Accusations against Russia
USA warns about fake video with ministry spokesman
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The US State Department spokesman speaks out in a video about legitimate attacks on Russian territory. But his statements are fake – the short clip is manipulated. Now the USA is looking for the authors. But the speaker can also laugh about it.
After a fake video of US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller appeared on social media, the American government is investigating the origin of the clip. “I want to warn everyone: If you see a video of me on the podium and the color of my shirt and tie changes from the moment I'm asked a question to the moment I answer, “This is probably a clear indication that the video is not real,” said Miller on Wednesday when asked by a journalist.
The New York Times reported on the 50-second clip last Friday. In the clearly manipulated video, Miller can be seen and heard apparently suggesting that the Russian city of Belgorod is a legitimate target for Ukrainian attacks. The US government had previously given Ukraine permission to use American weapons to a limited extent against targets on Russian territory. However, the statements made by the fake speaker go beyond this and are largely incorrect in terms of content.
The manipulations are clearly visible: not only does the color of Miller's tie change within the video. The lip movements also don't match the spoken word. In addition, the statements cannot be found in the archived minutes of the press conferences.
Whether it was an edited video or whether artificial intelligence (AI) was also involved remains unclear, as does the answer to the question of where the clip came from, said Miller. However, we have seen in the past how the Russian government has tried to use disinformation to deceive both its own population and people in other countries.
When asked whether the American government expected an increase in such manipulated videos in view of the US presidential election in November, Miller said they were “extremely concerned”. The best antidote is for the government to disseminate reliable information and quickly address misinformation. But the ministry spokesman also joked: “It just occurred to me that I could avoid a lot of Zoom meetings if I had an AI version of myself.”
