Amidst the rise of deepfakes and absurd photoshops, the fine demarcation between real and fake world often gets blurred.
The consequences often become troublesome when there is an upcoming big event. The same thing happened recently as Donald Trump did something unbelievable. Former US President and the Republican nominee for this year, Donald Trump shared fake images of popstar Taylor Swift supporting him in the elections.
In the viral post, Taylor Swift was seen in red, white and blue dress. The caption reads "Taylor Swift Wants You To Vote For Donald Trump." "I accept!" Trump wrote.
The Sunday entry by the Republican candidate on Truth Social did not stop there. He also posted images of young women wearing "Swifties for Trump" shirts. He even shared a satirical article with the headline "Swifties Turning to Trump After ISIS Foiled Taylor Swift Concert." The article was tagged "SATIRE" above the title.
(Credit - @ArtCandee X handle)
"Swifties for Trump is a massive movement that grows bigger every single day," Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a recent statement when asked about this fake Swift image.
As soon as the image was posted by Trump, numerous Swift fans and watchdog groups commented against regular use of deepfakes by Donald Trump during election campaigns.
“Trump's post was yet another example of AI's power to create misinformation," consumer group Public Citizen said. "The potential harms to our society that could result from such misinformation, including abuses of our elections, are wide-reaching and immensely damaging," the group added.
Some of the users immediately tagged her to take prompt legal action against Trump.
(Credit - @CallMeAntwen x handle)
Meanwhile, Donald Trump has previously shared a deepfake video of him dancing to the famous Bee Gees’s song Stayin’ Alive with Tesla owner Elon Musk.
Considering the huge competition, both Democratic party and Republicans have long wanted Taylor Swift’s support. However, the billionaire megastar has been reticent about her political preferences. Despite her direct support, fans have created a group named "Swifties for Kamala” on X and Instagram which have been regularly attracting tens of thousands of followers.
The reality is, the billionaire popstar hasn't publicly endorsed any of the candidates yet.
Previously, Taylor Swift has shown supports for Democrats. During 2020 election, the singer supported President Joe Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris. Meanwhile, Taylor Swift has openly criticised Donald Trump in a famous 2020 documentary.
“After stoking the fires of white supremacy and racism your entire presidency, you have the nerve to feign moral superiority before threatening violence?” she posted on X, then known as Twitter, in 2020. “We will vote you out in November.”
At the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Swift fan Rebecca Goff distributed friendship bracelets, which is believed to be a common practice among Swift fans.
The 39-year old Swift fan said: "That's like the antithesis of what Trump and the GOP are trying to do, especially to women. They're trying to make us smaller. They want us to go back to being just housewives, child bearers.”
(Credit - @PopularLiberal X handle)
There was a sheer demonstration of Taylor Swift’s indomitable star power, when she encouraged her fans to register their vote last fall. Her plea immediately saw 35,000 new registrations. For the first time in 2018, the popstar endorsed the Democratic opponent of far-right US Senator Marsha Blackburn in Tennessee. Following to that, She had even spoken out for the legal right to the abortion and LGBTQ rights.
With more than 60,000 supporters, the ‘Swifties for Kamala’ group has received significant traction in last couple of weeks and is currently planning a fundraising event for the Vice President on August 27.
