Oprah Winfrey dismisses reports she was paid $1 million by Harris campaign

Oprah Winfrey dismissed claims that she was paid $1 million to host a town hall on behalf of Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign. On being asked about the alleged $1M payment, Winfey said the reports were “not true,” and that she “was paid nothing – ever,” according to TMZ. In a video, Winfrey is seen shutting down the report while also refusing to talk about the election.
Winfrey made the remark after a Washington Examiner report claimed the veep’s company, Harpo Productions, took a huge sum to host a celebrity town hall on behalf of her. At the event, various celebrities appeared via Zoom, including Meryl Streep, Bryan Cranston, Chris Rock, Ben Stiller, Julia Roberts, and Tracee Ellis Ross.
Winfrey campaigned for Joe Biden and Barack Obama in the past, having been a supporter of the Democratic party. She even endorsed Hilary Clinton when she ran for president back in 2016.
Winfrey appeared at Harris’ final rally in Philadelphia on the eve of Election Day, and offered an endorsement. “We’re voting for values and integrity,” Winfrey said at the rally. “We’re voting for healing over hate.”
The Washington Examiner report claimed that the Harris campaign spent big money on the Call Her Daddy podcast as well. “A source familiar with the matter told the Washington Examiner that the Harris campaign spent six figures on building a set for Harris’s appearance on the popular Call Her Daddy podcast with host Alex Cooper,” the Examiner wrote. “The interview came out in October and was reportedly filmed in a hotel room in Washington, D.C.”
According to a report in the New York Post, the campaign also spent up to $20 million on swing-state concerts on the eve of the election. In fact, the amount could have been even more if a planned performance by Alanis Morissette had not been cancelled. The campaign had as many as seven swing-state concerts on that day, including performances by Jon Bon Jovi in Detroit, Christina Aguilera in Las Vegas, Katy Perry in Pittsburgh and Lady Gaga in Philadelphia. There was also a Chainz performance at a rally three days before the election in Atlanta.