‘They feel true’: political deepfakes are growing in influence – even if people know they aren’t real

AI researchers report that online creators are using generative AI (artificial intelligence that creates images or videos from text descriptions) to produce fake images and videos of real political figures and entirely fabricated people, sometimes in military or sexualized contexts, to earn money and spread propaganda. These deepfakes (AI-generated fake media of people) are influential in shaping public perception of political figures, even when viewers know the content is not real.