Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
Claim
Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau announces his resignation.
Fact
Video found to be AI-manipulated and satire.
A one-minute ten-second video purportedly showing Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau announcing his resignation has gone viral across social media platforms, amid reports of mounting pressure on Trudeau to resign owing to dwindling support within the Liberal Party.
The archived version of the post can be seen here. We received this video on our Whatsapp tipline (9999499044), too, with users requesting us to fact-check it.
Fact Check
Newschecker noticed that the tone of the “resignation” speech leaned heavily towards sarcasm and comedy, indicating that it was digitally altered and intended as parody. We ran a keyword search for “Trudeau resignation,” which did not lead us to any credible news reports about such an announcement.
We then ran a reverse image search of keyframes of the video, which led us to the earliest instance of the video being posted on December 18, 2024, by a parody X account of Trudeau, who also clearly hints at it being AI-generated in replies to other users under the post.
A further search led us to the original video, uploaded by the official Youtube account of the Prime Minister of Canada on August 1, 2024, showing Trudeau’s message on Emancipation Day, which marks the actual day in 1834 when the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 came into effect across the British Empire.
We next ran the video past TrueMedia, an AI-content detection tool, which found “substantial evidence of manipulation”.
“The transcript is filled with sarcastic and self-deprecating humour, which is not typical of a real resignation speech by a political leader. The exaggerated and comedic tone, along with the use of phrases like “skyrocketing grocery prices” and “choosing socks that offended half the country,” suggests that this is a satirical piece rather than a genuine announcement. The language is too polished and theatrical, indicating that it is likely scripted for comedic or satirical purposes,” read the tool’s review of the video.
Conclusion
Viral video of Justin Trudeau resigning as Canadian PM found to be AI-generated and satire.
Result: Satire
Sources
Youtube video, Prime Minister of Canada, August 1, 2024
X post, @JustinTrudeauNo, December 18, 2024
TrueMedia tool
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Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
