Meta restricts access to viral AI video of Kerala Chief Minister in India
2 sources · India
Who reported this
- The Hindu
- Hindustan Times
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- Centre-left
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- Right
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Every source for this story reports from India.
Meta has restricted access in India to a viral AI generated video showing Kerala Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan dancing with Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) officials. The video, which was posted on the Instagram page 'aikavala' on September 10, had garnered 1.78 crore views by September 13. According to the page operator, Meta restricted the content following a legal notice from the Government of India. The video remains viewable from other countries.
Chief Minister Satheesan has publicly expressed excitement about the video. At an event organized by the Kerala High Court, he claimed he could dance better than Malayalam actor Mohanlal and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay. Speaking again on Monday at a graduation ceremony, Satheesan noted that while the video was partly intended to mock him, he was happy about it. He also commented that legal implications are bound to arise when artificial intelligence is used to imitate people in this manner.
Abhijith, the operator of the 'aikavala' page, told reporters he does not believe the restriction came from the Chief Minister. He suggested that cyber wings might have initiated the steps. He noted that a disclaimer had been added to the video, which he believes is why it was restricted rather than completely removed.
Both reports mention a previous incident where Meta removed news videos critical of the state government and the Chief Minister. Satheesan denied that his office requested those removals, and the Chief Minister's Office subsequently wrote to Meta seeking their reinstatement. Meta attributed the removal of those videos to technical reasons.
How each side framed it
- Centre-left
- This outlet focused on the sequence of events and the history of Meta removing critical content of the state government.
- Centre-right
- This outlet provided more extensive quotes from the Chief Minister regarding the legal implications of AI and the creator's speculation about cyber wings.
Sources
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