X Blocks Taylor Swift Searches After AI Deepfakes
Questions arose after X, formerly Twitter, confirmed on Sunday that it blocked searches for pop singer Taylor Swift on the social media platform. This came after several explicit deepfake images were shared of the popular pro-abortion singer.
The obvious query is why now? After years of having illegal and explicit content on the platform, why is there a sudden rush to clean up its act?
It is unclear whether X had taken such steps before the Swift controversy erupted. It has endured criticism from leftists since its purchase by Elon Musk over content moderation.
Meanwhile, those who searched for the popular icon on X received a message, “Something went wrong. Try reloading.” There were ways around the blockade, such as using the singer’s full name in quotes. But the drastic actions taken on behalf of Swift leaves much to be considered about why some harmful content proliferates on social media while pictures of a popstar became an issue so serious that the topic was being discussed in the U.S. Congress and in the White House.
The White House predictably chimed in on the deepfake controversy. In typical Biden fashion, however, it chose to include the spread of so-called “misinformation” in its faux outrage.
Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters the fraudulent images were “alarming.” She then encouraged social media platforms to take action to stem the tide of “misinformation and nonconsensual, intimate imagery of real people.”
She then called for legislation “to deal with this issue.”
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told NBC News that “we have to act.” The Big Tech executive opined that “we all benefit when the online world is a safe world.
Joe Benarroch, the head of business operations for X, called the blocking of searches for Swift temporary. He said the step was taken “with an abundance of caution as we prioritize safety on this issue.”
Again, the inescapable question is why now? X became a bastion of free speech under Musk’s tutelage, and it moved away from the leftist censorship that plagued the platform under previous management.
However, as the White House commentary noted, this seemingly simple issue may be diverted into a push for yet more censorship. What explicit deepfakes have to do with so-called “misinformation” is anyone’s guess, but you can be certain the Biden administration will use it to suppress speech it finds disagreeable.
