*French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron, have initiated a defamation lawsuit against right-wing podcaster Candace Owens, accusing her of spreading false and damaging claims.
As CBS reports, the lawsuit, filed in Delaware Superior Court, targets Owens’ eight-part podcast series, “Becoming Brigitte,” which alleges that Brigitte was born male, stole another person’s identity, and transitioned to female. The Macrons assert that these claims are baseless and have caused significant harm.
The couple’s legal action, which includes 22 counts and names Owens, her company Candace Owens LLC, and website operator GeorgeTom, Inc., seeks unspecified damages. According to the lawsuit, Owens ignored three retraction demands sent between December 2024 and July 1, 2025, choosing instead to perpetuate what the Macrons call “outlandish, defamatory, and far-fetched fictions.”
The suit emphasizes that Owens acted with reckless disregard for the truth, driven by a desire for fame and profit. “These claims are demonstrably false, and Owens knew they were false when she published them,” the lawsuit states.
In a joint statement, the Macrons expressed their frustration: “Ms. Owens’ campaign of defamation was plainly designed to harass and cause pain to us and our families and to garner attention and notoriety. We gave her every opportunity to back away from these claims, but she refused.”
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NEW: French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte have filed a defamation lawsuit against Candace Owens over claims that Brigitte was a man.
Brigitte Macron says she was not born a man and is ‘traumatized’ by Owens’ comments.
“Owens has dissected their appearance,… pic.twitter.com/AV7aVXLG7h
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 23, 2025
They hope the lawsuit will halt the spread of these falsehoods. The allegations first surfaced in 2021 and gained traction when Owens amplified them in March 2024 before launching her podcast in June.
Owens’ spokesperson defended her, stating, “Candace Owens is not shutting up. This is a foreign government attacking the First Amendment rights of an American independent journalist. Candace repeatedly requested an interview with Brigitte Macron. Instead of offering a comment, Brigitte is resorting to trying to bully a reporter into submission. In France, politicians can bully journalists, but this is not France. It’s America.”
The Macrons’ lawsuit argues that Owens’ actions have caused “tremendous damage,” turning their personal lives into “fodder for profit-driven lies.”
Meanwhile, a recent French appeals court decision overturned convictions against two women who made similar claims about Brigitte, citing their “good faith” mistake.
