Piers Morgan has lamented the rise of AI-generated clips of him ranting on topical subjects.
In an interview at SXSW London, Morgan revealed that his own mother was unable to spot that a viral video of the YouTube presenter was in fact a deepfake.
Morgan’s likeness is now regularly being imitated on social media, where people are creating clips purporting to be from his Uncensored show.
Morgan said his mother was duped by one such video. “She thought it was me!” he exclaimed. “She brought me into this world. That is a big problem.”
The former CNN anchor was sharing a stage with Katherine Jenkins, the celebrated classical music artist from Wales. She said she struggles to trust what she sees on platforms like TikTok.
Jenkins, who has a 20-year friendship with Morgan, added that she too had been momentarily fooled by a clip of the presenter on social media. “I’m always very nervous when I see these clips on TikTok. I’m not always sure that what I’ve seen is real,” she explained.
Morgan said he would back himself to be more persuasive than AI. “I would back myself at the moment to be more compelling in an argument than AI, just on balance,” he added.
“I think we can be more unpredictable; we can be more spontaneous, more emotional, but of course, all those things are reasons to get rid of us as well.”
During the same session, Morgan said he was “a bit disappointed” that SXSW London did not do more to stand up for YouTube political commentator Cenk Uygur after he was banned from entering the UK.
Uygur and his nephew Hasan Piker were due to speak at SXSW, but the Home Office confirmed that their Electronic Travel Authorisation had been cancelled because their “presence in the UK may not be conducive to the public good.”
Morgan said: “Cenk Uygur, who is a regular guest on my show, was banned from entering the country. He was supposed to do Oxford Union and this event as well, and the Oxford Union raced to defend him and this organization didn’t.
“I’m a bit disappointed by that, and I’m using my right to say that at their own event. But it would have been quite nice for them to stand up actually for free speech and demand that Cenk Uygur be allowed in the country and come and debate here and express himself in a free democratic manner, if we believe that our country is a free democratic country.”
In a statement earlier this week, SXSW London said: “Decisions on entry to the UK are a matter for the Home Office and the individuals concerned. SXSW London’s role is to convene a broad range of diverse voices and perspectives. We remain focused on delivering a programme this week fostering open dialogue and exchange of ideas and featuring more than 800 speakers, artists and screenings.”
