Last week, death threats and turmoil came upon a Maryland community when a video of a local school principal making offensive comments went out. But the video turned out to be artificial plastic surgery gone wrong. Even though it has come out that it was not real, many still seem to believe it is. AI Deepfake Scandal Principal’s Fake Racist Audio.
The Viral Audio Clip AI
This appeared to be a long clip depicting a principal from Pikesville High School as he went on a racist, antisemitic, and offensive rant. The speaker had issues with “ungrateful black puppies” alongside Jews. It looked like it was a private phone recording, and it first appeared online in January and went viral within a very short period.
Pikesville, a quiet suburb with significant Black and Jewish communities, faced negative impacts from the drama surrounding the issue. Authorities suspended Principal Eric Eiswert with pay while they resolved the situation. Without much larger detail, the nearby city of Baltimore also felt the waves of the incident as if it were some kind of suspension of already existing vestiges.
Community Reaction
Alfie Malone, a black man living in Baltimore, watched a video he uploaded circulating in the Baltimore black community and thought it was true.
“And then to hear that come across the audio.” This was how he later tried to corroborate Mr. Malone’s statements by listening to other recordings of principal Eiswert and feeling that the voice samples were also consistent. Thinking this is the real thing, Malone chose to re-share the video clip.
The Clip Goes Viral
These reactions led to the viral video clip across different social networking sites. Gone was, for instance, one of the most shared re-edited versions, which had already rocked two million views within hours, around sixty times the populace of Pikesville.
The Investigation: Anatomy of an AI Fakery
Kristen Griffith from the Baltimore Banner, which covers educational news, was among the first people to cover the story. At first, she thought the incident was just another case of the principal’s outrageous comments being caught on tape. However, the reality that came out was quite different—far from what she had expected.
A Tale of Caution in Modern Times
As part of my research for BBC Radio 4’s “Why Do You Hate Me USA,” I went to Maryland to learn how this fake clip has affected that society. Unfortunately, this event serves as a contemporary lesson on the dangers of AI, especially its use against the local population.
