Some conservatives, including Donald Trump Jr., are boosting an unsubstantiated claim that Vice President Kamala Harris used a teleprompter during her interview with Oprah Winfrey to support their assertion that she is “a fraud.”
On Thursday, Harris sat down with Winfrey for a live event - called “Unite for America” - that brought together a coalition of more than 100 online groups and celebrities who have endorsed her. The vice president spoke about her campaign’s top issues and answered questions from Americans.
But, over the weekend, conservatives capitalized on a three-second video that captured the interview from a different perspective, showing a teleprompter and camera positioned in front of Winfrey – and seemingly in front of Harris.
“WOW! Apparently Kamala Harris had a freaking TELEPROMPTER during her ‘interview’ with Oprah,” Nick Sortor, an internet personality, said on X. “Scamala Harris is a fraud!”
WOW! Apparently Kamala Harris had a freaking TELEPROMPTER during her “interview” with Oprah
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) September 22, 2024
Scamala Harris is a fraud! pic.twitter.com/BZ7RGahJXs
Trump Jr., LibsOfTikTok, and other conservatives re-posted the video, amplifying the claim that Harris’s interview was stagged.
That claim echoes Harris’s opponents’ running theory that the vice president is dodging public appearances and unable to conduct off-the-cuff interviews.
However, several individuals pointed out that the teleprompter was positioned behind Harris’s head because it was meant for Winfrey.
One snippet of the clip shows the teleprompter rolling a script that Winfrey later said, nearly verbatim.
The teleprompter reads: “The fight for us, for the America we desire and deserve to live in. To find out more about how you…”
Winfrey ended her interview with the vice president by thanking Harris for her work, saying: “We hope you keep fighting for us and the country we deserve to have.
“To find out more about how you can register or where you can vote go to IWillVote.com.”
Hey genius.
— Lisa Guerrero (@4lisaguerrero) September 22, 2024
30 year broadcast vet here.
The Teleprompter is for Oprah, which is why it’s directly in front of her and behind Kamala Harris, who can’t possibly read it.
You’re welcome. https://t.co/Msb8hEc9SD
The Harris campaign has not publicly addressed the accusations.
Many of Harris’s answers and statements during her interview with Winfrey indicated she was not given a script or questions ahead of time.
At one point, Winfrey confronted Harris about gun ownership after the vice president revealed during the presidential debate that she owns a firearm.
“If somebody breaks into my house they’re getting shot,” Harris told Winfrey. She added: “I probably should not have said that...My staff will deal with that later.”
