INDEPENDENT
Taylor Swift “Furious” Over AI Generated Sexually Explicit Images
Social media platform X – formerly Twitter – has blocked some search terms related to Taylor Swift after explicit AI-generated images of the pop singer were widely circulated online.
Searches for Swift’s name on the microblogging platform yielded the error message: “Something went wrong. Try reloading.”
“This is a temporary action and done with an abundance of caution as we prioritise safety on this issue,” X said in a statement.
The explicit content, which appears to have been made using AI, was reportedly live on X for nearly 19 hours before the account that posted the images was suspended.
The offensive images and the length of time it took X to remove the content led to widespread outrage from Swift’s fans and others who flagged the “violently misogynist” nature of the AI-generated content.
X responded nearly a day later saying it was “actively removing all identified images” and that it was taking action against accounts posting them.
Since multibillionaire and “free speech absolutist” Elon Musk bought X – then Twitter – in 2022, the company has come under scrutiny for the overhaul of its content moderation policies with several advertisers pulling out of the platform fearing their ads would be featured alongside controversial posts.
Mr Musk and X chief Linda Yaccarino have adopted a new “freedom of speech, not reach” policy for the platform that restricts circulation of some posts while refraining from deleting them.
