*As the U.S. faces its first presidential election in a landscape where convincing misinformation can be effortlessly crafted by artificial intelligence (AI), a new phenomenon has emerged: supporters of former President Donald Trump are disseminating AI-generated images depicting him alongside Black celebrities, historical figures, and everyday Black individuals.
Reported by Angelina Hicks and Vani Sanganeria for the New York Amsterdam News, this development shines a light on how AI is being weaponized in the political arena. These AI-generated images have surfaced primarily to bolster a real yet modest trend: an apparent increase in support for Trump among Black voters, as depicted by certain polls.
Although these fabricated photos often began as parodies, they quickly evolved into tools of political persuasion, attracting millions of online views.
Some of these images have even found their way into dubious fundraising schemes, purportedly endorsed by alleged top advisors to Trump.
The New York Amsterdam News has meticulously identified these AI-generated images through various established detection methods and AI image detection tools, the details of which can be found on their website.
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Looking back at the 2020 election, exit polls indicated that only about 12% of Black voters supported Trump, making it the lowest support among any major ethnic group. However, a more recent poll conducted by the New York Times in collaboration with Siena College revealed that 22% of Black voters in swing states might support Trump, although the sample size was a mere 403 Black voters spread across six swing states, making it difficult to draw any definitive conclusions.
Despite their inherent limitations, these polls gained significant attention. Following the release of the New York Times poll, internet personality and conspiracy theorist Dom Lucre, who boasts 1.2 million followers on X, shared an AI-generated image of Trump amidst a large crowd of Black men. Captioned provocatively, the post amassed over 11 million views.
In March, Marcia Ann Mims Coppertino, founder of the Coppertino and Associates Consulting Group, shared an AI-generated image along with the NBC News poll on platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn. This image was used to promote a purported fundraising event for the Trump campaign in Torrance, Calif. Coppertino’s organization claims to be a marketing firm that supports the “Trump Congressional District Focus Group.”
The New York Amsterdam News also collaborated with the OSINT reporting project from the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism to conduct this investigation of how Trump supporters use fake photos to influence Black voters.
In a related revelation, TechCrunch reports that a pair of studies published in the journal Science reiterates the potent influence of misinformation on social media. The studies highlight that a small, highly committed group of “supersharers,” predominantly older Republican women, were responsible for a significant majority of the “fake news” circulating during the period examined, according to Journalisms.
These findings underscore the profound impact that AI-generated misinformation can have on public opinion and electoral outcomes. As the 2024 presidential election looms, the ability to distinguish between genuine content and sophisticated AI-driven fabrications will be crucial for both voters and the democratic process.
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