Candace Owens Defends Russia Visit Amid Criticism
Quick Look
- Candace Owens defended her recent trip to Moscow, calling it a "family vacation" and praising the city's beauty, despite criticism from figures like Ben Shapiro and comparisons to Tucker Carlson's controversial visits.
- Owens, a conservative commentator, has faced backlash for her statements on Russia and other political issues.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
US conservative commentator Candace Owens visited Moscow, posting positive impressions of the city. This visit has drawn criticism from some American commentators and media figures, who draw parallels to journalist Tucker Carlson's recent trips to Russia.
US conservative political commentator Candace Owens has brushed off criticism of her recent visit to Russia, after posting photos from what she described as an “unbelievably beautiful” Moscow.
Owens described the trip to her 6 million YouTube subscribers as a “family vacation.” Some fellow commentators criticized the visit, with Daily Wire co-founder Ben Shapiro labeling it an act of “ideological subversion.”
“I’m starting to understand why the talking heads panic and shout and lie about ‘Russian collusion’ when they learn an American with a platform is traveling here,” Owens wrote on X on Sunday, sharing a photo of herself on Red Square.
“It is genuinely shocking how clean, beautiful and orderly this city is. It is so far removed from media depictions,” she added.
Owens also shared photos from a theater and a church.
“I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I wasn’t expecting this,” she wrote.
Republicans and Democrats alike, along with numerous media figures, similarly criticized journalist Tucker Carlson for traveling to Moscow twice in 2024 to record interviews with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Carlson said he found Moscow to be “so much nicer” than cities in the United States and argued that American media coverage of Russia and the Ukraine conflict was heavily biased. He dismissed his critics as “professional liars.”
Owens initially rose to prominence in the late 2010s by using her platform to urge black voters to stop supporting the Democrats. She joined Ben Shapiro’s Daily Wire in 2020, where her self-titled podcast reached millions of viewers. However, she was fired four years later following a public dispute with Shapiro over Israel’s war in Gaza.
Owens later broke with US President Donald Trump over his support for Israel. Following the launch of her own show on YouTube, the popular podcaster drew criticism for controversial statements, including suggestions that Israel could have been involved in the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Last year, French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, filed a defamation lawsuit against Owens after she suggested that France’s first lady was born a man.
Open Questions
- What was the specific nature of Candace Owens's "family vacation" in Moscow?
- What are the long-term implications of public figures like Owens and Carlson visiting Russia?
- How will the criticism affect Candace Owens's public platform and future statements?
- What was the exact nature of the dispute between Candace Owens and Ben Shapiro that led to her departure from The Daily Wire?
