Oprah Winfrey and other celebrities received large payments from the Harris campaign, according to a report by the Chicago Tribune.

The Chicago Tribune reportedly criticized Vice President Kamala Harris' failed presidential campaign for allegedly paying out campaign cash to celebrities like Oprah Winfrey.

The Chicago Tribune stated in an editorial that while it is one thing to have a celebrity with a large following stand next to a candidate at a podium and say a few words, it is another to have an entire livestreamed event with someone like Oprah Winfrey. This is in reference to reports that the Harris campaign paid Winfrey and other celebrities large sums for campaign events.

According to FEC filings, the Harris campaign made two $500,000 payments to Winfrey's production company in October, just a month after Winfrey appeared with Harris at a town hall event and weeks before Oprah endorsed Harris at a Philadelphia rally before the election.

The editorial board wrote that Winfrey denied receiving a personal fee of $1 million from the campaign, stating that the money was instead used for Harpo Productions, which was once located in Chicago's West Loop and is now based in West Hollywood.

"The board acknowledged that production workers must be compensated fairly, but they are not donors. While $1 million may not be a significant amount for Winfrey, the board believes that she was not seeking a personal payday from her chosen candidate. As the owner and CEO of Harpo, Winfrey should have donated the production fees to the campaign."

"The editorial board advised the Harris campaign to let her candidate answer questions from independent journalists and give her more of a chance to explain herself and lay out her plans for America's future, as celebrity osmosis did not work and voters wanted to hear more about what Harris would do for them."

When confronted by TMZ, Winfrey defended herself by stating that she was not compensated for the criticism.

Harpo Productions received funding from the campaign, which was used for production expenses, and it was clarified that Oprah Winfrey did not receive any personal payment or fee from Harpo during the campaign.

Planet Chronicle' Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.