AI disinformation videos target US Senate candidates
Videos linked to Russia misuse real people's images to spread false claims about two Democrats.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
AI disinformation videos target US Senate candidates
Photograph: Washington Top News (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Social media videos, potentially created with artificial intelligence and linked to Russia, are being used to spread disinformation about two Democratic Senate candidates.
- The videos misuse real individuals' names and photographs to create false narratives.
- Targets include Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown and Texas candidate James Talarico.
- The platform X has removed some of the original posts, but copies remain online.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 12 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. Coverage measured .
Trust
48/100
Craft
95/100
Hype
15/100
12 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
None of the 12 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
Social media videos, believed to be produced with artificial intelligence and linked to Russia, are misusing real people's names and photographs to spread disinformation about two Democratic Senate candidates. The videos are circulating in the final stretch of midterm voting. One target is Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown, who is running against Republican Jon Husted. Another is Texas candidate James Talarico, who is running against Republican Ken Paxton.
One video targeting Brown includes a picture of Haya Akbik, who interned for him. Akbik told The Associated Press that any claims attributed to her in the clip are false and harmful to her reputation and the senator. Experts see similarities to Russian clips from 2024 that targeted Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, suggesting the same network may be involved. The Russian Embassy in Washington has previously denied interfering in US elections.
The video targeting Talarico is described as a direct-to-camera confessional from a former student. Talarico's spokesperson stated that opponents are using AI deepfakes and foreign bots to slander him because they cannot defeat him with truth. Experts, including Dartmouth College professor Hany Farid, have analysed the videos and believe they were likely generated or manipulated using AI. The platform X has taken down initial posts and suspended users for violating rules, but copies of the videos continue to circulate online.
Disagreement on video authenticity
Washington Top News reported that one video targeting Brown appears to include some AI manipulation, while the other, targeting Talarico, is likely generated by AI. Hany Farid, a Dartmouth College professor, stated his analyses showed the videos targeting Brown and Talarico were likely either generated or manipulated using AI. Farid described the video targeting Brown as a "fairly low-tech fake."
What the coverage left out
None of the left-rated or centre-rated reports mention the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency's response or lack thereof to requests for comment on the videos.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 1 time, most recently on 28 Oct 2026, 01:15, and will add the sides that appear.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
6 rated outlets
- Left-rated reports led on the use of artificial intelligence and Russian links in the disinformation campaign targeting Democratic Senate candidates Sherrod Brown and James Talarico. These reports highlighted that real people's names and photographs were misused to spread false claims. They noted the similarity to previous Russian disinformation efforts and the difficulty in containing the spread of such content online. The reports also mentioned X's action to remove posts and suspend users.
Centre
6 rated outlets
- Centre-rated reports focused on the core fact that social media videos, believed to be linked to Russia and potentially using AI, are misusing real people's images to malign two Democratic Senate candidates. They identified Sherrod Brown and James Talarico as the targets and mentioned the involvement of their opponents. The reports noted that X had taken down some of the original posts containing the videos.
Right
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated right has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover AI disinformation videos target US Senate candidates?
- Of the 12 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 50% are rated left, 50% are rated centre, 0% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is AI disinformation videos target US Senate candidates left or right?
- Neither side dominates it. Of the 12 rated outlets on this story, 50% are rated left, 50% are rated centre, 0% are rated right, and no side holds the 70% this site would want before calling a field one-sided. A story is not left or right in any case; the outlets that carried it are what carry ratings.
- Is the coverage of AI disinformation videos target US Senate candidates biased?
- AI disinformation videos target US Senate candidates is one event reported by 12 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting AI disinformation videos target US Senate candidates?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered AI disinformation videos target US Senate candidates?
- 12 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- What are the disinformation videos about?
- The videos are believed to be AI-generated and linked to Russia. They misuse real people's names and photographs to spread false information about two Democratic Senate candidates, Sherrod Brown and James Talarico, in an effort to influence midterm election outcomes.
- Who are the candidates targeted by the videos?
- The candidates targeted are Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown, who is running against Republican Jon Husted, and Texas candidate James Talarico, who is running against Republican Ken Paxton. Both are Democrats.
- What actions have been taken regarding the videos?
- The social media platform X has taken down some of the initial posts that shared the videos and suspended the users responsible for violating its rules. However, copies of the videos have been found elsewhere online.
Read it at the source
12 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
6- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates (opens The Washington Post in a new tab)
The Washington Post — is The Washington Post biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates (opens The Seattle Times in a new tab)
The Seattle Times — is The Seattle Times biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates (opens Daily Record in a new tab)
Daily Record — is Daily Record biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates (opens Associated Press News in a new tab)
Associated Press News — is Associated Press News biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates (opens St Catharines Standard in a new tab)
St Catharines Standard — is St Catharines Standard biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates (opens The Hamilton Spectator in a new tab)
The Hamilton Spectator — is The Hamilton Spectator biased? Our profile of this outlet
Centre
6- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people (opens WBAL in a new tab)
- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates – WTOP News (opens Washington Top News in a new tab)
Washington Top News — is Washington Top News biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates (opens Leader-Telegram in a new tab)
Leader-Telegram — is Leader-Telegram biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates (opens Bozeman Daily Chronicle in a new tab)
Bozeman Daily Chronicle — is Bozeman Daily Chronicle biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates (opens WKMG in a new tab)
- Disinformation videos, likely from Russia, are exploiting real people to malign Senate candidates (opens Winnipeg Free Press in a new tab)
Winnipeg Free Press — is Winnipeg Free Press biased? Our profile of this outlet
Right
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Not rated
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
How did this read?
About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.
