Did several viral videos accurately report Whoopi Goldberg collapsed in court after losing an $800 million lawsuit to Karoline Leavitt? No, that's not true: The fictional lawsuit did not happen and the video used AI generated imagery of Goldberg. The channel that posted the video included a disclaimer saying it did "not claim absolute truth" and that the video was for "entertainment purposes only".
The video (archived here) appeared on April 30, 2025 under the title "Whoopi Goldberg COLLAPSES In Court As Judge SENTENCED Her After Karoline Leavitt $800M LAWSUIT". It had a description that read:
Whoopi Goldberg just faced the most humiliating moment of her career -- a full-on courtroom collapse during the explosive $800 million lawsuit brought by Karoline Leavitt. What started as just another segment on The View has spiraled into one of the most brutal media reckonings in daytime TV history. In this video, we break down everything: from the on-air ambush of Karoline to the moment Whoopi cracked under pressure in front of the judge.
This isn't just a defamation case. It's a massive battle for truth, accountability, and justice -- and Karoline Leavitt isn't backing down. We uncover the leaked emails, the hot mic receipts, and the strategic media takedown that's now coming back to haunt ABC and its daytime empire.
Viewers are outraged. Sponsors are fleeing. And Whoopi? She's visibly shaken, caught in a scandal that could change the rules for every public figure with a microphone. Is this the beginning of the end for The View?
Click below to watch the video on YouTube:
The video included an image supposedly showing Goldberg collapsed on the courtroom floor:
(Image: screenshot made by Lead Stories)
The Media Forensics Lab at State University of New York/Buffalo operates DeepFake-O-Meter, which offers a variety of image, video and audio analysis tools. Several of their tools found traces of AI-generation in the image:
AI detection tool Hive only rated it 30.1% but indicated the image may have originated from AI tool Grok:
A Google News search for stories mentioning "Whoopi Goldberg", "Karoline Leavitt" and "lawsuit" only brought up fact checks explaining the lawsuit did not exist (archived here).
The channel that posted the video included a disclaimer that said:
⚠️ DISCLAIMER: Our videos are for informational and entertainment purposes only and do not claim absolute truth. All opinions expressed are those of the creators and do not necessarily reflect the views of any individuals, organizations, or media outlets mentioned. Viewer discretion is advised. The content is intended to spark discussion, not promote harm.
Other fact checks
Lead Stories previously fact checked a video about the fictional Goldberg vs. Leavitt lawsuit here.
