A HALF-BILLION-DOLLAR QUESTION: WHY HALFTIME HAS BECOME A BATTLEGROUND

As of early afternoon, the Super Bowl conversation took another sharp turn. Online attention surged again—this time around claims that a live, non-NBC broadcast could run during the exact halftime window, backed by what some describe as an anonymous billionaire committing $500 million to ensure the project reaches air. The show at the center of the speculation is Erika Kirk’s “All-American Halftime Show,” framed as message-first and positioned outside the NFL’s traditional machinery.

There has been no independent confirmation of the funding claim. No name. No public appearance. No press conference. And yet, the silence surrounding it has become the most compelling part of the story. In an era of instant disclosures and relentless promotion, sustained quiet invites interpretation. It also invites a deeper question: why would anyone spend half a billion dollars to compete for a few minutes of halftime