DNC account ‘FactPost’ deletes false post after Trump Jr. representative denounces ‘100% fake AI generated audio’
After President Donald Trump’s electoral victory in November, the Democratic National Committee launched a rapid response social media account, “FactPost,” to “combat online misinformation.” On Wednesday, the account published fabricated audio—known as a “deepfake”—of Donald Trump Jr. calling on the United States to arm Russia in its war against Ukraine.
FactPost posted audio on Twitter of Trump Jr. ostensibly speaking about the Ukraine-Russia war on his podcast, Triggered. In the clip, the computer-generated Trump Jr. says he “honestly can’t imagine anyone in their right mind picking Ukraine as an ally.”
“Honestly, the U.S. should have been sending weapons to Russia,” the fake first son says.
It is unclear who created the deepfake. Two accounts with large followings—Visegrad24 and Polymarket—posted it earlier Wednesday. FactPost and groups like Republicans Against Trump posted it later in the day, citing it as evidence that the administration favors Russia in the war against Ukraine. Some social media users quickly called the audio into question, noting that the Triggered podcast website did not have the episode featured in the viral tweets.
FactPost and others deleted their posts after a representative for Trump Jr. said the clip is “100% fake AI generated audio.”
It comes as Democrats accuse Republicans of spreading disinformation on social media. The DNC’s website touts its support for legislation to fight AI-generated disinformation and deepfakes, video, or audio that has been edited for malicious purposes. The DNC launched FactPost last month to “try to combat online misinformation and respond to Trump administration actions by pushing out memes, videos and graphics.”
“The Republican disinformation machine is powerful, but we believe a stronger weapon is giving people the facts about how Trump and his administration are screwing over the American people,” DNC chief mobilization officer Shelby Cole said after the FactPost launch last month.
According to the DNC, many of the FactPost staffers worked on the Kamala Harris campaign’s rapid response account, KamalaHQ. That account caused several headaches for the ill-fated campaign.
In August, KamalaHQ published never-before-seen video of Tim Walz calling for gun control. In the video, Walz claimed he carried weapons “in war.” But, as the Washington Free Beacon reported, Walz never served in a war zone. Numerous other examples soon emerged of Walz embellishing his military record.
The DNC did not respond to a request for comment.
