Candace Owens Accuses TPUSA of Inflating Halftime Show Viewership
Political commentator Candace Owens has leveled serious allegations against Turning Point USA, asserting that the organization fabricated its viewer statistics for the All-American Halftime Show aired during Super Bowl 2026.
On February 8, Owens took to X to express her skepticism regarding TPUSA's claim of attracting 5 million viewers across its social media platforms. She pointed out discrepancies, referencing a YouTube account that reported viewer numbers at just under 6,000.
In her post, she remarked, “The problem with people who have a lot of money they didn’t earn, is that they tend to have no idea how stuff actually works.” This comment set the tone for her critique of the organization.
Owens elaborated further, stating, “We have an organization that scammed its views by paying platform advertisers, followed by influencers to pretend they broke records.” Her comments have sparked discussions about the integrity of viewership metrics in political media.
Turning Point USA has yet to respond to these allegations. Earlier that evening, Blake Neff, a producer associated with TPUSA, shared on X that the halftime show had garnered impressive numbers: “TPUSA All-American Halftime Show… Over 5 million simultaneous on TPUSA YT. Almost 1 million on Charlie Kirk’s YT. 200k on Magno News YT. 220k on TPUSA Rumble. 15k CK Rumble.”
Neff also noted that the audience numbers continued to rise throughout Bad Bunny’s competing halftime performance, which was a point of contention for Owens.
Owens did not hold back her disdain for both halftime shows, stating, “I am sorry but I hate both options.” She criticized Bad Bunny’s performance for lacking English dialogue, questioning the cultural relevance of such presentations: “The left vs. right grift is actually boring now. What exactly are we doing here, America?”
Having served as a communications director for TPUSA from 2017 to 2019, Owens developed a close relationship with Charlie Kirk before his tragic death at age 31. Their partnership began in 2017 as they navigated their political careers together. However, tensions arose between Owens and Charlie’s widow, Erika Kirk, following his passing.
Owens has publicly suggested that Tyler Robinson, arrested in connection with Charlie’s death, was wrongfully accused. In a controversial move, she released a leaked recording of a conference call featuring Erika, which allegedly took place just days after Charlie’s assassination. In the audio, Erika appeared to commend TPUSA team members for their achievements.
Owens commented on the recording, saying, “We are not even two weeks after watching your husband be assassinated. We’re talking about numbers and metrics that have been hit.” Erika condemned the release of the recording and urged Owens to cease spreading conspiracy theories regarding Charlie’s death.
The ongoing friction between Owens and Erika culminated in a December 2025 meeting. While specifics of their discussion remain undisclosed, both parties described their four-and-a-half-hour conversation as “productive” on their respective X accounts.
