(TNS) — The Hollywood sign is on fire because reality TV star Spencer Pratt is currently running for mayor of Los Angeles. Wearing a suit like Batman Enter City Hall and lead your people to defeat a cabal of corrupt and insane progressives who are trying to destroy the city.
Then he Luke Skywalker. As California Governor Gavin Newsom (Emperor Palpatine) reprimands incumbent Mayor Karen Bass (Darth Vader) for not burning down the city during his first term, he storms the city on an Imperial speeder bike in Jedi robes.
“Make sure you get the job done within two seconds,” Newsom tells Bass, tilting his head and grinning.
“The only thing that can stop us is someone telling the truth,” Bass replies. “Unless they have hope, this city is ours.”
An AI campaign video created by Mr. Pratt’s fans was praised and ridiculed, but it also received a lot of shares. And some see it as a harbinger of how artificial intelligence will reshape political messaging across the country.
His supporters aren’t the first to create AI-generated ads. But political experts say it’s surprising that he’s used new technology to create so many outlandish, ultra-cinematic memes and create buzz around his campaign and message.
But some warn that as the technology becomes more sophisticated, it will become more difficult for many people to distinguish between AI and real video.
“When you create content that is not based in reality, and platforms amplify it to get more attention, you are putting the burden on the public to understand what is true, what is factual, and what is fake and misleading,” said Mark Jablonowski, CEO of progressive advertising firm DSPolitical.
Mr. Pratt’s campaign did not create a viral AI video depicting Mr. Pratt as a superhero fighting the villains of the California Democratic Party. But he did share an ad created by AI filmmaker Charlie Curran, founder of L.A.’s Menace Studios.
Supercharged, Hollywood-inspired videos represent a brave new era of fan-generated AI in political campaign ads. By deploying generative AI tools that replicate human voices and images, we are reinforcing an exaggerated, hyper-conspiracy political narrative that paints Democratic LA as a hellscape where Newsom and Bass intentionally conspire to harm people.
Bass called the ads “very scary” and “150% fiction.”
“His social media is taking a violent turn right now,” Bass said. CNN, She cited a Batman ad where Angelenos throw tomatoes at her.
Some political experts dismiss such concerns about AI campaign ads as overblown. They point out that most AI videos shared by political activists and their fans are comedic rather than intentionally misleading.
“Spencer Pratt is using AI the way it’s supposed to: sharpen reality,” said Los Angeles-based Republican political consultant Matt Klink. “His stupid attitude is that Los Angeles is collapsing, insiders have failed, and the political class wants to explain what voters are seeing with their own eyes.”
“Obviously, you shouldn’t run an AI ad that says something someone didn’t say, and you should disclose that it was generated by an AI,” Klink noted. But when it comes to ads depicting Pratt as Batman or Luke Skywalker, he says, “If you don’t know they’re AI-generated, you’re completely ignorant.”
Political candidates and their supporters have faced complaints of misleading the public for as long as they have experimented with new technology, from 1600s pamphlets to 21st century memes.
As large-scale language models usher in a new era of AI, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said: warned By 2024, “a flood of deception, disinformation, and deepfakes will be upon the American people.”
The term “deepfake” was first coined in 2017 by a Reddit user who used open-source face-swapping technology to stitch celebrity faces onto the bodies of porn performers. Within months, it entered the mainstream lexicon as a way to describe AI-generated synthetic media that realistically replicates human images and sounds.
Blumenthal cited a “chilling example.” In January 2024, Republicans sent robocalls to New Hampshire residents using an AI “deepfake” voice imitating President Biden to discourage them from voting in the Democratic presidential primary.
New Hampshire officials said the message violated the state’s voter suppression law. A month later, the Federal Communications Commission banned robocalls that use AI-generated voices. The company that sent the message is A $1 million fine.
But others continued to push the boundaries of AI. Primarily as blatant parody or satire, this is an area that offers stronger First Amendment protections.
July 2024, AI content creator created a mock campaign advertisement A computer-generated voiceover narrated Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, making it seem like she was describing herself as the ultimate “diversity hire” and “puppet of the deep state.” The post is titled “Kamala Harris Campaign Ad Parody.”
newsome slammed The post tells X that “manipulating voices in ‘advertisements’ like this should be illegal.” Two months later, he signed a series of bills cracking down on AI in politics.
However, a federal judge blocked one of the new sentences. law It said the law would restrict election-related content that is “grossly deceptive” and possibly violates the First Amendment.
There are no comprehensive federal rules regulating the use of AI content in political advertising or messaging. According to National Conference of State Legislatures; 29 states have passed laws restricting the use of deepfakes in political campaigns. Some states, such as Texas and Minnesota, have banned the use of deepfakes a certain number of days before elections. Another 27 states require media disclosure if content contains deepfakes.
