Hello and welcome
to global AI from the BBC World Service.
00:00
I am Joao Fellet
and this week we're in Brazil.
00:04
This is the Liberdade Avenue,
right in the heart of Sao Paulo.
00:09
And every two years it gets very colourful
because of all the political ads
00:13
that are put up here ahead of an election.
00:17
And the election we're having in
October is a very big one.
00:20
Brazilians are basically choosing
between very different views
00:24
for the country, and this isn’t important
just for Brazilians.
00:27
Brazil is the biggest economy
in Latin America.
00:31
It's one of the largest democracies
in the world,
00:35
and it is home to the largest portion
of the Amazon rainforest.
00:38
So what happens here can affect things
well beyond the country.
00:42
From climate and trade to the fight
against international drug trafficking
00:47
Brazil's left wing president Lula,
00:54
who's running for reelection,
is leading in several polls.
00:56
Among his main
proposals are expanding social programs
01:00
and investing in public education
and health care.
01:03
The other leading
candidate is right wing senator
01:08
Flávio Bolsonaro, the son of former
President Jair Bolsonaro.
01:11
He says he will stay true to his father's
01:15
controversial legacy
and take a tough approach to crime.
01:18
The outcome could have major consequences
for the country and his father,
01:21
who is currently serving a 27 year
sentence for plotting the failed coup
01:26
that for his supporters
storm Brazil's government buildings
01:30
in 2022.
01:33
Flávio Bolsonaro has promised to
01:36
pardon his father if he wins the election.
01:38
But one of the most talked about figures
in this
01:42
election
campaign is not a candidate at all.
01:45
For over a year now,
millions of Brazilians have been sharing
01:48
and discussing the views of Dona Maria,
an elderly black woman
01:51
who emerged on social media
and within weeks went viral.
01:55
But Dona Maria doesn't actually exist.
02:00
My colleague, Luis Fernando Toledo,
has been exploring how an AI generated
02:02
avatar became a prominent voice
in Brazil's political debate,
02:07
and what that means for the election.
02:11
AI generated Brazil's President Lula
02:19
AI generated former President Jair
Bolsonaro, AI generated voter deepfakes,
02:21
and AI generated videos intended
to drive votes or attack political
02:27
candidates, are reaching millions of people
in this year's Brazilian elections.
02:30
Whoever doesn't hit the 'like' button
has already chosen the far-right side
02:35
If you are a "22" supporter and intend to vote for him (Flávio Bolsonaro), smash the buttons
02:36
Some social media profiles
use it to promote AI content
02:40
have millions of followers.
02:43
These are voters who will be choosing
the President of Brazil on October 4th.
02:45
I spent four months investigating
this market for AI generated videos
02:49
to find out what is driving it
02:53
and how it’s influencing this year's
general election.
02:54
This is Dona Maria on social media.
02:58
She presents herself as an older woman
outraged by the government of Brazilian
03:00
President Lula and by ministers
of Brazil's Supreme Court.
03:04
Share this truth with
everyone you know.
03:08
The creator
03:11
behind the image, which is generated by
AI is Uber driver Daniel Christiano dos Santos.
03:11
Daniel says he drew inspiration
from his grandmother
03:16
when creating the character.
03:19
She does indeed have traits
of my grandmother
03:21
She provided the foundation
of my upbringing
03:24
From a young age, she taught me
right from wrong
03:27
One of his videos, received
more than 8 million views.
03:30
At least 12 videos have surpassed
1 million views in the most popular video.
03:33
Dona Maria angrily criticizes Lula
for staying silent about foreign tariffs,
03:38
and calls on Brazilians to protest.
03:42
Where are the people in the streets?
Where is the banging of pots and pans?
03:44
Where is the outcry, where is the outrage?
03:46
Or has everyone turned into a houseplant?
03:48
well.
03:49
Because here I am screaming, and all I hear
is the wind and the bills piling up
03:49
Over the past year, this
AI character's average
03:52
number of interactions per Instagram post
03:54
was similar
to that of a few presidential candidates
03:57
fighting for the third place
in the opinion polls.
03:59
I ask Daniel why he believes his videos
attract so many views.
