About a third of Americans get their news from YouTube, and some of them watch Brett Cooper.
The 24-year-old gained a following as the host of The Brett Cooper Showwhere she offers rather conservative reactions to current events. In recent weeks, she has sometimes praised President Trump and also notably criticized him. She also exchanged online messages with Texas Senator Ted Cruz over whether to call influencer Nick Fuentes a “Nazi.”
Cooper is part of a constellation of personalities who interpret the news for their followers. She first gained attention as a UCLA student criticizing COVID lockdowns. She then joined the Daily Wire, a conservative news site, and then launched her standalone program in January.
She spoke with NPR in a video interview that you can watch above or on YouTube. Here are some highlights.
She says people watch shows like hers for the hosts, not the ideology
“My job is just to talk to people,” she said. “I don’t really consider myself a news anchor.” When developing the series, she experimented with interviews, but ultimately settled on speaking directly to camera.
Although her political views are mostly populist or conservative and generally pro-Trump, she says viewers come to see The Brett Cooper Show for Brett Cooper. She is happy to talk about Justin Bieber or Blake Lively as well as political news. She believes she started with a mostly male audience, but has worked to attract women by talking more about her engagement, marriage and, recently, being a parent.
She says she is traditional, but not a tradwife.
“My view on family is definitely more traditional,” Cooper said, but “tradwife has become this Internet aesthetic. It’s become a trend…dressing in the sun, frolicking in the fields, churning butter, making sourdough. And it seems a lot less like real values…and more like posturing.”
It reflects the disagreements within the Trump coalition
Cooper speaking out after Trump, in an interview with Fox News’ Laura Ingraham, said the United States needs highly skilled immigrants because Americans lack the necessary talent. This was an unusual position for the president and Cooper disagreed.
“I think my disappointment and concern was shared by my audience and by people who look like me,” she said. “That’s the worst thing for a president to say.”
She also criticized Trump for dismissing consumer concerns about high prices and affordability as a Democratic hoax.
Most recently, she praised the president for promising to crack down on Afghan refugees and other immigrant groups: “I think it’s safe to say that illegal and legal immigration is actually taking over our country,” she said on her show.
She defends her position on Nick Fuentes
Cooper has sparred online with Sen. Ted Cruz, who has criticized anti-Semitism within the Republican Party. Cruz called activist Nick Fuentes a Nazi. Cooper said Cruz was wrong to use that label.
In the NPR interview, she said Fuentes had the right to speak and referred to the “Streisand effect,” suggesting that criticizing Fuentes would simply draw more attention to him.
“For Gen Z, what people on both sides need to understand is that the more you tell my generation not to watch something, not to review something, not to listen to something, that something is bad, or to censor someone, we’re going to seek out that content,” she said.
Asked if she agreed with Fuentes’ assertion that “Jewish gangsters” control the country, Cooper replied, “Not really,” while adding, “I’m concerned about the impact of Israel in our country.”
She said she didn’t “agree with Nick Fuentes on everything” but largely didn’t criticize him. “I don’t think I should sit here and condemn anyone.”
Ultimately, she says she makes up her own mind
Cooper says politicians have called her to get her perspective on what young people think, but she’s reluctant to let politicians influence her too much.
“I want my audience to know that if you come see the Brett Cooper Show, she doesn’t have a senator in her ear saying, ‘Hey, these are my opinions, could you share them?'” she said. “But if I see what’s happening X, that Ted Cruz says something, I want to talk about it.”
The broadcast version of this interview was produced by Taylor Haney and edited by Adam Bearne. The digital version was produced by Majd Al-Waheidi.