Some political advertising experts are calling for stronger federal regulation. They argue that a patchwork of regulations from state to state makes it extremely difficult for social media platforms to comply.
“At the end of the day, we really need platforms to be more responsible for the content they share,” Jablonowski said. “We need to have clear guidelines and a level playing field across the country, so we don’t end up in a situation where what’s OK in one state isn’t OK in another.”
Pratt’s embrace of AI is part of a larger political trend for 2026.
January, Atty, Texas. General Ken Paxton advertisement It depicts two opponents vying for a Senate seat, Republican Sen. John Cornyn and Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett, waltzing and swinging. Months later, the National Republican Senatorial Committee shared the following report: video It featured a doctored image of James Talarico, a Democratic candidate for a Texas Senate seat, saying his own tweet.
But Pratt has been particularly successful in leveraging AI from his fanbase to capture attention, bringing in a number of content creators to create AI videos for his campaigns.
Someone posted, video A parody of the 2004 film Downfall, in which Bass is portrayed as Hitler. Another person created the animation video, Targeted at a Latinx audience; Pratt passes around a garbage can filled with trash, showing Angelenos lining the streets to support the incumbent mayor. The slogan is “SPENCER, SACA LA BASSURA” [Spencer, take out the trash] It will flash at the top of the screen.
recent investigation From the American Assn. Percentages of political consultants show that adoption of AI is growing rapidly among political consultants, with Republicans more likely to use AI than Democrats.
But Los Angeles political observers say it’s unlikely that a leading Democratic mayoral candidate will follow in Pratt’s footsteps and use AI. They point out that Bass is a more cautious political figure than Pratt, a brash online influencer who liked to play villains on MTV’s “The Hills.”
Pratt’s user-generated AI ads have sparked giddy joy from people; Out of state Republican — Conservative radio host Buck Sexton was praised The Batman video heralds a “new age of online persuasion,” but it remains to be seen whether it can convince Angelenos to vote for Batman.
Indeed, advertising has helped raise Pratt’s profile. They also gave voice to growing dissatisfaction with Los Angeles’ Democratic administration and created space for more urgent discussions about the future direction of the city.
However, there is little evidence that AI advertising itself is persuading new voters.
So far, none of the AI ads Pratt has shared have gotten as many views as the non-AI ads on his X account. advertisement His campaign received over 14 million views.
In it, Pratt stands outside Bass’s Hancock Park mansion and Nisya Raman’s home in leafy Silver Lake, looking at the Airstream in the ruins of her home, which was gutted in the Palisades fire.
“They shouldn’t have to live in the mess they created,” Pratt says as we walk down an LA street strewn with homeless tents.
Meghan Dam is a former Los Angeles Times columnist. support plat And the self-described “whisperer of Pratt’s liberal elite” said she thought Pratt’s Airstream ads were more effective than the AI superhero ads. She expressed concern that sharing the AI video could actively undermine his campaign.
“They’re going to hate the undecided voters that Mr. Pratt needs to capture. Most of them will think they’re coming directly from the campaign,” she said. X. “Be smarter, guys.”
She told the Times that AI could be used to turn away voters in a town where so many movie workers have lost their jobs to AI. She was also concerned about the legality of the advertising. video It was disguised as a campaign ad for a bus, featuring words coming from a computer-generated politician’s mouth.
But others said it was a new world aesthetic, a way to get people who had never voted before excited about something, Daum noted.
“That may be true,” she said.
So far, there is little evidence that AI in U.S. politics has influenced elections.
“There is far more concern about the impact of AI in politics than there is evidence of its impact in politics,” said Dartmouth College political scientist Brendan Nyhan, co-author of the recent paper. report About AI and persuasion.
Nyhan noted that during the 2024 election, AI was frequently used to create “patently false” images of attention-grabbing, funny or infuriating content. “This seems more like a mechanism to reach their base than to persuade undecided voters or voters who might stay home,” he said.
Ultimately, a story of Pratt’s personal loss, and more specific grievances about L.A. Systemic deficiencies in preparedness and emergency response During the 2025 firestorm, Spending on failed programs to house the homeless — may resonate more than a simple AI story of evil Democrats bent on destroying their own city.
Some L.A. political observers admitted they were surprised by Pratt’s performance. TV debate on May 6th Along with Basu and Raman.
“Spencer Pratt was laughed at when he first announced his candidacy, but he has dramatically outperformed expectations,” said Republican strategist Klink. “I think he surprised people with his ability to come up with solutions. … That’s what persuades people to vote, not a Batman or Star Wars ad.”
With millions of people clicking on Pratt’s videos, in some cases more than 3.8 million people in Los Angeles, Click said there’s one question they need to ask Pratt. The question is, “Does the number of views on his ads lead to votes?”
© The Los Angeles Times in 2026. Distributor Tribune Content Agency LLC.
