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.
Claim
Indian cricketer Virat Kohli endorses his online casino.
Fact
Video found to be digitally altered, along with an AI-generated voice.
An advertisement, based on a purported India Today report, where it allegedly shows Indian cricketer Virat Kohli promoting his “online casino”, has recently gone viral. “Every person registered at Virat Kohli’s online casino will have the opportunity to hit the jackpot,” read the report.
“I have opened my own online casino where there are no losers and everyone can hit the jackpot. For those who are just starting their journey, I have prepared pleasant bonuses to support you at the beginning. Remember, in life as on the field it’s important not only to rise but also to share your victories with those around you. That’s why every resident of India can win the jackpot,” Kohli purportedly says in an interview.
Fact Check
Newschecker first ran a keyword search for “Virat Kohli online casino India Today”, which did not throw up any relevant reports or interviews regarding such a venture. We also looked up the cricketer’s official social media accounts, where we did not find any announcement.
Newschecker noticed that the lip movements of the anchor and Kohli seemed unnatural and did not completely match their words, further raising our doubts on whether it was digitally manipulated.
We then ran a reverse image search of keyframes of the video, which led us to American journalist Graham Bensinger’s interview with Kohli for his show, uploaded by his official Youtube channel on December 22, 2023.
A comparison of screengrabs of both the viral ad (left) and the Youtube video (right) further indicates it is the same interview that has been altered, especially considering the sofa, Kohli’s T-shirt and the background. Also, Kohli did not talk about online casinos at any point in the interview.
Newschecker then ran the audio past ElevenLabs, a voice AI research and deployment company, which said it was “likely” that the voice was generated with ElevenLabs.
Also Read: 2021 Video Of TMC Leader Being Chased Away In Bengal Shared As Recent
Conclusion
Viral video claimed to show Virat Kohli endorsing an online casino was found to be digitally altered.
Result: Altered Media
Source
Youtube video, Graham Bensinger, December 22, 2023
ElevenLabs AI voice detection 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.
