Sean Duffy's show charged companies his department regulates up to $1M for reality TV sponsorship, leaked documents show

Corporations were reportedly asked to fork up as much as $1 million to sponsor Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy's forthcoming America-themed road trip reality show, according to leaked documents.
The top $1 million package includes being featured on a stop of Duffy's Great American Road Trip, plus "branded activations and product showcases at multiple destinations," according to slides obtained by Politico.
Top-tier corporations, including Toyota and Boeing, are listed as sponsors of The Great American Road Trip, Inc., the non-profit of the same name producing the show.
Critics alleged that major corporations with potential business before transit regulators shouldn't be sponsoring a media project involving the nation's top transit official.
"One has to wonder whether the decision to prominently feature Toyota in this project is because Toyota paid for a sponsorship or because the secretary actually thinks that promoting Toyota is in the best interest of the American public, American automakers and the people that work in that industry," Donald Sherman, president of the watchdog group Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility, told NPR.
The group has filed a complaint with the DOT's inspector general, asking for an investigation into whether Duffy violated federal gift and travel rules.
"Production costs were paid for by the Great American Road Trip Inc., not taxpayers," Duffy wrote last week on X. "Zero taxpayer dollars were spent on my family...Neither myself nor my family received a salary or production royalties. The five part series will be freely accessible by the public on YouTube."
Published 2026-05-13T01:41:13Z.