About FITSNews

FITSNews

FITSNews is a South Carolina news website covering politics and current events in the Palmetto State, founded in 2006 by Will Folks. Described by the Columbia Journalism Review as a "conservative-libertarian website covering politics" and "a must-read for Palmetto State politicos," FITSNews has become one of the most influential — and notorious — state political publications in America. The New York Times called it "a jarring mix of political scoops ... and photos of scantily clad women accompanied by off-color remarks." From its origins as a state government blog, the site has broken major national stories — including the Murdaugh murders crime and corruption saga and the Rockstar Cheer scandal — while its founder's hell-raising style has made him, in the words of The State newspaper, the "bad boy of South Carolina journalism." Operating at fitsnews.com, FITSNews drives the debate in South Carolina with an edgy mix of breaking news, investigative reporting, sports coverage, and colorful commentary.

Founder: Will Folks, the Bad Boy

Will Folks worked as a campaign staffer and spokesman — later press secretary — for Republican Gov. Mark Sanford until 2005, when he resigned and pleaded guilty to a domestic violence charge. Before entering politics, he had played bass guitar in an alt-punk band and worked as a bouncer at a Columbia, South Carolina bar. In 2005, Folks announced he was reviving his political consulting company Viewpolitik, and in 2006 he founded FITSNews. The Guardian called him "a Palmetto State politico with a reputation as a hell raiser." Folks — who calls himself "Sic Willie" — lives in South Carolina's Midlands region with his wife and children, and remains the site's owner and founding editor, writing with a voice that is by turns hilarious, outrageous, and genuinely insightful.

From Blog to Institution

FITSNews began as a state government blog — one man's irreverent take on South Carolina politics — and grew into an institution. In 2010, The Washington Post named it to its list of the "best state political blogs" in the country. That same year, Folks published a series of blog posts claiming he had engaged in an extramarital affair with state Rep. Nikki Haley as she campaigned in the Republican gubernatorial primary; Haley denied the allegations, and Politico magazine compared the episode to the Bill Clinton sex scandal of the 1990s. The Haley episode demonstrated FITSNews's power to set the statewide agenda — for better or worse — and established the site's reputation for publishing what others wouldn't touch.

Editorial Voice: Conservative-Libertarian With an Edge

FITSNews describes itself as "an independent, unapologetic media outlet covering news and politics in South Carolina," featuring "the fiscally conservative, socially libertarian views of its founding editor" while welcoming "all intelligent perspectives as part of a collective, community-based pursuit of truth, justice, fundamental fairness, and individual and institutional accountability." The site's mix is deliberately eclectic: breaking news headlines, political analysis, local news, Gamecock and Clemson sports coverage, investigative reporting, and colorful commentary. This "edgy, unconventional mix" is the site's signature — serious accountability journalism alongside irreverent humor, all delivered in Folks's unmistakable voice.

Major Scoops: Murdaugh and Rockstar Cheer

From its humble blog origins, FITSNews gained national acclaim by breaking two major national news stories: the Murdaugh murders crime and corruption saga — the sprawling tale of a powerful Lowcountry legal dynasty, multiple deaths, and financial crimes that became a global media obsession — and the Rockstar Cheer scandal. These scoops demonstrated that a small, independent state political site could out-report national media on the biggest stories in its backyard. The Murdaugh coverage in particular established FITSNews as a national player: when the story exploded, the site that had been covering the family's power for years became essential reading.

Nancy Mace: Co-Owner Turned Congresswoman

In a remarkable footnote to FITSNews's history, Nancy Mace — who has served in both the South Carolina and United States House of Representatives — was once a co-owner of the site. Mace began working for Folks in 2007, providing marketing and technical support, and held a stake in the operation until selling it in 2013. Her trajectory from FITSNews co-owner to U.S. Representative illustrates the site's deep entanglement with South Carolina's political class: this is not journalism conducted at arm's length from power, but from inside the Palmetto State's political bloodstream.

Influence: Must-Read for Palmetto State Politicos

FITSNews is, in CJR's phrase, "a must-read for Palmetto State politicos" — and Poynter once marveled at how "a self-appointed expert with a blog" could exert such influence over what becomes the news of the day. Candidates quietly seek Folks's guidance during campaigns; his endorsements and attacks move votes; his scoops force responses from the powerful. The site's comment sections and open-microphone policy foster a raucous community of engaged readers. In a state that plays a starring role in the nation's quadrennial presidential elections — South Carolina's "first in the South" primary — FITSNews's influence extends beyond state borders every four years.

Controversies and Criticism

FITSNews's methods have drawn consistent criticism: the bikini photos and off-color remarks that the Times noted, the publication of salacious rumors that proved untrue, the blurring of lines between journalism, consulting, and political combat. Folks's 2005 domestic violence plea hangs over the operation. Critics argue the site is less a news organization than a political weapon wielded by a talented provocateur. Defenders counter that FITSNews practices a genuinely independent, accountability-driven journalism that the state's legacy media — cautious, corporate, and clubby — cannot or will not provide. Both things can be true: the site's scoops are real, and so are its excesses.

Sports Coverage

While politics is FITSNews's bread and butter, the site also covers South Carolina sports with the same irreverent energy — Gamecock and Clemson athletics, recruiting, and the cultural life of college football in the Palmetto State. This sports coverage broadens the site's audience beyond political junkies, drawing in readers who come for the Gamecocks and stay for the State House scoops. In a state where college football is civic religion, covering sports isn't a sideline; it's a core part of the community conversation. FITSNews's sports voice — opinionated, plugged-in, unafraid — matches its political coverage in tone.

The FITSNews Community

FITSNews has cultivated one of the most engaged reader communities in state-level journalism: an open-microphone policy for letters and guest columns, active comment sections, and a tip network that feeds its scoops. Founder Will Folks built the site as a "vibrant marketplace of ideas" — and readers took him at his word, making the comments as essential as the articles. This community is the engine of FITSNews's influence: the operatives, journalists, and obsessives who read, share, and argue about every post. In an era of passive scrolling, FITSNews's active, argumentative readership is a rare and valuable thing.

FITSNews Today

Today, FITSNews continues to publish at fitsnews.com under founding editor Will Folks — breaking news, investigative reporting, sports, and commentary driving the debate in South Carolina and beyond. From a 2006 state government blog to a nationally recognized investigative operation, the site has proven that independent, irreverent, accountability-driven media can thrive — and that one hell-raiser with a website can change what a state talks about. Its official website is https://www.fitsnews.com.