Fact check: Kanye west paid 8 million for a superbowl ad for a website that only sells a shirt with a swastika on it

1. Summary of the results

The statement contains both accurate and inaccurate elements. Kanye West did purchase Super Bowl advertising for Yeezy.com ^[1], but the claimed $8 million price tag is incorrect. The ad was actually a local spot running in specific markets like Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Atlanta, likely costing "a few hundred thousand dollars" rather than $8 million ^{[1] [2]}. The ad featured West in a dentist's chair ^[3] and was reportedly shot on an iPhone ^[1].

It is confirmed that after the ad aired, the Yeezy.com website was indeed modified to sell only a $20 white t-shirt featuring a swastika ^{[1] [4]}. The shirt was labeled "HH-01," which the Anti-Defamation League interprets as code for "Heil Hitler" ^{[5] [6]}.

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

Several important contextual elements are missing from the original statement:

• The website was subsequently taken down by Shopify for violating their terms of service and not engaging in "authentic commerce practices" ^{[3] [4]}
• The ad was strategically placed in specific major markets rather than being a national buy ^[2]
• The website modification occurred within an hour of the commercial airing ^[4]
• By Tuesday morning, the site was listed as "unavailable" ^[7]

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The main misinformation in the original statement concerns the advertising cost. By claiming an $8 million price tag, the statement potentially exaggerates the scale and reach of West's campaign. This could serve to:

• Overstate West's financial commitment to spreading antisemitic messaging
• Create a false impression about the scale of the ad campaign, which was actually limited to local markets ^[2]
• Distract from the more concerning aspects of the incident, such as the deliberate nature of the website modification and the apparent Nazi references in the product coding ^[5]

The statement also fails to mention the swift action taken by Shopify to remove the website, which provides important context about corporate responsibility and consequences for hate speech.