Fake AI images and outdated visuals spread online after Maduro’s capture, with misleading posts garnering millions of views on social media platforms.
WASHINGTON: A surge of visual misinformation has flooded social media following the US capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. This includes AI deepfakes and recycled, outdated images that collectively racked up millions of views.
The fake or misleading posts underscore a new digital reality where hyper-realistic misinformation often drowns out authentic content after major news events. Soon after the raid, fact-checkers uncovered posts purporting to show the first image of Maduro in US custody.
This image, which made Maduro appear younger, was AI-generated and detected by Google’s tool Gemini. Another shared image claimed to show an American soldier posing with a bagged Maduro.
That image was actually from 2003, showing the capture of Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Disinformation watchdog NewsGuard identified seven fabricated or misrepresented images and videos related to the US operation.
These posts collectively garnered more than 14 million views in under two days on X alone. The trend highlights how AI slop and misrepresented visuals are blurring the line between fiction and reality.
“While many of these visuals do not drastically distort the facts on the ground, the use of AI and dramatic, out-of-context video represents another tactic in the misinformer’s arsenal,” said Chiara Vercellone, a senior analyst at NewsGuard.
She added it is a tactic “that is harder for fact checkers to expose because the visuals often approximate reality.” President Donald Trump himself amplified misinformation after the operation.
He shared a viral video claiming to show Venezuelans celebrating in the streets following Maduro’s capture. AFP’s fact-checkers found the video actually showed college students participating in a UCLA tradition.
Competing with authentic news was a flood of humorous AI-generated clips. One showed Maduro and Trump dancing in the Oval Office, while another depicted the ousted president posing with prisoners.
Maduro appeared in a New York court on Monday, where he pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking and “narco-terrorism.” Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodriguez insisted Tuesday that no foreign power was governing her country.
This came after Trump said Washington would “run” Venezuela pending a transition.
