Over the weekend, an odd progression of events unfolded around Kamala Harris, further reinforcing the existing critique of her being a Marxist-communist, even though this claim lacks factual basis. Curiously, former President Donald Trump amplified an artificial intelligence-generated image depicting Harris in a light uncannily reminiscent of communist extremes. The ludicrous representation had her clad in orthodox communist attire, complete with an exaggerated mustache vaguely echoing that of the infamous Soviet dictator, Stalin.
In the preceding month, our ex-President continued his diehard rivalry with Harris. He inexplicably accused her of resorting to artificial intelligence to conceive an illusion of large crowds thronging her campaign stop. Moreover, he brazenly asserted that an election candidate making fraudulent use of AI to fabricate pictures should automatically be disqualified for ‘election interference’. Taking this so far as to post an AI-rendered picture of Harris dressed in red and addressing an assembly of Soviet-like figures, Trump left no stone unturned to caricature his competitor.
The image that Trump shared emerged from a post on Substack, penned by a controversial writer from the Gateway Pundit. This digital platform, notorious for leaning far-right, is renowned for regularly promoting unfounded claims regarding the so-called theft of the 2020 election. Despite substantial evidence and a plethora of judges appointed by Trump himself denying these allegations, the digital publisher continues to fuel these groundless theories.
Dramatically ramping up his attack on Harris, Trump went on to repost the aforementioned image along with a link to the Substack article. The article didn’t mince words describing Harris as a red-blooded socialist. The depiction of Harris was indeed far from reality; it hastily disregarded it as a baseless label.
Despite the ridiculous image not bearing the slightest resemblance to reality, it garnered attention on social media platforms. Some critics even likened the AI-generated ‘Harris’ image to a character from a popular video game franchise rather than a feared Soviet dictator. The divisiveness of social media users’ responses further indicated the absurdness of the image, illuminating the increasing misuse of generative AI for propaganda.
It seems increasingly evident that, in our present technological age, Elon Musk’s guardrail-free Grok model and similar AI technologies are becoming tools for cooking up propaganda. What’s interesting to note is that creators of such image-based propaganda don’t always aim at making it appear realistic. Often, it’s grossly exaggerated—a caricature of the original subject.
Such images are not generally devised to alter the loyalties of the firmly pro-Harris voters. Rather, they serve to enhance the narrative of far-right enthusiasts aiming to portray Harris as an extremist. This propaganda appears to be steeped deeply in partisanship, aimed unequivocally at appealing to the online MAGA base.
Trump was not alone in his relentless effort to enhance communist insinuations against Harris using AI. On Monday, in reaction to a post by Harris’s campaign, addressing Trump’s pledge to morph into a dictator from the first day of his second term, Elon Musk, X’s owner, stepped up to the plate. Musk utilized his own platform to share an AI-rendered image of Harris all decked up in purported communist attire.
In his caption, Musk joined Trump’s farcical line of attack, sarcastically writing ‘Kamala vows to be a communist dictator on day one. Can you believe she wears that outfit!?’ The post was yet to be attributed a community note indicating the involvement of AI, or a fact-check to dispel the false allegation against Harris.
Musk’s audacious post ignited a spectrum of reactions on platform X, criticism pouring in from all directions. Notable contributors to the outcry included prominent personalities like ‘Happy Days’ actor Henry Winkler and former Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, Jan Eliasson.
The well-respected Zeteo editor-in-chief and former MSNBC contributor Mehdi Hasan also joined the chorus in condemnation. He noted that such a post was blatant disinformation, missing not only a ‘parody’ tag but also a ‘community note’. Furthermore, he expressed disappointment over the platform’s leading follower, Musk, using it to advocate far-right conspiracy theories.
This particular use of AI by Trump and his influential supporter to strengthen fallacious political attacks sheds light on the ever-dilating uncertainty of the 2024 election. The election seems to be a battlefield charged with a decade’s worth of chaos, misinformation, and constant noise from social media platforms.
The whole scenario seems to reinforce The Atlantic’s reporter Charlie Warzel’s recent observation. He noted the increasing merger of the frequently employed MAGA aesthetic with the hyperreal rendition of AI creations within the confines of social platforms like X.
This blending of reality and fiction not only influences public perception but also underlines the potential of AI in reshaping social and political discussions. It is crucial to be aware of the fact that AI in itself isn’t malicious: it is simply a tool, susceptible to misuse in the wrong hands.
As we move ahead, it remains to be seen how far the line shall be blurred between what’s real and what’s fabricated. But one thing becomes increasingly clear: close scrutiny and fact-checking will become more important than ever in this era of rapid technological advancement. Ultimately, the outcome of this experiment with AI’s potential in the political arena remains to be known.