US elections: Donald Trump shares AI-generated Taylor Swift and Kamala Harris posts

Former US President Donald Trump has sparked controversy by using AI-generated images in his latest campaign push, blurring the lines between political satire and potential disinformation. Over the weekend, Trump posted several images, including one falsely depicting pop star Taylor Swift endorsing his candidacy and another portraying Vice President Kamala Harris against a backdrop of communist imagery.

The images, likely generated using AI tools, highlight the growing challenge of policing AI-created content in the political landscape. Experts warn that existing legal frameworks, designed to protect free speech, may be insufficient to combat the spread of misleading AI-generated content during elections.

One image shared by Trump shows a figure resembling Harris from behind, addressing a crowd with a prominent hammer and sickle in the background. Another post features a compilation of images, including what appears to be an AI-generated image of Swift dressed as Uncle Sam with the caption, "Taylor wants you to vote for Donald Trump." Trump responded to the post with, “I accept!”

Many US state laws targeting deepfakes require the content to be convincingly realistic and depict someone saying or doing something specific.

Furthermore, federal regulations on deepfakes in elections are virtually non-existent, with the exception of the FCC's ban on AI-generated voices in robocalls. The First Amendment's protection of free speech, even when it involves deliberate lies by political candidates, further complicates the issue. 

Social media platforms could play a role in mitigating the spread of misleading AI content. X (formerly Twitter) has a policy against synthetic and manipulated media, but its enforcement has been inconsistent. Even Elon Musk, the platform's owner, has seemingly violated the policy. Trump's preferred platform, Truth Social, has minimal content moderation guidelines.