiative in California to enshrine the right to abortion and contraception in the state constitution, spreading false conspiracies about the potential effects of the initiative. The National Review published an article on the day of the March for Life calling for more “federal and state law, administrative policy, and significant cultural change” to end abortion. So much for just leaving it up to the states.

As Republicans hunt for a new stance on an issue once considered a simple political litmus test, right-wing media outlets are staking out ever-more extreme positions, forcing the GOP to make a difficult choice between reason and a reckless disregard for the reasonable.

Jaden Satenstein (@jadensat) is a writer,  producer and social media consultant. She has worked for WNYC, FRONTLINE PBS, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Straus News Manhattan.

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