04:01
Over time, I kept improving and
learning how the algorithm works
04:06
The algorithm pushes content
that sparks public outrage
04:11
If you make a video that speaks the absolute truth
04:17
Brazilians are used to seeing
misery online, you know?
04:26
Daniel said
he created the AI character
04:30
as a way to express his political views
anonymously and earn extra income.
04:33
I confirmed through quartz Records that
he did, in fact, work as an Uber driver.
04:37
I didn't find any evidence
that at the time of my reporting,
04:41
he was receiving money from politicians.
04:44
The pages reach led Lula’s Workers
Party and its allies to ask
04:46
Brazil's electoral court
to suspend the characters accounts.
04:50
The main page was taken down
a few weeks later.
04:53
Daniel did not give up.
04:56
He began using another account,
which already had more than 100,000
04:57
followers, and started selling courses
on how to produce videos with AI.
05:01
He didn't tell me how much money,
but his course
05:05
cost is 150 reais or 25 pounds.
05:08
And the last time I checked, it had around
70 active students.
05:11
This is 10,000
reais a month or 1,400 pounds.
05:15
That is six times Brazil's minimum wage
and three times
05:18
the average earnings of an Uber driver
in Rio.
05:21
The electoral debate over the political
use of AI during the campaign,
05:24
grilling presidential candidate
Flávio Bolsonaro, second in the opinion
05:28
polls, used an avatar of his father,
former President Jair Bolsonaro,
05:32
at the launch of his campaign.
05:36
Brazil has a future, and the future
is Flávio Bolsonaro as president
05:37
That same week, other avatars of former
president began appearing on social media,
05:42
sometimes asking people
to vote for his son, sometimes saying
05:46
Flávio should not become president.
05:50
The videos received
tens of thousands of views and likes.
05:52
But how to think back to the elections?
05:55
Some people believe it is true,
that she is a real person
05:59
And that stirs up this person's emotions even more.
06:02
She might identify with the
character of Dona Maria
06:07
It cannot be stated that [deepfakes]
will decide an election,
06:12
but they could significantly disrupt
some campaigns
06:14
Especially in the final days,
which is when such allegations
06:18
and last-minute attacks
are likely to emerge
06:22
Lyrics & Translation
[English]
Hello and welcome
to global AI from the BBC World Service.
I am Joao Fellet
and this week we're in Brazil.
This is the Liberdade Avenue,
right in the heart of Sao Paulo.
And every two years it gets very colourful
because of all the political ads
that are put up here ahead of an election.
And the election we're having in
October is a very big one.
Brazilians are basically choosing
between very different views
for the country, and this isn’t important
just for Brazilians.
Brazil is the biggest economy
in Latin America.
It's one of the largest democracies
in the world,
and it is home to the largest portion
of the Amazon rainforest.
So what happens here can affect things
well beyond the country.
From climate and trade to the fight
against international drug trafficking
Brazil's left wing president Lula,
who's running for reelection,
is leading in several polls.
Among his main
proposals are expanding social programs
and investing in public education
and health care.
The other leading
candidate is right wing senator
Flávio Bolsonaro, the son of former
President Jair Bolsonaro.
He says he will stay true to his father's
controversial legacy
and take a tough approach to crime.
The outcome could have major consequences
for the country and his father,
who is currently serving a 27 year
sentence for plotting the failed coup
that for his supporters
storm Brazil's government buildings
in 2022.
Flávio Bolsonaro has promised to
pardon his father if he wins the election.
But one of the most talked about figures
in this
election
campaign is not a candidate at all.
For over a year now,
millions of Brazilians have been sharing
and discussing the views of Dona Maria,
an elderly black woman
who emerged on social media
and within weeks went viral.
But Dona Maria doesn't actually exist.
My colleague, Luis Fernando Toledo,
has been exploring how an AI generated
avatar became a prominent voice
in Brazil's political debate,
and what that means for the election.
AI generated Brazil's President Lula
AI generated former President Jair
Bolsonaro, AI generated voter deepfakes,
and AI generated videos intended
to drive votes or attack political
candidates, are reaching millions of people
in this year's Brazilian elections.
Whoever doesn't hit the 'like' button
has already chosen the far-right side
If you are a "22" supporter and intend to vote for him (Flávio Bolsonaro), smash the buttons
Some social media profiles
use it to promote AI content
have millions of followers.
