Washington Post edits Kamala Harris profile to remove joke mocking prisoners

In 2019, the Washington Post published an article detailing then-presidential candidate Kamala Harris's relationship with her sister in a biographical piece.

The beginning of the piece was unflattering, however, detailing a conversation between Harris and her sister where Harris compares the being on the campaign trail to a prisoner begging for a sip of water, a concept which she laughed at.

Now, Reason reports that the biographical piece has been edited to include a new anecdote, one that does not reflect so well on the Vice President.

In the original version of the story, Kamala Harris is said to have laughed "like an old British man locked in a Dickensian jail cell," as she imitated a prisoner begging for water.

"And water! I just want wahtahhh," Harris had joked.

The new version has replaced this anecdote from Harris with a comparison of her relationship with her sister to the relationship of President John F. Kennedy with his brother Robert.

According to the Washington Post, "we repurposed and updated some of our strong biographical pieces about both" President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris after the inauguration.

"The profile of Maya Harris was updated with new reporting, as noted online, using the existing URL," they said. "The original story remains available in print."

The Post, however, did not include any other examples of biographical pieces that have been updated in a similar manner.

The change signifies a change of tone surrounding media coverage of Kamala Harris.

During her presidential primary campaign, Harris's campaign saw a steep decline in support following a debate spat with Tulsi Gabbard where Gabbard criticized out Harris's record as a prosecutor, a criticism which resonated with Democrats concerned about law enforcement and prison reform.

Harris eventually dropped out of the race as exposure to her controversial record as a prosecutor proved hard to recover from. Her ambitions were reignited, however, after being chosen by Joe Biden as his running mate in the 2020 election, having promised to pick a woman of colour.