"Why didn’t Oprah do this for free" — Meghan McCain questions report of talk show host's company taking 2.5M from Harris' campaign
Blogger Meghan McCain recently shared her take on Oprah Winfrey being a significant face during Kamala Harris' campaign for the 2024 presidential elections. In the tweet dated November 18, McCain questioned why Winfrey was such a significant figure that she was allegedly paid so much.
The tweet came after reports of Harris' campaign paying $2.5 million to Oprah's production company, Harpo Productions, surfaced. Two individuals involved in the process reported the information to The New York Times, who reported it on November 17.
McCain referred to this estimate and tweeted:
"I’m going to say this again - why didn’t Oprah do this for free and give the money to people in need or a food bank? Why did she have to be paid to endorse Harris? And why would she be worth this $$$?"
In a follow-up tweet, uploaded shortly after the previous one, McCain wrote:
"I'm not the generation that hero worships Oprah so can someone explain to me why she was so essential to Harris that they paid her 2.5 million to show up and endorse? And exactly what DNC data showed she sways voters in this era?"
As per an Instagram video by Backgrid, posted on November 13, 2024, Winfrey was asked about the $1 million endorsement of Kamala Harris, to which she replied,
"Not true!"
According to the reports by The Washington Examiner, Oprah's media company Harpo Productions was paid money
Speculations about payments made by the Harris campaign have been going on for quite some time. Kamala Harris reportedly got massive endorsements from several celebrities, many of whom were even present at multiple rallies.
One of such names that had been coming up recently was that of Oprah Winfrey. The Washington Examiner, however, reported that it was her media company Harpo Productions that was paid on October 15, 2024. A spokesperson for the company told Variety on November 11:
"The campaign paid for the production costs of ‘Unite for America,’ a livestreaming event that took place Sept. 19 outside Detroit, Mich."
In an Instagram video shared by The Shade Room on November 12, the 70-year-old American host was asked by a reporter if she was paid for her appearance, which she clearly denied. According to her, the team was paid money to arrange for all the necessary amenities including cameras, crews, lights, etc.
The particular event in question was the live-streamed one that Winfrey hosted in Michigan in September. It was attended by a lot of other celebrities too, including Bryan Cranston, Chris Rock, Ben Stiller, Jennifer Lopez, and Tracee Ellis Ross.
Within 12 hours only, the live-streamed event garnered more than 1.2 million views. As per reports by The Times, the Harris campaign had spent $1.5 billion during the campaign months. A lot of this money was reportedly spent to ensure that the rallies were star-studded.
Some of the star performers in the rallies included Lady Gaga in Philadelphia, Katy Perry in Pittsburgh, Christina Aguilera in Nevada, and Jon Bon Jovi in Detroit. The Washington Examiner further reported that the Harris campaign also spent over $654 million for advertising during the period from July 22, 2024, and November 5, 2024.