Scholz deepfake announces AfD ban – German government responds with outrage Cargo ship sunk in the Aegean Sea – 13 people missing

Dramatic music. The Reichstag building can be seen in the background. In the foreground Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD). A speech to the nation like Merkel gave during the corona pandemic. You would think. In the video, Scholz says: “Dear fellow citizens, I turn to you today because our country is facing a serious threat. A threat that we thought was a thing of the past.” Or better said: the so-called Scholz.

The threat Video-Scholz is talking about here: the AfD. He talks about the riots in Chemnitz, in which thousands of right-wing and right-wing extremists drove to the Saxon city, where they hunted. “A ruthless gang terrorized a city and hunted down people who looked different,” Scholz says in the video. By this point, viewers will have noticed that the Chancellor is unlikely to actually speak in this video. And his spokesperson has now also commented on it.

Artist collective wants to promote AfD ban

Video Scholz then comes to the climax of his speech: “This brutal gang was led by representatives of a party that sits in the German Bundestag.” The aim now is to prevent Germany from sliding back into a situation like that of 1933 – and from right-wing extremists taking over the country. “I will not tolerate this any longer,” the video concludes. This deepfake was initiated by the artist and activist collective Center for Political Beauty.

The Center for Political Beauty wants to use this video to promote a ban on the AfD. «BREAKING: Scholz bans the AfD! Goosebump moment. Everything about the federal government’s initiative: http://afd-ban.de,” the collective writes when publishing the video. The link leads to a homepage that is confusingly similar to the websites of the German federal government.

“On the anniversary of Walter Lübcke’s death, June 2, 2024, the cabinet will submit a request to the Federal Constitutional Court to ban the ‘Alternative for Germany’ party,” it says, calling on the population to help. This is done by reporting information. However, clicking the information reporting button will take visitors to a fundraising page.

Government spokesperson reacts indignantly

Naturally, many of the recipients quickly discovered the collective’s deepfake. However, for some X users, this action is apparently a step too far. “Please don’t make counterfeiting acceptable. Thank you,” someone commented under the video post. Another account writes: “It’s a completely unnecessary action. Making fake videos like this should be banned instead of making it normal. There are plenty of people who don’t understand the subject of deepfake.”

Another even fears that this will play into the hands of Russian ruler Vladimir Putin. He writes: “In 3..2..1.. this is in the Russian media as proof of the lack of democracy in Germany, etc. Should we really help with something like this in times of disinformation?” Olaf Scholz himself is obviously not enthusiastic about his false speech to the nation.

Government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit writes further The video is not real. Such deepfakes are not fun. They create uncertainty and are manipulative.”