After CIA and FBI Were Caught Editing Wikipedia Pages, now Kamala Harris Page Gets 500 Edits
California Sen. Kamala Harris’ Wikipedia page has been edited over 500 times since May, according to the New York Post. The edits have come in light of Harris being on the short list as a VP pick for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
Most of the edits have come from one user identified as Bnguyen1114, the report said. As a result, the page has been put under “discretionary sanctions,” which are applied when a conflict of interest is suspected.
“You seem to have gone through a database of press releases from Harris’s office, cataloging every single one and adding it to the article,” one Wikipedia editor told Bnguyen1114. “That is not how we write encyclopedic articles.”
“No It was taken out that Kamala didn’t psss (sic) the bar the first time. It was added that she was brilliant. Her relationship with Willie was left out. You guys sure cleaned it up,” said another.
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The sanctions limit Harris’ page to one revert per 24 hours and if any editors break with the rule, they have to discuss it on the “talk page” where editors converse.
First reported earlier this month by The Intercept, the edits have removed unfavorable information about Harris including criticism of her record as a prosecutor, which includes her decision not to prosecute Steve Mnuchin for financial fraud and other controversial cases.
Other Wikipedia editors have said the article needs to be fixed, with a couple even saying Bnguyen1114 was a “problematic editor” who needed to “recuse himself from editing the Kamala Harris page.”
“I’m cool with it. No need for a motion. I’ll voluntarily recuse myself until some editors go through it,” Bnguyen responded.
Strategic edits to Wikipedia pages by the government is nothing new. Over a decade ago, it was discovered the FBI and CIA were also strategically editing Wikipedia pages on topics like Guantanamo Bay and the war in Iraq, Reuters reported. Former CIA Chief William Colby’s page was also edited.
This isn’t the first time a politician’s page has been heavily edited before they were selected as a VP pick. The same thing happened to Sen. Tim Kaine in 2016 and Gov. Sarah Palin in 2008 before they were selected to run alongside Hillary Clinton and John McCain, respectively.