Chris Cuomo shares deepfake video of AOC on Instagram
Chris Cuomo shared a watermarked deepfake video on Instagram depicting Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez making a false congressional argument about a Sydney Sweeney advertisement. After Ocasio-Cortez corrected him, Cuomo deleted the post but offered an unapologetic follow-up, continuing to defend his use of the synthetic media and drawing widespread online criticism.
What happened
On Wednesday, Chris Cuomo, a host on NewsNation, shared a video on Instagram that was watermarked as a "deepfake" video made using AI technology. The video depicted a fake Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez arguing on the floor of Congress that a Sydney Sweeney advertisement was racist.
Ocasio-Cortez responded to the post, stating: "This is a deepfake dude. Please use your critical thinking skills. At this point you're just reposting Facebook memes and calling it journalism." Cuomo deleted the post but continued to defend his criticism of Ocasio-Cortez on social media, writing "that was a deepfake (but it really does sound like you)."
Cuomo later stated on NewsNation that he was wrong but refused to fully apologize, protesting on air: "She ignored the part of the tweet that mattered." He followed up by complaining about Ocasio-Cortez: "Correcting a mistake is simple...explaining why you dont call on terrorists to surrender is as well."
Reported impact
Cuomo's blunder and unapologetic follow-up was roundly mocked online, including by television personality Piers Morgan who posted: "Oh dear Chris Cuomo – perhaps spend less time bitching about me and more time trying to spot obvious fakes."
Index analysis
The deepfake video was prominently watermarked as artificial, yet Cuomo amplified it to his followers without verifying its authenticity. Ocasio-Cortez criticized Cuomo for failing to apply critical thinking and for reposting what she characterized as a Facebook meme as journalism.
Classification
Sources and evidence
Sources not yet published
This record was researched and written by the Index from original reporting. Its sources are still being verified by an editor, and they are listed here once that check is complete. Until then the record carries no reviewer.