These are voters who will be choosing
the President of Brazil on October 4th.
I spent four months investigating
this market for AI generated videos
to find out what is driving it
and how it’s influencing this year's
general election.
This is Dona Maria on social media.
She presents herself as an older woman
outraged by the government of Brazilian
President Lula and by ministers
of Brazil's Supreme Court.
Share this truth with
everyone you know.
The creator
behind the image, which is generated by
AI is Uber driver Daniel Christiano dos Santos.
Daniel says he drew inspiration
from his grandmother
when creating the character.
She does indeed have traits
of my grandmother
She provided the foundation
of my upbringing
From a young age, she taught me
right from wrong
One of his videos, received
more than 8 million views.
At least 12 videos have surpassed
1 million views in the most popular video.
Dona Maria angrily criticizes Lula
for staying silent about foreign tariffs,
and calls on Brazilians to protest.
Where are the people in the streets?
Where is the banging of pots and pans?
Where is the outcry, where is the outrage?
Or has everyone turned into a houseplant?
well.
Because here I am screaming, and all I hear
is the wind and the bills piling up
Over the past year, this
AI character's average
number of interactions per Instagram post
was similar
to that of a few presidential candidates
fighting for the third place
in the opinion polls.
I ask Daniel why he believes his videos
attract so many views.
Over time, I kept improving and
learning how the algorithm works
The algorithm pushes content
that sparks public outrage
If you make a video that speaks the absolute truth
Brazilians are used to seeing
misery online, you know?
Daniel said
he created the AI character
as a way to express his political views
anonymously and earn extra income.
I confirmed through quartz Records that
he did, in fact, work as an Uber driver.
I didn't find any evidence
that at the time of my reporting,
he was receiving money from politicians.
The pages reach led Lula’s Workers
Party and its allies to ask
Brazil's electoral court
to suspend the characters accounts.
The main page was taken down
a few weeks later.
Daniel did not give up.
He began using another account,
which already had more than 100,000
followers, and started selling courses
on how to produce videos with AI.
He didn't tell me how much money,
but his course
cost is 150 reais or 25 pounds.
And the last time I checked, it had around
70 active students.
This is 10,000
reais a month or 1,400 pounds.
That is six times Brazil's minimum wage
and three times
the average earnings of an Uber driver
in Rio.
The electoral debate over the political
use of AI during the campaign,
grilling presidential candidate
Flávio Bolsonaro, second in the opinion
polls, used an avatar of his father,
former President Jair Bolsonaro,
at the launch of his campaign.
Brazil has a future, and the future
is Flávio Bolsonaro as president
That same week, other avatars of former
president began appearing on social media,
sometimes asking people
to vote for his son, sometimes saying
Flávio should not become president.
The videos received
tens of thousands of views and likes.
But how to think back to the elections?
Some people believe it is true,
that she is a real person
And that stirs up this person's emotions even more.
She might identify with the
character of Dona Maria
It cannot be stated that [deepfakes]
will decide an election,
but they could significantly disrupt
some campaigns
Especially in the final days,
which is when such allegations
and last-minute attacks
are likely to emerge
Key Vocabulary
Start Practicing
| Vocabulary | Meanings |
|---|---|
|
welcome /ˈwɛlkəm/ A1 |
|
|
colourful /ˈkʌləfəl/ B1 |
|
|
election /ɪˈlɛkʃən/ B1 |
|
|
economy /ɪˈkɒnəmi/ B1 |
|
|
democracy /dɪˈmɒkrəsi/ B2 |
|
|
affect /əˈfɛkt/ B1 |
|
|
trafficking /ˈtræfɪkɪŋ/ C1 |
|
|
proposals /prəˈpəʊzəlz/ B2 |
|
|
controversial /ˌkɒntrəˈvɜːʃəl/ B2 |
|
|
consequences /ˈkɒnsɪkwənsɪz/ B2 |
|
|
elderly /ˈɛldəli/ B1 |
|
|
prominent /ˈprɒmɪnənt/ B2 |
|
|
outraged /ˈaʊtreɪdʒd/ C1 |
|
|
investigating /ɪnˈvɛstɪɡeɪtɪŋ/ B2 |
|
|
disrupt /dɪsˈrʌpt/ B2 |
|
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Key Grammar Structures
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