Virgin Media presenter Colette Fitzpatrick recently gave her reaction to a post online, which shows her presenting a fake news story.
Colette is not the first public figure to be targeted in recent months. Grainne Seoige also fell victim to this when she was at the centre of the creation and dissemination of AI-generated sexual imagery during her election campaign.
The broadcaster watched as a digitally recreated version of herself appeared, which conveyed her presenting a piece of news about President Trump that was also fake.
AI-generated content, often referred to as ‘deepfake’ media. has become increasingly sophisticated. With just a few clips of video and audio, technology can mimic a person’s facial expressions, speech patterns and tone.
At first glance, the imitation of the news anchor may seem very real, but for those who are frequent viewers of the station, they will know straight off hand that this was not the presenter.
Looking at the piece, Colette said, ‘This has all been completely faked. That’s the blouse I wear. So someone has taken a mish mash opf me and some American news anchor, and all this stuff behind is completely fake and false as well. That accent is not a Tipperary accent. It is convincing.’
When she is told that this is online at the moment and that there are more versions out there, the presenter couldn’t believe it, stating how dreadful it is.
She went on to say how ‘it is shocking and my god you would want to be switched on. It is absolutely frightening because that would be believable to someone who wasn’t as switched on to AI as we would be in a newsroom. I can imagine people watching it and believing, and believing that this happened in the Oval Office.’
Virgin Media proceeded to post her reaction online with the caption ‘What happens when you can’t trust your own eyes? Virgin Media proceeded to post her reaction online with the caption ‘What happens when you can’t trust your own eyes?’
Sarah O’Connor, ,Gavan Reilly, Colette Fitzpatrick, Paul Colgan and Claire Brock. Pic: Brian McEvoy
People gave their own views on what they say, stating how the video was ‘scary’, with others stating how ‘There needs to be a real limit on the invasion of social media into our lives.’
The TV station calls all those online to ‘double‑check sources, follow verified Irish news outlets, and question what you see — because not everything that looks real is.’