Oprah Winfrey is facing criticism over a $1 million fee paid to her production company for organizing a town hall event that supported Vice President Kamala Harris. The payment has sparked controversy, particularly from Winfrey’s hometown newspaper in Chicago.
Before the election, Winfrey’s company, Harpo Productions, helped produce a high-profile town hall event in Michigan, where she publicly endorsed Harris for the presidency. The Harris campaign covered the costs of the event, which included a $1 million payment to Harpo Productions.
Initially, when approached by a TMZ reporter about the payment, Winfrey denied receiving any money, stating, “Not true. I was paid nothing. Ever.” However, she later sought to clarify her statement in an Instagram post on The Shade Room account.
In her post, Winfrey explained that her production team billed the Harris campaign for the event. She detailed that Harpo was responsible for various production elements such as set design, lighting, cameras, microphones, and crew. Winfrey emphasized that she did not personally receive any money from the campaign. “I did not take any personal fee,” she stated. “However, the people who worked on that production needed to be paid. And were. End of story.”
The town hall featured appearances from several celebrities, including Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lopez, and Bryan Cranston. Despite the star-studded event in Michigan—a key swing state—Harris ultimately lost both Michigan and the presidential election to Donald Trump.
The Chicago Tribune criticized Winfrey for allowing her company to accept such a large payment. The editorial board suggested that Winfrey should have covered her workers’ fees out of her own pocket. They noted that $1 million is not a significant amount for someone of Winfrey’s wealth and argued that the production fees should have been considered a campaign donation.
In the aftermath of the election, both Joe Biden’s and Harris’s teams have pointed fingers at each other for mismanaging over $1 billion in donor funds during what they described as a disastrous campaign.
Other celebrities like Lizzo, Megan Thee Stallion, Eminem, Cardi B, and Lady Gaga also supported Harris during the campaign; however, there is no evidence that their production companies received similar payments from the campaign.
This situation highlights ongoing debates about celebrity involvement in political campaigns and raises questions about transparency in campaign financing.
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