What was claimed
Video shows more than 500 people gathering in Birmingham to protest against the government.
our verdict
This video is not real. Generated using artificial intelligence (AI).
A video showing hundreds of people gathered at an anti-government protest in Birmingham has sparked thousands of reactions on Facebook, claiming it is fake.
Footage, which appears to have been taken from the air, shows large crowds carrying banners and Union Jack flags. They appear to have gathered in a public square near Birmingham Library, visible in the background.
The article was shared on April 20 with the caption: “More than 500 people gather in Birmingham to protest against government; demonstrators hold flags and banners as situation worsens.”
But the clip, which has been liked more than 6,800 times, isn’t real. Generated by artificial intelligence (AI).
Both the footage and the audio, which appears to be crowd noise, were found to contain SynthID, an invisible watermark that appears on content created or modified by Google’s AI tools.
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Although the presence of a watermark alone does not tell us whether AI was used to generate something completely new or modify existing content, there are other clues that strongly suggest that the clip was created entirely by AI in this case.
These include buses and cars driving the wrong way, meaningless writing on some of the visible protest signs, and some groups of people appearing unnaturally blurry and malfunctioning.
Additionally, the supposed location depicted in central Birmingham does not correspond to the actual layout or geography of Centenary Square, next to the famous Birmingham Library.
We also couldn’t find any reliable reports of recent protests in Birmingham that fit this description.
A West Midlands Police spokesperson said: “We are not aware of any such protests occurring.”
Before sharing such content found online, it is important to consider whether it is genuine and comes from a reliable source. Our Full Fact toolkit and guide to identifying AI media can help you do this.
