Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is under scrutiny after making unfounded claims that an image showing a large crowd at Detroit’s airport upon Kamala Harris’s arrival for a campaign rally was digitally altered using artificial intelligence. The Associated Press and other news organizations having journalists present at the event confirmed the crowd size to be accurate, with Harris’ campaign also dismissing the allegations of photo manipulation. The Wayne County Airport Authority referred queries regarding the crowd size to Harris’ campaign, who stated that 15,000 people attended the rally held inside a hangar and spilling out onto the tarmac.
Harris’ campaign reported significant turnout at her recent rallies, with 12,000 attendees in Philadelphia and Eau Claire, Wisconsin, followed by 15,000 in Glendale, Arizona. In Las Vegas, over 12,000 people were present inside a university arena, prompting law enforcement to halt admissions due to extreme heat causing illnesses among those waiting outside. An Associated Press reporter covering Harris’ events across multiple states witnessed the large crowds firsthand.
Donald Trump continued to propagate misinformation, accusing Harris of fabricating crowd sizes through social media posts, insinuating that the shown crowd did not actually exist. Despite the claims, Harris’ campaign confirmed that the photo in question was genuine and not tampered with using AI, a statement supported by a digital forensics expert from the University of California, Berkeley.
Trump’s false allegations regarding the crowd sizes at Harris’ rallies came after boasting about his own rally attendance during a news conference. Advisers and supporters have advised him to shift focus onto policy matters rather than crowd sizes. The Harris campaign, in response to Trump’s claims, highlighted the absence of recent swing state events by Trump while mocking his obsession with crowd sizes. The ongoing rift showcases the contentious atmosphere surrounding the election campaign.
