NEW YORK - The discourse was immediate.
On Monday night, during Naomi Osaka's first-round victory over Anastasia Zakharova at the US Open, a video quickly went viral of a spectator using a bright ring light to take pictures of herself during the match. Another video, showing a larger group of fans in a suite animatedly recording themselves while the match was ongoing, followed suit. The chair umpire eventually asked those in the suite to take their seats.
Fans on social media were outraged over the lack of etiquette during play. In tennis, a sport steeped in tradition and strict rules for players and spectators alike, the disregard for them was stunning. Osaka was asked multiple questions about it on Thursday after her second-round match.
"I think obviously if you come to a sporting event, you have to respect the sport," Osaka said. "And I feel like it's common courtesy to read up on the sport, especially the etiquette. I feel like it could be a good thing for people to make the sport of tennis popular to their specific audience, but I think it has to be managed a lot better, especially in the situation like [my] first-round match."
And for many online and even on the grounds in Flushing Meadows, it quickly turned to a conversation about the rise of influencers at the tournament and how they were spoiling the event. "How influencers are killing the US Open and turning it into a 'zoo,'" wrote the Daily Mail. "2026 US Open disruption caused by embarrassing social media influencers," was a headline on the Big Lead. "Influencer boom at US Open tests boundaries of tennis etiquette," read Reuters.
Some pointed to the USTA's credentialing of content creators as part of the problem. But we know this for sure: None of those who faced ire on Monday night during Osaka's match were credentialed by the USTA.
The USTA credentialed roughly 100 content creators this year -- up from 54 in 2025 -- and that number includes social media editors from legacy media brands like Tennis Channel, Time and the Associated Press. The independent creators given official access were vetted and, in many cases, have been engaged in conversations with the USTA for months about coverage. Per the USTA, the idea of their inclusion was to "to engage with fans where and how they consume content" and "formal guidelines govern access and content capture for these credential holders." The 2025 tournament was the first time the organization offered these credentials.
Some are food or fashion focused, and others are well known in the tennis space. Christian Basnight, the creator of "Christian's Court," a popular tennis channel across social media platforms, is among those credentialed as independent creators.
With over six million combined views over the past month on Instagram, TikTok and Facebook, Basnight gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look at the tournament, and tries to be the eyes and ears on the grounds for fans who aren't able to attend.
"My main goal is just to get more people to watch tennis and get them informed of what's going on in the tennis world," Basnight, who made his first YouTube video about tennis as a nine-year-old, told ESPN on Thursday.
He applied in the spring for a traditional media credential to cover the US Open, and the USTA responded by encouraging him to apply through the creator credential. In addition to providing his reach and scope, as well as information on any brands he had worked with previously, he needed to provide a detailed coverage plan if he were to be approved. He was thrilled to find out he had been accepted a few weeks later to cover his first major.
Basnight has been frustrated by the conversation this week around influencers, and the conflation of fans using social media with accredited content creators.
"I saw one tweet from a journalist and he was complaining about media stuff here and was like, 'Oh, they're doing this and they're accrediting a hundred influencers.' And that kind of pissed me off because I don't really consider myself an influencer," Basnight said. "I think it's just a lot of misinformation going on in that regard ... I really think it's a misconception that they are just credentialing influencers. I think that whole narrative is honestly lazy."
The USTA has cited a desire to grow the game and engage new fans as its rationale for various decisions in recent years. While the skyrocketing ticket prices for the tournament in 2026 have been widely criticized and seem counterintuitive to that goal, its content creator program falls firmly into that rationale.
And, in a way, the increase of fans unfamiliar with the traditional etiquette barring movement and noise during play is perhaps further proof that the strategy is working.
"We are incredibly excited that more fans than ever before are coming out to experience the US Open," Brendan McIntyre, the head of communications for the USTA, said in a statement to ESPN. "Fan enthusiasm is great for tennis, so long as it does not interfere with the action on the court."
Since the scene at Osaka's match earlier in the week, the USTA has made an effort to inform spectators about some of the rules. "Please refrain from the use of flash photography or other lighting," said one sign shown on the side of Louis Armstrong Stadium on Wednesday. That's just one part of a deliberate messaging attempt, according to McIntyre.
"We have increased signage on the grounds, in stadium, and messaged ticket and suite holders to remind everyone to refrain from any activity that could disrupt the game, including flash photography and ring lights," McIntyre said in the statement. "Instances of disruption happen infrequently, but when they do, our chair umpires will address the distraction."
While moments can be annoying for players, it's worth it, and almost a growing pain of sorts, for 2019 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev.
"I think the more we try to raise awareness about tennis, the better it is, the more popular the sport is," Medvedev said on Wednesday. "... In general, the more the sport grows, the better it is. So I would say [it] this way: I trust USTA with what they are doing."
Jessica Pegula, the top-ranked American and a longstanding member of the WTA's Player Council, said she appreciated both sides but acknowledged this year felt like a tipping point.
"I think I can appreciate, you know, the influencers coming and kind of showcasing, like, the US Open experience," Pegula said after her second-round victory. "I think that's something that the US Open has utilized a lot as far as food and drinks and things to do and the shops. That part is part of a fan experience and something that people might not know and make them want to go.
"But I do think that it's tough when you see videos like that when they're taking pictures and using the selfie lights. People are down there trying to perform, and it's their career and their job. It seems a bit disrespectful. I think it's gotten a little too much, it feels like, this year. I don't know."
