August 12th 2024.
Former President Donald Trump took to social media to make false claims about Vice President Kamala Harris' recent rally in Michigan, stating that "nobody" attended and accusing her of using a "fake crowd picture." However, these claims were quickly disproven by photos and videos from attendees and media outlets, which clearly showed thousands of supporters at the event held at an airport hangar near Detroit.
This is not the first time that Trump has fixated on audience size, often boasting about exaggerated turnouts at his own rallies. He made these fabricated claims on his social media website, Truth Social, stating that an airport maintenance worker had reported the fake image of Harris' crowd. He went on to say that she should be disqualified for "election interference" and that she would cheat at anything.
But the photos and videos from the rally, including those captured by CNN's cameras, painted a different picture. The event had a large turnout, with the crowd filling the hangar and spilling out onto the tarmac where Air Force Two had landed. Digital forensics expert Hany Farid analyzed the photos and found no evidence of AI generation or digital manipulation. He stated that while this doesn't necessarily prove the image is real, there is no evidence to suggest it was altered.
David Plouffe, a senior adviser for Harris' campaign, also weighed in on the matter, stating that these false claims are not just conspiracy theories and that the person making them could potentially have access to important decisions.
Trump shared a screenshot of a post on X that featured two photos - one showing a large crowd greeting Harris' plane and another zoomed in on the reflective side of the plane's engine where the crowd was not visible. He accused Harris of cheating and using AI to create a fake crowd, but these claims were quickly debunked by attendees and staffers who shared their own photos from the event on social media.
Lavora Barnes, the chairwoman of the Michigan Democratic Party, also shared a photo from the rally, joking that she was honored to be included in the "AI crowd" of 15,000 excited Democrats welcoming Harris and her running mate. She sarcastically stated that her ears were still ringing from the imaginary cheering of the crowd.
These false claims from Trump come as he continues to navigate the changes in the presidential race, with Harris taking over as the vice presidential candidate. It is clear that he is still fixated on audience size and is willing to spread misinformation and conspiracy theories to discredit his opponents.
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