As Chamillionaire once said….controversy sells! In today’s world of lightning fast news cycles and social media activism, polarizing public figures have jumped into the spotlight to take this opportunity to capitalize on American outrage. When private citizens publicly stir the pot on sensitive subjects, there’s no way to know whether they’re genuinely down for a cause or merely a Stephen Colbert in wolf’s clothing, but one thing is for sure: they are making money.
Bill Maher, $100 million – While many comedians tend to capitalize on controversy for laughs, Bill Maher has taken this to a whole new level. This guy says such outlandish, headline grabbing declarations that he’s somehow managed to alienate all sides of the political spectrum…while still pulling in hundreds of thousands of viewers each week.
Ann Coulter, $8.5 million – Ann Coulter knows better than anyone that there’s no such thing a bad press. Any Republican than would willing participate in a Comedy Central Roast just to promote their new book has got to have skin of steel.
Ben Shapiro, $7 million – There is a secret society of people amongst us that are actually buying Ben Shapiro’s books and therefore keeping him rich and famous. Shapiro seems to have the formula down pat: tour liberal colleges to present the conservative argument to today’s controversial issues…what could go wrong?
Milo Yiannopoulos, $4 million – Yiannopoulos has made a million dollar career as a controversial public figure. His list of public controversies is twice as long as his list of professional accomplishments, and he still manages to rake in the royalties and speaking fees.