Fact-Check: Viral Deepfake Video Making Statements About Kamala Harris, shared by Elon Musk without proper attribution is Parody!

By: Mustapha Lawal

Claim

A viral video shared by Elon Musk contains controversial statements about Vice President Kamala Harris.

Verdict  

False! The video is a deepfake parody, digitally altered to make satirical content on the candidacy of Kamala Harris. The video was however reposted by the Tesla CEO,  Elon Musk without proper label. 

Full Text

A deepfake video has been circulating online, containing inflammatory statements about Vice President Kamala Harris. The video has sparked widespread controversy and debate on social media platforms, with many users believing it to be authentic.

The video, which was reposted by Elon Musk, the owner of X (formerly Twitter), on his official page, criticizes Harris’s political career and personal life in harsh terms. The clip has been shared extensively on platforms like X, Facebook, and TikTok, gaining millions of views and inciting strong reactions from both supporters and detractors of Harris.

However, the rapid dissemination of the clip underscores the challenges of combating misinformation in the digital age. The incident highlights concerns about deepfake technology, ethical guideline on labelling of Ai content and its impact on political discourse.

FactCheckAfrica decided to investigate this claim due to the high-profile nature of the individuals involved and the potential impact on public opinion and political discourse.

Verification 

Upon conducting a thorough analysis, FactCheckAfrica found that the original version of the video was posted by a YouTuber known as Mr. Reagan (with the handle @MrReaganUSA). The video was labeled as an ad parody and confirmed to be purely satirical content. 

The video, originally created as a parody, was labeled “AD Parody” by Mr. Reagan, however the platform owner, Elon reposted the same video with a caption “This is amazing” without an attribution of it being altered or manipulated, leading to the widespread confusion and debate on social media about its authenticity. 

The creator of the video further explained in a post on his X trying to absolve Elon Musk of the consequence his repost created that the original post was well labelled. “In the original YouTube video and the original X post I make it very clear that this is PARODY, elonmusk  probably didn’t even think about the possiblity that this might be mistaken for a genuine campaign ad because it is so OBVIOUSLY satirical” the post Mr Reagan made says.

Conclusion

FactCheckAfrica found the claim to be false. The viral video purportedly showing controversial statements about Vice President Kamala Harris is a deepfake parody. The video was created as a satirical piece and was reposted by Elon Musk without proper labeling, leading to widespread misinformation.

Edited by Habeeb Adisa