Compelling yet Divisive Artificial Intelligence Editing

When an audio clip appeared to show a local school principal making derogatory remarks, it went viral, prompting death threats against the educator and causing an uproar in the suburbs outside Baltimore. But it was soon revealed to be fake and manipulated by artificial intelligence – so why do people still believe it’s real?

“I really don’t understand why I have to put up with these idiots every day.”

The Pikesville High School principal began what appeared to be a tirade punctuated by racist, anti-Semitic and offensive tropes. It sounds like it was recorded secretly.

The speaker went on to lament the “ungrateful black kids” and Jews in the community.

The footage was first released in January and went viral across the country. But it did strike a nerve in the quiet, tree-lined suburb of Pikesville, which has large black and Jewish communities, and in nearby Baltimore, Maryland. Principal Eric Eiswert has been placed on paid administrative leave pending an investigation.

Alfie Malone, who is black and lives near Baltimore, discovered that other members of the community had posted the video and thought it was real.

“In the back of your mind, you think this is probably how people really feel about us,” Mr. Malone said. “Then hear the news of the real encounter.”

To confirm what he was hearing, Mr Malone looked at other authentic recordings of Mr Ashwalt on social media and they sounded the same.

So the part-time postman and part-time podcaster clicked the reshare button.

The video began to attract attention on social media as more and more people circulated it online. One of the most shared versions hit 2 million views within hours. That’s about 60 times the total population of Pikesville.

But what those who shared the footage didn’t realize at the time was that another bombshell was about to drop: the video was a fake generated by artificial intelligence.

for BBC Radio 4’s Why You Hate Me USAI’ve been in Maryland investigating the clip’s impact on the town. It reads almost like a parable about the dangers posed by artificial intelligence, especially when local communities are targeted.

When this video landed on the desk of Kristen Griffith, an education reporter for The Baltimore Standard, she thought it would be a relatively simple story about a teacher who was criticized for publishing a A story that came to light for offensive remarks.

But in line with journalism’s best practices, Ms Griffiths wanted to give the principal a chance to comment and tell his side of the story. So she contacted his union representative, who said Mr Ashwalt not only condemned the comments, but that he did not make them.

“He immediately said, oh, we think this is fake… we believe this is artificial intelligence,” she told the BBC. “I’ve never heard that angle before.”

But when she published this explanation, her readers were not convinced. Rather than raising questions about the footage’s authenticity, it sparked a backlash from people who viewed the accusations of fraud as an excuse or an attempt to avoid responsibility.

At this time, the local police began investigating the case. Pikesville High School staff told them they felt unsafe because of all the attention and they feared the school was being bugged with recording devices.

Principal Ashwater’s reputation has also taken a serious hit. Security has been tightened around him and around the school. He became the target of hate and threats on social media. I found dozens of abusive messages directed at him on social media.

Then in April, Baltimore Police Chief Robert McCullough confirmed that they now had “conclusive evidence that the recording was not authentic.”

They believe they know who made the fakes.

Police charged Dazhon Darien, 31, the school’s athletic director, with multiple charges related to the fake video. Charges include theft, retaliation against a witness and stalking.

He was arrested at the airport and police said he was planning to fly to Houston, Texas.

Police said Mr Darien was under investigation by principal Eiswert on suspicion of stealing $1,916 (£1,460) from the school. They also claimed there were “job performance challenges” and his contract would likely not be renewed.

Their theory is that by creating deepfake recordings, he hoped to discredit the principal before she was fired.

Investigators said they traced an email used to send the original video to a server connected to Darien and claimed he used the Baltimore County Public Schools computer network to access artificial intelligence tools. He will go on trial in December 2024.

Legal representatives for Mr. Darien did not respond to requests for comment.

Baltimore County Schools Superintendent Miriam Rogers previously said this is a “very difficult time” for school communities, principals and their families.

Representatives of Pikesville High School and Mr. Ashwalt did not respond to my requests for further comment.

Since the clip is audio-only, that means there are no visual leaks, such as the robot’s movements that usually reveal artificial intelligence manipulation. It also mentions some jargon, like “grade level expectations,” and other details, like staff names, that only those close to the school would know.

When you listen closely, though, there are obvious edits between sentences – and the voice, while similar to the principal, sounds rather monotonous. Artificial intelligence can take a few minutes of a real recording—such as a speech by your favorite movie actor or presidential candidate—and produce a clip that makes them sound like they were saying something they never did.

But Mr. Malone told me that perhaps the biggest reason people believe the film is real is because it feels real.

It draws on his experiences with racism as a black man living in Baltimore.

When Mr. Malone heard the principal describe black students as lazy, he was immediately reminded of the slurs and discrimination he had encountered at school and at work.

Months later, the effects of the fake audio clip are still being felt in Pikesville. Mr. Ashwalt has changed jobs and works at another school. Although some community members told me they now admit the video was fake, the damage has been done.

Last August, a woman named Sharon told me as she loaded her grandson’s stroller into her car at a house across from the high school, “This is a Jewish community and saying something so inflammatory to the community The remarks are disturbing.

Sharon spoke to me for several minutes as if the footage were real.

“I think when people say that, other people join in, and that scares me even more.”

When her husband chimed in in the car to remind her that the video was in fact fake, she admitted that she “later found out it was artificially generated.” But she said she’s still angry about it.

I found that for people like Sharon who believed the footage was real, even for a short period of time, it stuck in their minds – especially when the message echoed racism and discrimination of real experience. This reminds me of something I hear time and time again when investigating misinformation and conspiracy theories: “Well, even if it’s not true, I think that’s what they think.”

All major social media companies say they have policies to flag, remove and limit the spread of AI-generated posts. But such action will only be taken if it can be proven that the clip is fake. By then, it may have reached millions of people.

Alfie Malone said earlier in the day that he had spoken to a friend who still had no idea the footage was generated by artificial intelligence.

“Honestly, I believe a lot of people in this city don’t really know that’s not true,” he said.

He said he regretted that Mr Ashwalt, the principal, had been wrongly accused of making the remarks. He also worries the incident undermines real experiences of racism.

He said he would think twice before sharing such a clip again.

“I got burned once. I won’t touch the stove again.