The White House “really blew it” when the administration did not include women athletes in a recent discussion of student athletes’ rights, including revenue sharing, USA Today national sports columnist Christine Brennan told the National Press Foundation’s Paul Miller Reporting Fellowship class.

Brennan, a vocal advocate for gender equity in sports, referred to a November meeting in which former college football players were among the White House guests to discuss a range of issues involving college athletics, including provisions for athletes’ safety and health.

“So, that’s just a huge swing and miss, just an awful decision by the White House,” Brennan said. “I don’t know what in the world they were thinking.”

A summary of the Nov. 8 meeting issued by the White House referred to a discussion about “some of the challenges college football players and other athletes face.” President Joe Biden joined the discussion, which also included Lael Brainard, assistant to the president and director of the National Economic Council.

“You have to have women,” said Brennan, adding that women represent the “biggest names in college basketball now—men’s or women’s.”

The White House declined to comment on Brennan’s remarks. At previous events, the administration has recognized the accomplishments of women in college athletics and other sports, including awarding American soccer star Megan Rapinoe and gymnast Simone Biles the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Brennan, among the first women to break into the top ranks of sports reporting, urged the fellowship class to disregard bias and “negativity” that they may encounter as they advance in journalism.

She described the targeting of journalists on social media as “really troublesome.”

“It’s a very different, much more hateful world,” she said.

Access the full transcript here.