LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — FOX5 discovered two separate social media posts this week showing one of Las Vegas’s most iconic venues on fire, but both videos were fake and created using artificial intelligence.
The discovery highlights how artificial intelligence is making fake news posts increasingly difficult to distinguish from legitimate breaking news, according to a digital media expert who warns the days of taking news at face value are over.
Benjamin Morse, who teaches digital and social media at UNLV’s School of Journalism, said AI-generated fake news content appears “a little too clean” and “a little too perfect” compared to real news coverage.
“When I was watching the flames, I was like, because you told me it was AI, it was easy to pick up the fact that this is just a little, it’s not chaotic enough,” Morse said. “But in terms of the writing, in terms of the image at a glance, there’s no way you’re going to be able to detect that.”
Critical thinking key to verification
Morse said readers must apply critical thinking when encountering potential news content online.
“It’s more that you really need to do the critical thinking of, okay, if the Sphere was on fire, would I be hearing about it this way for the first time? Would it not be showing up anywhere else?” he said.
The journalism professor said verification across multiple sources has become essential.
“If you see something and you’re not verifying it in one or two other places, you’re going to be in trouble,” Morse said.
Despite acknowledging society has become “a one-click culture,” Morse advised taking time to analyze content before sharing or believing it.
“Take a minute, slow down, think about what you’re seeing and just, you know, get the full context. Context is really important,” he said.
Detection methods available
Morse said several methods can help identify fake AI-generated news posts. Some content will be clearly labeled as fake, though most will not be marked.
He suggested checking post comments to see if others have identified the content as fake, conducting web searches to verify news outlet legitimacy, and confirming information accuracy through additional sources.
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