Question

Dr. Phil, who left TV to go full MAGA, just had his media company declare bankruptcy.

Answer 1

This claim is partially true, but misleading. Dr. Phil's media company did file for bankruptcy, but the claim that "he left TV to go full MAGA" is an opinion. Dr. Phil’s TV network, Merit Street Media (launched in 2024), filed for bankruptcy early July 2025 and sued Christian television giants Trinity Broadcasting Network and TCT Ministries for allegedly harming its business and contributing to its financial woes. According to CNN, "The lawsuit, filed by Fort Worth-based Merit Street with the US Bankruptcy Court in the Northern District of Texas, claims that TBN, the network’s broadcast partner, backed out of its obligations and instead 'abused its position as the controlling shareholder.' As a result, Merit Street claims it was forced to “pay or incur obligations to third parties in excess of $100 million.”  The company launched in 2024 as a conservative-leaning, “anti-woke” network, with Dr. Phil as its flagship host. Essentially, the Chapter 11 Bankruptcy was primarily attributed to a contract dispute with its broadcast partner.

Answer 2

It's true that Phil McGraw's media company, Merit Street Media, filed for bankruptcy roughly a year after launching in April 2024. According to the WSJ, Merit Street claims its partner, Trinity Broadcasting of Texas, breached their joint-venture agreement by improperly transferring over $100 million in liabilities to the company. Under their original deal, Trinity was supposed to provide distribution and production services at no cost while Merit provided content.

The other part of the claim—whether he left TV to 'go full MAGA'—is a bit more difficult to assess. While it's challenging to define what "full MAGA" means exactly, McGraw has certainly been a staunch Trump supporter following the end of his network TV show, Dr.Phil. He hosted an interview with Trump on his platform in 2024 (according to CNN) and appeared with him at the White House in recent CSPAN coverage. McGraw has demonstrated long-standing support for Trump's policies, including embedding with ICE raids in Chicago in January, with crews from his network covering more recent LA raids. Reuters reported on McGraw's defense of the administration's actions: "They're not sweeping neighborhoods like people are trying to imply," he said on X.

While McGraw might cite reasons other than 'going full MAGA' for leaving TV, his consistent support of Trump's presidency and policies since that time suggests that this characterization has merit.