Rumor about Barbra Streisand suing Karoline Leavitt is fake

In September 2025, a rumor spread that White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and actress and singer Barbra Streisand got into a fight on live television, resulting in Streisand suing Leavitt.

For example, a Facebook post claimed the fight began during an interview in which Leavitt began to attack Streisand over her character, “calling her hypocritical and questioning the “system” she represents.” In response, Streisand “remained calm in the face of the confrontation” and filed a lawsuit for $50 million against Leavitt. A number of Snopes readers emailed asking whether the story was true.

The post stated:

“YOU WERE BEATEN — PAY NOW!” — Barbra Streisand sues Karoline Leavitt and Network for $50 MILLION after shocking live attack. No one saw it coming.

[…]

What seemed like a normal live television interview after Barbra Streisand’s performance and charity appearance turned into chaos when Karoline Leavitt suddenly launched a verbal assault on the legendary artist. Instead of discussing her music, activism, and upcoming projects, she attacked her character, calling her hypocritical and questioning the “system” she represents as one of entertainment’s most respected and socially active voices.

Streisand, who had just demonstrated once again why she is celebrated as one of the most consistent and influential artists of her generation, proved that her strength extends far beyond the stage. Known for her composure and principled stance on social issues, she remained calm in the face of the confrontation.

Her measured response in that heated moment — followed now by a $50 million lawsuit — shows that the battles off the stage may be every bit as intense and consequential as the ones fought under the spotlight.

The same Facebook post shared a link to an article with the title “‘YOU WERE BEATEN — PAY NOW!’ — Barbra Streisand Sues Karoline Leavitt and Network for $50 Million After Shocking Live Attack.” The article contained more details about the alleged confrontation including how millions of viewers witnessed it:

According to eyewitnesses and millions of viewers, Leavitt abruptly ditched the prepared questions and instead launched into a direct attack on Streisand. She accused the star of hypocrisy, questioned her integrity, and mocked what she described as “the system of elitism” Streisand represents.

Her comments were sharp and unrelenting. The audience gasped. Producers scrambled behind the cameras. Fans online erupted in disbelief.

“It was an ambush, plain and simple,” one crew member said afterward. “The segment was supposed to celebrate Barbra’s legacy and her charity work. Instead, it turned into a verbal assault.

[…]

Faced with the barrage of accusations, Streisand remained calm. […] Instead, she redirected the conversation toward the cause she was there to promote.

The article also shared more details about the alleged $50 million lawsuit Streisand filed accusing Leavitt of defamation, reputational harm, and professional damage.

However, the claim about Leavitt and Streisand was false. It stemmed from Facebook posts attempting to get users to click on links to articles. In reality, those links are pages on advertisement-filled websites that seem to profit with each click, no matter the truthfulness of the content.

The Facebook accounts sharing such rumors have a history of posting fabricated stories. One such account shared an AI-generated image of Streisand claiming she was under full-time medical care.

We searched for any recent news about Streisand and Leavitt, and found no reporting of such an argument, or even that they did an interview. Were this story true, it would have been widely covered by mainstream news outlets. Additionally, there is no evidence that millions of people saw such a confrontation on television, nor that people spoke out in support of Streisand on social media using the hashtags mentioned in the above article.

Snopes ran sections of the text of the story and Facebook post through AI-generated content detectors, and those tools revealed a moderate chance that AI had generated at least part of each text.

Snopes previously published an explanation of so-called “AI slop,” spam content produced using AI tools. Further, we have debunked several rumors about Leavitt in the past, including the claim that she debated Stephen Colbert on his late-night talk show, and that she also had a fight with singer Patti LaBelle on live television.