Washington: US President Donald Trump's latest hiring announcement has sparked an unusual debate online, with social media users speculating that he may have confused two people with the same name while choosing his next White House press secretary.
Trump announced on Saturday that he had offered the position to Dana White, president and CEO of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and one of his longtime allies. However, the announcement prompted internet users to dig up another Dana White – a former Pentagon communications official – and joke that the president may have intended to appoint her instead.
Also Read
The theory remains unverified and is based entirely on social media speculation.
Trump's announcement
"I am pleased to announce that the Great Dana White, a violent Fighter and Warrior, has been offered the job of Press Secretary of the United States. Dana, please take the job!" Trump wrote on Truth Social.
White has not explicitly confirmed whether he intends to accept the offer. However, he fuelled speculation by sharing an AI-generated image of himself standing behind the podium in the White House briefing room, accompanied by the caption: "On to the next chapter."
He also reposted a screenshot of Trump's announcement.
How the internet came up with the mix-up theory
The speculation gathered momentum after Spencer T Hakimian, founder of New York-based hedge fund Tolou Capital Management, shared a video featuring Dana W White, a former Assistant to the Secretary of Defence for Public Affairs.
Joking about a possible case of mistaken identity, Hakimian said: "I guarantee you 100%, somebody recommended her to Trump and he mistook her for the UFC's Dana White and now we all are in this mess."
American journalist and podcast host Vitus Spehar, who runs the TikTok account UnderTheDeskNews, also weighed in.
In an Instagram post, Spehar questioned how Trump would react if he discovered that the Dana White being proposed for the press secretary's position was not the UFC president.
Spehar highlighted the other Dana White's background in journalism and communications, including her association with the Heritage Foundation. She also served as Assistant Secretary of Defence under General James Mattis during Trump's first term.
Why the appointment has attracted attention
The online discussion comes as the White House is looking for a new press secretary following the departure of Katie Zacharia on October 16, less than a week after she took up the position.
Zacharia's appointment had attracted attention after she was named on October 9 as the successor to Karoline Leavitt, who became the youngest person to serve as White House press secretary.
Her first briefing, which lasted 14 minutes, drew criticism over her halting delivery and remarks praising Trump and his administration. She also faced questions over claims that she had described herself as a lawyer despite not having passed a bar examination or holding the credentials required to practise law.
Her brief tenure kept the spotlight on Trump's next choice for the role, making the announcement about Dana White an immediate talking point.
The Dana White Trump actually named
Trump's announcement explicitly referred to the UFC chief, who is 57 and heads the world's largest mixed martial arts organisation.
The US President also suggested that White could bring six UFC fighters into the White House as advisers, adding that he was open to the idea even though some of them were not American citizens.
The group reportedly includes two Russian fighters and one Brazilian.
Despite the viral speculation, there is no evidence that Trump intended to appoint the former Pentagon official instead of the UFC president.
Published: 08 Nov 2026, 01:50 pm IST
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Related Topics
Disclaimer: Kindly avoid objectionable, derogatory, unlawful and lewd comments, while responding to reports. Such comments are punishable under cyber laws. Please keep away from personal attacks. The opinions expressed here are the personal opinions of readers and not that of Mathrubhumi.