Nate TrelaUSA TODAY
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The claim: Harris’ campaign paid celebrities for endorsements
A Nov. 12 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) claims Vice President Kamala Harris spent millions of dollars to convince celebrities to endorse and campaign for her.
"This is how much Kamala Harris paid artists to publicly support her!" reads the post's caption. "Beyoncé $10 million, Megan Thee Stallion $5 million, Lizzo $3 million, Eminem $1.8 million."
Similar claims were found elsewhere on Facebook with differing amounts of money listed. Some of the posts added Oprah Winfrey to the list of paid endorsers.
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Our rating: False
The four celebrities cited in the post − or people speaking on their behalf − have all said they weren't paid by Harris' campaign for their endorsements. There are no payments for celebrity endorsements listed in campaign finance reports from the campaign.
Cash for celebrity endorsements broadly denied
Harris’ star-studded list of celebrity endorsements failed to win her the White House. But there is no evidence those endorsements were bought by the campaign.
Harris' communications team could not be reached by USA TODAY, but Adrienne Elrod, who served as a senior adviser and spokesperson for the Harris campaign, previously told Deadline, “We do not pay. We have never paid any artist and performer.”
Paying for endorsements is not explicitly barred in campaign finance laws, but all expenditures must be disclosed, according to the Federal Election Commission. Harris’ campaign finance report covering spending through Oct. 16 showed one endorsement-related payment: $75 to the League of Conservation Voters Action Fund. Some of Harris' celebrity endorsements came after that date, and a report covering campaign spending through Nov. 25 is due on Dec. 5.
Still, there is no evidence of any payments to celebrities – and there are public denials from people connected with each celebrity endorsement listed in the post.
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Eminem’s publicist, Dennis Dennehy, told USA TODAY the rapper was not paid for his endorsement of Harris.
“Eminem has never received, and has never been offered, any money for his involvement in any political campaign or his endorsement,” Dennehy wrote in an email.
Tina Knowles, Beyonce’s mom, said on Instagram that claims her daughter was paid $10 million for speaking at a Harris rally are false.
”Beyonce did not receive a penny for speaking at a Presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harrris's Rally in Houston,” the post reads in part. “In fact she actually paid for her own flights for her and her team, and total Glam .”
A source close to the situation similarly told USA TODAY that Megan Thee Stallion was not paid for her endorsement.
Representatives for Lizzo did not respond to a request for comment from USA TODAY, but PolitiFact reported that the Harris campaign said the singer was not paid for her endorsement.
Winfrey took to social media herself to deny receiving a personal payment while acknowledging that her company, Harpo Productions, was paid to produce a sit-down event in Michigan with Harris. Winfrey said the payments covered production expenses, such as paying workers, and that she did not personally profit from the sit-down. Providing the services for free could have been considered an in-kind campaign contribution, subject to the same spending limits as cash contributions.
USA TODAY reached out to the social media users who shared the claim for comments but did not immediately receive responses.
Our fact-check sources
- Dennis Dennehy, Nov. 21, Email exchange with USA TODAY
- Federal Election Commission, accessed Nov. 21, Disbursements searched for "endorsement" in Kamala Harris for the People and Harris for President
- Federal Election Commission, accessed Nov. 21, Disbursements searched for "event" in Kamala Harris for the People and Harris for President
- Federal Election Commission, accessed Nov. 21, In-kind contributions
- Federal Election Commission, accessed Nov. 21, Making disbursements
- USA TODAY, Nov. 12, Oprah Winfrey says she was not paid a 'personal fee' for Kamala Harris rally
- Tina Knowles, Nov. 16, Instagram post
- Deadline, Nov. 15, Oprah Winfrey Says She Was Not Paid To Endorse Kamala Harris, And There’s A Legal Reason Why VP’s Campaign Spent $1 Million On Harpo Productions
- PolitiFact, Oct. 28, Claims that the Harris campaign paid Lizzo $2.3 million to appear at an event are unsubstantiated
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