A new public service announcement is employing a “greatest hits” approach, showcasing viral AI-generated images to educate the public on how to identify AI-generated fakery. The PSA features well-known examples such as a skydiving baby, Pope Francis wearing a designer puffer coat, a fabricated polar bear rescue, and Will Smith seemingly enjoying a plate of spaghetti. the Will Smith meme, which surfaced a couple of years ago, served as an early yardstick for assessing the progress of AI image generation.

Sence then, AI tools for creating images and videos have advanced rapidly, achieving increasingly realistic results. While these advancements unlock numerous creative opportunities, they also heighten the risk of individuals mistaking artificial content for genuine material, potentially leading to significant repercussions.

“At stake is trust in substantiated facts and the health of democracy,” stated Betsy Morais, acting editor of the Columbia Journalism Review, the publication produced by Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. This concern prompted CJR to launch PSAi, a campaign focused on equipping the public with the skills to differentiate between authentic and AI-generated content.

“Extra fingers are a telltale sign, so is skin with the perfect shine.”

According to the campaign, “For more than a century, photography has been one of the greatest tools journalists have had to establish truth and trust,” but “AI-generated images are making it increasingly hard to distinguish real from fake media.”

As part of the psai initiative, CJR collaborated with TBWAChiatDay New York, a creative agency, to develop a concise and engaging music video that serves as a rapid guide to the fundamentals of AI detection. The video combines some of the most recognizable AI-generated images with a ’90s rap-style song, offering advice that may seem obvious to those familiar with AI quirks, but not to the many who are easily deceived.

The lyrics include tips such as: “Extra fingers are a telltale sign, so is skin with the perfect shine. flawless hair that’s smooth and clean, warped faces in the back of the scene.”

The TBWAChiatDay team gathered AI-generated images from various social media platforms, ranging from emotionally charged scenes, such as a young girl navigating Hurricane Katrina floodwaters with her dog, to the more bizarre, like the “Shrimp Jesus” meme. These images were selected based on their popularity and widespread sharing, but also because they had successfully misled people into believing they were real.

AI Tools Used to Highlight Risks

The team used Runway’s AI video generation and alteration tools, specifically its Act-One feature, to animate the images. This feature allows for animating facial expressions and synchronizing mouth movements with speech. In the PSAi video, subjects appear to lip-sync the rap lyrics. For example, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg appears to sing, “That’s the way you spot AI,” while peering into a window.

An iProov study conducted earlier in the year indicated that many individuals struggle to identify deepfakes, with 20% of surveyed consumers admitting they are unfamiliar with the term. Dustin Tomes, chief creative officer of TBWAChiatDay New York, emphasized that PSAi is designed as an awareness-building toolkit, not an anti-AI statement.

“The PSAi is designed to give people simple, effective tools to spot the difference, without requiring too much effort,” Tomes stated.”This isn’t a silver bullet, but by delivering this education in a memorable way, we hope more people will engage and apply these lessons.After all, fake news doesn’t spread itself.”

The video is attention-grabbing, even without the appearance of the viral “emotional support kangaroo.”