AI images and archived footage spread after Trump’s Venezuela strike announcement

Minutes after Donald Trump announced a “large-scale strike” against Venezuela early on Saturday, false and misleading AI-generated images and recycled footage began flooding social media, showing fake photos of Nicolás Maduro being escorted by US law enforcement, jubilant crowds in Caracas and videos of missiles over the city.

The fabricated content was intermixed with real videos and photos of US aircraft and explosions lighting the sky, making it difficult to discern fact from fiction, the Guardian reported. By the time Trump posted a verified photo of Maduro blindfolded and handcuffed aboard the USS Iwo Jima, AI-generated images had already gone viral across X, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok, NewsGuard said.

NewsGuard released a report identifying five fabricated or out-of-context photos and two videos tied to the operation; it said those seven items have garnered more than 14m views on X alone. Examples include an AI-generated photo of a soldier beside Maduro with a black hood, and an out-of-context video actually filmed in June at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

Individual influencers also amplified misleading material: Coral Gables mayor Vince Lago posted a fake DEA photo and wrote that Maduro “is the leader of a narco-terrorist organization threatening our country,” a post NewsGuard said received more than 1,500 likes and remained up.

Key Topics

Tech, Donald Trump, Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela Strike, Caracas, Ai-generated Images