Behind the Headlines: How a Conservative Beauty Queen Became a Target of Fake News and Cancel Culture

Karyn Turk, the former Mrs. Florida sentenced to prison, opens up about the story behind the salacious headlines.

In the days of clickbait news, it’s hard to see the truth behind today’s biggest stories. Karyn Turk, Mrs. Florida 2016, was no stranger to headlines. She worked behind the scenes as an executive for CBS, then won the 2016 Mrs. Florida Pageant just as Donald J. Trump was running for president. She supported his campaign, all while wearing a sash and crown. She became a well-recognized crisis media manager for high-profile political cases that made headlines, and had no fear of controversy. Karyn’s desire to stand up for those she felt were being mistreated was no secret. She was an outspoken, loud, and proud conservative with a social media following and a big mouth. She was reaching a high point in her career.

Then cancel culture came for her.

The deep-state Florida swamp rose up, and the connected legal gators began to circle her. The headlines were as salacious as they could be: “Mrs. Florida stole pennies off her Mother’s eyes before she died,” “Fresh off a fundraiser for Roger Stone, Mrs. Florida pleads guilty to social security fraud.” The true story was of a daughter who tried to stand up against corruption and abuse—but it was a story that none of the newspapers or media outlets reported. Instead, a misdemeanor for a seventeen-thousand-dollar misappropriation of her mother’s social security pension was the charge, and a month-long jail sentence in a maximum-security prison the resulting consequence—a bizarre result for someone with no criminal record at all. Behind the Headlines reveals how Karyn’s career, family life, and credibility was called into question because of the impact cancel culture has on society.