Deepfake Election Propaganda Surges Ahead of Vote
Translated & summarized from Globes by baba
Election propaganda utilizing AI and deepfake technology has surged to unprecedented levels in the final week before the vote, with daily identified deepfake content reaching 35 items. This marks a shift to a "digital blitz" phase by campaign headquarters, employing sophisticated AI tools. Notable deepfake videos included one of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with former US President Donald Trump and another showing Netanyahu speaking with Yahya Sinwar, which was subsequently removed by order of the Election Committee chairman.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Deepfake election propaganda has seen an unprecedented surge, reaching a historic peak in the current election cycle.
- Daily identified deepfake content rose to 35 items on three consecutive days in the past week.
- Campaigns are entering a "digital blitz" phase, increasing the use of complex deepfake tools and synthetic media.
- A deepfake video showed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with former US President Donald Trump.
- Another deepfake video depicted Netanyahu speaking with Yahya Sinwar and was later removed by order.
- The research is funded by academic centers and supported by Bright Data.
The use of artificial intelligence in election propaganda has seen a dramatic and unprecedented surge in the past week, reaching a historic peak for the current election cycle. Since the list of candidates closed on September 9, daily AI-generated content, specifically labeled as "deepfake," had not exceeded 30 publications. However, at the start of the last week, a sharp and continuous rise led to three consecutive record-breaking days, with a consistent and exceptionally high number of 35 deepfake content items identified daily.
This sharp increase in publications signifies the official transition of campaign headquarters into the "digital blitz" phase of the final stretch, involving increased use of complex deepfake tools and synthetic media generators. Notable examples include a video depicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former US President Donald Trump laughing together, followed by a claim that they "saved Israel from Iranian annihilation." This particular clip was originally posted by a user named Yonatanvii and highlights concerns about external content creators, whose affiliations may be unknown, producing viral material that politicians can then share, potentially spreading misinformation before it can be debunked.
Another example cited is a deepfake video showing Netanyahu in a video call with Yahya Sinwar, congratulating him on a victory. This video, published without a label on social media, was later ordered by the Chairman of the Election Committee, Judge Noam Sohlberg, to be either labeled as digitally manipulated or removed. The video was subsequently taken down.
The research and analysis are funded by the Meir Shamgar Center for Digital Law and Innovation and the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Tel Aviv University, with support from The Bright Initiative of Bright Data.
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