Stay Informed: How to be vigilant in the face of fear-mongering AI

Have you ever seen this photo?

Isn’t it terrible? That a kids’ toy brand makes a product so harmful, so wrong, and so racist?

Well, quite fortunately, there isn’t a toy brand that does this. The image was generated by some Facebook user using AI.

This trend has plagued Facebook, Pinterest, Reddit, and many other social media platforms since the popularization and increased accessibility of AI image generators.

Fearmongering is the action of deliberately arousing public fear or alarm about a particular issue. It is weaponized to rally groups of people, often falsely, to believe in a certain idea/movement. As AI advances, fearmongerers use it more and more to incite anger and unrest.

How to spot AI-generated images:

Overall, remember to be critical of what you see on social media — ESPECIALLY on Facebook, Twitter, and any site. Anyone can post anything, but with the right tools, you can easily spot fearmongering and fake news.

*This editorial was written by Rachel Alcazar, SF NAACP Youth Council President. The Youth Council executive board voted unanimously in agreement.