Rumors about a defamation lawsuit between Whoopi Goldberg and Riley Gaines have been making the rounds for over a year. The latest claim in this alleged drama is that Gaines won millions, but is any of this true? We’ll examine what sources claim Whoopi Goldberg said to Riley Gaines and whether the situation is real or fictional.
Did Riley Gaines sue Whoopi Goldberg for Defamation?
Riley Gaines did not sue Whoopi Goldberg for defamation. There’s no evidence that a lawsuit was filed involving the two. The claim that Gaines was suing Goldberg originated on a “satirical” site. Still, many who read the article in question took it as fact. Many users posted the story on social media as if it were true, so the rumor took off. However, Gaines herself confirmed in October 2023 that the claims are false.
However, the rumor that Gaines won $10 million in a defamation suit against Goldberg continues to this day. Just one tweet from today making the claim managed to gain over 60K likes. Of course, many people don’t care if it’s true or not and just repeat the lie to farm social media engagement. Unfortunately, that means it continues to perpetuate as those who are unaware the rumor is false share it from their accounts.
What did Whoopi Goldberg say about Riley Gaines?
While there was no lawsuit, most would assume that Whoopi Goldberg said something about Riley Gaines for the rumor to start. However, we can’t find any particular instance where Goldberg insulted Gaines or made any defamatory claims about her. It’s entirely possible that Goldberg did make some negative comments about Gaines at some point, but there’s no way we’re going to go through hundreds of hours of The View to look for it. If Goldberg had said something about Gaines, it was minor enough not to receive any media coverage at the time.