As per Reuters, the Pope himself reportedly took notice when a realistic AI-generated depiction of him wearing a puffy coat went viral on social media last year. In a message for the 58th World Day of Social Communications, Francis emphasized the ongoing battle against misinformation, particularly the rise of “deepfakes” – counterfeit images that are deceptively authentic (even impacting him directly).
The Pontiff also raised concerns about manipulated audio recordings that imitate people’s voices. While recognizing the benefits of such technology in specific fields, he cautioned against its distortion of reality and human connections, which could lead to harmful consequences.
In March 2023, a Twitter user named “skyferrori” used the Midjourney v5 image synthesis service to create a misleading picture of Pope Francis in an elongated light puffer coat. The image quickly gained popularity, garnering over 197,000 likes and 28.1 million views. This event marked an early case where an AI-generated image successfully deceived a large online audience, blurring the boundaries between truth and fiction.
During this incident, a commenter known as “thrillgore” expressed astonishment on the Ars Technica forums, confessing to initially believing the image was real despite knowing the Pope’s modesty and dislike for self-promotion. These occurrences highlight the unsettling nature of deepfakes and their potential to undermine trust, distort information accuracy, incite online harassment, and disrupt historical truths.
Conversations about deepfakes and their impact on cultural trust, information reliability, and historical authenticity have persisted since the emergence of Stable Diffusion in 2022. Challenges persist due to inadequate support for data labeling tasks and apprehensions regarding the security of watermarking technology. Ultimately, the credibility of online content relies on the integrity of the message itself.
The Pope’s warning about the transformative role of artificial intelligence in information dissemination and societal norms emphasizes the significant influence of technological progress on communication dynamics. These advancements impact not only industry professionals but society as a whole, introducing a realm of innovations that surpass the comprehension of many, evoking both intrigue and concern.
