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Did ashley biden claim passages were added to her diary
Executive summary
Available reporting shows Ashley Biden’s stolen diary has been the subject of criminal prosecutions and fact‑checking updates; Snopes and other outlets say Ashley acknowledged the diary’s authenticity in court filings, and prosecutors say the diary was sold to Project Veritas for about $40,000 [1] [2] [3]. Sources also record that Ashley Biden told a judge her private writings were distorted and “constantly manipulated,” which she said resulted in false accusations that defame her and loved ones [1].
1. The basic factual record: a diary was stolen, sold and litigated
Federal prosecutors say two Florida residents pleaded guilty in a scheme to steal and sell items — including what they say was Ashley Biden’s diary — to Project Veritas for roughly $40,000, and one seller, Aimee Harris, was later sentenced [3] [2]. Reporting and court documents cited by Newsweek and other outlets trace the physical chain: the diary was taken from a property where Ashley Biden had stored belongings and then trafficked in the run‑up to the 2020 election [4] [2].
2. Authentication and the fact‑checking shift: Snopes and Newsweek
Fact‑checker Snopes initially treated the diary’s contents as “unproven” but later updated its assessment to “true,” citing testimony provided by Ashley Biden — specifically a letter she wrote to a judge in April 2024 in which she acknowledged the journal and said she would “forever have to deal with the fact that my personal journal can be viewed online” [2] [5]. Newsweek summarizes that Snopes’ change was based on that testimony and notes other reporting about the diary’s provenance [1] [4].
3. Ashley Biden’s public response: authenticity plus complaint of distortion
Ashley Biden’s court letter acknowledged that her private journal had been stolen and viewed online, which fact‑checkers have used to support the diary’s authenticity [2]. At the same time, she told the court that her “innermost thoughts” had been “constantly distorted and manipulated” and that false accusations arising from their publication defame her and people she loves [1]. That statement has been reported and used by outlets to argue both that the diary is hers and that published excerpts have been taken out of context [1].
4. What the published pages reportedly contain — and limits on confirmation
Conservative outlets published excerpts in 2020 that included sensitive passages — for example, a line describing childhood showers with her father that the excerpt called “probably not appropriate” — and those passages were widely circulated [6]. Major outlets and fact‑checkers have noted the pages were published online and that some mainstream reporting described those photographs as “from” the diary the FBI investigated, but sources also stress that publication and investigators’ interest are different from full independent verification of every excerpt’s context or meaning [6] [2].
5. The claim you asked about: did Ashley claim passages were added?
Available reporting in these sources does not state that Ashley Biden explicitly said additional passages were added to her diary after the fact. Instead, Ashley’s letter to the court emphasizes that her private writings were “distorted and manipulated” and that false accusations were peddled by those who stole and circulated the journal [1]. Newsweek and Snopes cite her testimony as authentication of the diary’s existence and as a claim about distortion, but none of the cited pieces in the provided set says she specifically accused anyone of inserting new text into the diary pages [1] [2] [5].
6. Competing interpretations and political uses
Conservative outlets and commentators publicized explicit excerpts early and used them as political ammunition; Project Veritas and the National File (and later National File’s 2025 release) have asserted they possess and published the diary material [6] [7]. Conversely, Ashley’s own court filing frames the publication as theft and manipulation that defamed her, and fact‑checkers updated authenticity findings while emphasizing limits to context [1] [2]. Readers should note the implicit agendas: conservative publishers have incentives to amplify damaging excerpts, while Ashley and sympathetic outlets emphasize victimhood and distortion.
7. Bottom line and recommended caution
The sources provided show the diary was stolen, sold, and became the subject of prosecutions; Ashley Biden’s court letter is cited by fact‑checkers as confirmation she wrote the journal and as her assertion that the published material misrepresents her private thoughts [2] [1]. However, available sources do not report Ashley specifically saying that passages were added to the diary after theft — they report her saying her writings were “distorted and manipulated,” not that new text was inserted [1]. Readers assessing claims that “passages were added” should ask for direct, on‑the‑record statements or forensic evidence demonstrating insertion; that specific evidence or quote is not found in the current reporting set (not found in current reporting).