The authenticity of crowd sizes at political rallies has become a contentious issue in the current presidential campaign.
Last week, Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, addressed a crowd in a Detroit aircraft hangar, attracting thousands of supporters who welcomed them upon their arrival.
According to the Harris campaign, approximately 15,000 people attended the rally, with numerous attendees capturing photos and videos from various perspectives.
However, former President Donald Trump and his supporters have falsely claimed that images depicting the crowd were generated using artificial intelligence. Recently, Trump reiterated this unwarranted assertion, suggesting that the crowd portrayed in a photograph taken at the event was entirely fabricated.
In a recent post, Trump questioned, “Has anyone noticed that Kamala CHEATED at the airport?” asserting that the photo displayed a large crowd that “DIDN’T EXIST!”
When pressed by a reporter about the veracity of his claims, Trump avoided acknowledging the falsehood. “I can’t say what was there, who was there,” he stated during a televised exchange. “I can tell you about ours — we have the biggest crowds ever in the history of politics.”
The Harris campaign verified that the contentious photo was captured by a campaign staff member and was unaffected by AI alterations.
The “Liar’s Dividend”
The continued denial of straightforward facts alarms observers who fear a repeat of the unfounded claims surrounding the 2020 election. Scholars studying deepfakes have coined the term “liar’s dividend” to describe how the proliferation of such technology may lead people to question even authentic visuals.
Hany Farid, a forensic image specialist from the University of California, Berkeley, analyzed the rally photo with detection software and found no evidence of manipulation. He remarked, “This is an example where just the mere existence of deepfakes and generative AI allows people to deny reality.” Farid emphasized that such denials could create doubt among the electorate regarding the authenticity of events.
In a statement, Senator Bernie Sanders highlighted Trump’s misleading claims about the Harris rally, suggesting they set the stage for potential allegations of a stolen election should Trump fail to win.
Farid acknowledged the unusual lighting and compression of the photo but rejected the claims of inauthenticity, noting that they stemmed from low-resolution versions being circulated online.
Farid expressed concern about the ongoing debate over the veracity of the rally photo, stating, “What hope do we have to address complex problems in society if we can’t agree on this?”
Democracy at Risk
The blurred lines of what constitutes reality pose a significant challenge for democratic participation. Rick Hasen, a law professor at UCLA, remarked on the risks of a populace that doubts their own perceptions when making informed choices.
In response to Trump’s false assertions, the Harris campaign released a video from the Detroit rally, highlighting the substantial turnout and countering claims of a smaller crowd.
While not as severe as claiming a fabricated crowd, the Harris campaign has also been active on social media, addressing misrepresentations from Trump’s rallies. They showcased a larger crowd for Harris shortly after Trump held a rally at the same venue, although the images depicted a moment before the venue was full.
Trump’s allegation that Harris “cheated” with a fabricated crowd aligns with his supporters’ beliefs in the discredited idea that Democrats stole the 2020 presidential election, according to experts on misinformation.
As the presidential race unfolds with Harris and Walz leading the Democratic ticket, many of Trump’s supporters are searching for validation of their candidate’s continuing viability.
Experts warn that misinformation often serves to reinforce individuals’ pre-existing beliefs, making it increasingly challenging to discern reality in a landscape filled with dubious evidence.
