Under-elected Vice President Kamala Harris appeared on the cover of the February 2021 issue of Vogue, but controversy over the selected cover photo overshadowed the magazine’s debut. In the cover photo, which began circulating on social media late Saturday, Harris is crossed with her arms in a dark suit and her trademark Converse sneakers in front of a pink and green back drop – an ode to Harris’ company Alpha Kappa Alpha.
The magazine later released an additional photo, a portrait of Harris in a powder blue suit, which a source familiar with the photo shoot told CBS News was the agreed-upon image that would appear as the cover.
“Helpers at Harris and Vogue understood that the blue suit / gold background would be the cover photo. Without telling Harris’ team, Vogue changed it to the pink / green photo that the vice-president’s team did not agree with. , “the source said.
Another source considered Harris’ team ‘blinded’ when the cover was released.
According to the source, an image Harris shows in her Converse sneakers was originally intended to be used as a smaller photo that appears in the actual Vogue story.
Both photos were taken by renowned photographer Tyler Mitchell. Mitchell, 26, became the first African-American photographer of the magazine to shoot a Vogue cover in the history of more than 125 years when he photographed singer Beyoncé Knowles-Carter for the September 2018 issue.
A Mitchell representative did not respond to a request for comment, but tweeted the powder blue suit cover.
“The Vogue team loved the images shot by Tyler Mitchell and felt the more informal image captured the authentic, accessible nature of Vice President Harris – which we believe is one of the hallmarks of the Biden / Harris government,” he said. a Vogue spokesman told CBS. News and added: “Responding to the seriousness of this moment in history, and the role she must play in leading our country forward, we both celebrate images of her as covers digitally.”
Furthermore, a source said that Harris and the magazine “worked closely together on all creative decisions.”
For Harris, who made history in November when she became the first black and South Asian American to be elected vice president, the cover of Vogue was meant to send a message to young people of color.
“There are not many black women, let alone black and South Asian women, who grace the covers of these high-profile magazines,” a well-known source told CBS News. “[For Harris], it was important for young men and women, people of color, to see that it was possible. ‘
The story, written by Alexis Okeowo, includes an interview with Harris and follows Harris in Pennsylvania during one of her last days of her campaign on Monday before Election Day.
This is not the first time Vogue has come under fire for the way he photographed coloreds. The magazine’s editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour, acknowledged so much in the summer of 2020 and said in an internal memo for the entire company: ‘I want to make it clear that I know Vogue has not found enough ways to elevate black editors and to give space. , writers, photographers, designers and other creators. We also made mistakes by publishing images or stories that were hurtful or intolerant. I take full responsibility for the mistakes. “
After the cover first appeared online on Saturday night, there were a number of angry reactions, including from some people in the media.
Danielle Garrand contributed to this report.