“Call Her Daddy” host Alex Cooper knew his surprise interview with Vice President Kamala Harris weeks before the presidential election would infuriate fans and invite backlash, but he didn't give his opinion. He claimed he “didn't care” because the confrontational episodes were “totally worthwhile.”
Mr Cooper had previously vowed never to feature politicians on his hugely popular podcast. told Forbes in a new cover story. She said she felt she had a responsibility to the “daddy gang,” many of whom are women, to sit with the failed Democratic presidential candidate and that the decision was “natural.”
“They reached out to me and I realized that probably wouldn't be the case in another election and who knows what I'd do in future elections. But this particular election The whole focus is on the female body, and we With more and more disenfranchisement, it felt natural to have the most popular women's podcast in this country, listened to by most women.” Cooper, 30, told Forbes.
“I am very aware that the opinions of viewers are greatly divided, and I am taking responsibility for that.I don't want to alienate people, but I felt that I had a sense of responsibility, so I decided to I didn't really care.”
Harris, 60, criticized President-elect Donald Trump for appointing the Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade, and passionately recalled how she began her career as a prosecutor in the 1940s, when she was accused of sexual assault and He spoke about strategies to curb other types of domestic violence. -minute episodes.
As a result of this interview, Mr. Cooper not only sat down with Ms. Harris, but also for not addressing more pressing issues such as illegal immigration, the Biden-Harris administration's response to the devastation of Hurricane Helen, and the shocking accusations. As a result, a small number of podcast fans were furious. her husband, Doug Emhoff;
But Cooper dismissed the criticism, saying he knew the backlash would be short-lived.
“People say I'm going to cancel all day long. They're still listening,” she told Forbes.
“It was really worth it. There's always going to be noise, negative things, but then the positives that I saw were overwhelming. A lot of people came forward and spoke out, They thanked me, and it sparked a lot of conversation, which I was really proud of.”
The Los Angeles-based podcaster, who features discussions about sex and advice for women, offered to give President Trump equal time, but he declined.
Harris' unsuccessful presidential campaign reportedly spent six figures from her $1 billion war chest to produce “Call Her Daddy,” set in Washington, D.C., but the interview was released in October. Trump scored on comedian Joe Rogan's show, which has garnered just 911,000 views since it was uploaded on the 6th, but only a fraction of the audience.
President Trump's Oct. 25 appearance on “The Joe Rogan Experience” (approximately three hours) has been viewed more than 52 million times on YouTube.
Rogan said he was in talks with Harris' team about Harris' appearance, but plans were scrapped when Harris refused to travel to a studio in Austin, Texas, and imposed a strict one-hour time limit on interviews. Ta.
Cooper's show was the second-highest performing show on Spotify last year behind Rogan's podcast, and topped the charts among women.
She has interviewed some of the industry's biggest stars, including Simone Biles, Miley Cyrus, Megan Fox, Katy Perry, and Hailey Bieber.
“Call Her Daddy” has made the jump from Spotify to Sirius XM Reported $125 million contract In August.
The podcast host also launched Cooper's Unwell Network platform last year.
