From PBS NewsHour.
Quickly after news dropped of Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro’s capture by U.S. forces in January, misleading AI-generated content began racking up millions of views on social media.
The problem is, many people didn’t realize the content was fake.
“Within minutes of the news breaking, there were already fake images and fake videos circulating online well before the real images of events on the ground happening,” said Hany Farid, a professor at the University of California, Berkeley.
Farid, who is also a chief science officer at GetReal Security, added, “Let’s be clear, this is not new. We have seen misinformation and disinformation for decades now around world events. What is new is that we have eliminated any barriers to creating highly compelling images and videos of events because of, of course, AI.”
As technological advancements give anyone the ability to create compelling footage, social media platforms have given those posts a place to rapidly spread, diluting the ability to find trustworthy content.
“What you have to also understand is that it’s a double-edged sword," said Farid. "When we litter the online information ecosystem with fake content, when real content emerges of police violence, of human rights violations, of a president saying or doing something illegal, everybody has plausible deniability.”
State-sponsored disinformation campaigns, propaganda, monetization, trolling and innocent experiments all contribute to spike in AI content during breaking news events, Farid said.
Farid emphasized that social media platforms aren’t the place to search for news unless it’s posted by credible, verified news accounts. And if something compelling catches your eye online, research its validity through reliable outlets, outside of social media.
Watch PBS News for daily, breaking and live news, plus special coverage. We are home to PBS News Hour, ranked the most credible and objective TV news show.
Sign up for Here’s The Deal with Lisa Desjardins: https://to.pbs.org/41q6E8i
Subscribe for exclusive content in our newsletters: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/subscribe
PBS News podcasts: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/podcasts
Stream your PBS favorites with the PBS app: https://to.pbs.org/2Jb8twG
Find more from PBS News at https://www.pbs.org/newshour
Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2HfsCD6
Follow us:
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@pbsnews
X: http://www.twitter.com/newshour
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/newshour
Facebook: http://www.pbs.org/newshour
