In a recent interview with The New Yorker, President Barack Obama explained his reaction after an AI video was posted to President Donald Trump’s Truth social account in February that depicted the former president and former first lady Michelle Obama as monkeys.
President Obama said, “Personally, I don’t think so.” “I mean, I always get mad when my wife and kids get dragged into things, because it’s not like they chose this. This is a line that I expect them to care about, even people who wholeheartedly reject politics. I’m somebody’s family member. According to the article, President Obama said he was more concerned about an AI-generated video that President Trump posted that showed him treating war “like a video game” and “dumping excrement on civilians.” “I mean, I’m a fair target in the sense that you can make fun of me at will because I’m your size,” he said.
President Obama previously spoke out against the AI monkey video, saying, “It’s important to recognize that the vast majority of Americans find this behavior very problematic.”
“It’s true that it attracts attention. It’s true that it’s distracting. But as I travel around the country, and you travel around the country, you meet people who still believe in decency and civility and kindness. And there’s this kind of clown show going on on social media and on TV,” he said during an appearance on Brian Tyler Cohen’s podcast. “And the truth is, there doesn’t seem to be any shame about this among people who used to feel like they had to have some kind of decorum. And there’s also a sense of decorum and respect for the office, right? So, that’s been lost.”
The New Yorker article also added that President Obama doesn’t want to be a political commentator.
“When I function like Jon Stewart, even once a week, when I just tune out and just copy what’s going on — which I’m glad John does, by the way — then I’m not a political leader, I’m a commentator,” Obama said. “The media environment is so tough that people don’t know everything I do, right?” he said. “And I think when they look at me, they’ll be like, why doesn’t he do that every day, not just during the midterm elections or during the referendum campaign on gerrymandering, or what have you?”
