Donald Trump shared AI-generated images of Taylor Swift and her fanbase (Swifties) endorsing him for the November presidential elections. The former US president shared the screenshots on his social media platform, Truth Social, with the caption, “I accept!”
The deepfake images add to the growing concerns about the use of AI in this election. This is not the first time the presidential aspirant has shared deepfake photos to support his cause in the coming elections, and Swift is not new to AI-image controversies either.
Trump shared four screenshots, three showing young women wearing shirts with the inscription “Swifties for Trump” boldly written on the front. At least one of these images has been confirmed to be authentic. It features Trump-Swift supporter Jenna Piwowarczyk, who claimed that Trump saw her in the shirt and said Swift is great.
However, the other images are deepfake with telltale signs. In one, multiple young women are in the Swifties for Trump shirts. There is a headline in the screenshot saying Swifties are turning to Trump because they now see the need for a strong US leader after ISIS attempted to bomb Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna, leading to cancellation.
Although the post clearly says it is satire, Trump shared it anyway. There was also an image of Taylor Swift dressed like Uncle Sam with the caption “Taylor Wants You To Vote For Donald Trump.”
Beyond the posts, Trump also shared a conspiracy theory video suggesting that Swifties are supporting Trump because of the canceled Eras Tour Concerts in Vienna. In the video, a woman claimed this incident would not have happened if Trump had been in office.
No signs of Taylor Swift endorsing any candidate
Despite Trump’s claims, there is no official statement to support it. Swift has not endorsed any presidential candidate in the 2024 elections, although she supported Joe Biden against Trump in 2020.
However, supporters of both candidates, who are also Swift fans, have not shied away from using their love for the pop star to push their preferred candidate. There are unofficial accounts of Swifties for Kamala and Swifties for Trump on X (formerly Twitter).
These accounts, which have thousands of followers, highlight Taylor Swift’s influence, particularly among young adults. It also explains why each candidate would want her on their side. There are rumors that Swift and Beyonce might perform at the Democratic Party convention in Chicago.
Meanwhile, this is not the first time that Trump has reposted AI images attacking his opponents or claimed that his opponent is using AI. A few days ago, he posted an AI-generated image of Kamala addressing communists. Before that, he accused the vice president of using AI to generate images showing the massive crowd at her campaign rally, an accusation that experts have debunked.
