Queensland Premier Steven Miles Faces AI-Generated Video Controversy in Election Campaign

Resurfaced video comes back to haunt Labor amid deepfake TikTok row

A TikTok video has come back to haunt the Australian Labor Party after Queensland Premier Steven Miles slammed the state opposition for sharing a deepfake AI video of him on the same platform. Mr Miles launched a blistering counterattack on Liberal National Party on Tuesday for publishing a 14-second AI-generated TikTok clip last week, slamming him over the cost of living crisis. The Labor Premier warned the deepfake video represented a "dangerous turning point" for democracy, claiming voters "will need to question everything that they see from the LNP" from now until the state election in October. However, a video created by federal Labor using the same artificial intelligence technology to poke fun at Opposition Leader Peter Dutton's nuclear energy push has now resurfaced amid the TikTok row. The six-second video, published on the ALP's TikTok account on June 4, depicts Mr Dutton doing a boogie with the words "dance if you want to build nuclear power plants in everyone's backyard". "Peter Dutton's nuclear energy policy puts us all at risk," the caption read. "He barely has an energy plan but you can guarantee he has no plan to keep you safe." Similarly to the LNP's TikTok video, the ALP tagged its clip on the platform as being "AI-generated". Labor's social media clip was published at during a heightened period of debate around climate and nuclear between the government and Coalition, as Australia transitions towards net zero by 2050. Mr Dutton has since revealed he would build seven nuclear plants on existing sites of aging coal-fired power stations across Australia should the Coalition be voted into office next year. Speaking at a media conference on Tuesday, Mr Miles hit out at the LNP for using AI to create the video. "This individual video might be harmless enough, but I think it represents a turning point for our democracy," he told reporters. "Until now we've known that photos could be doctored or Photoshopped, but we've been trained to believe what we see in video. "For a political party now to be willing to use AI to make deepfake attack videos, it's a pretty dangerous turning point," Mr Miles said.

Queensland premier rules out AI-generated election material after LNP release dancing TikTok attack advertisement

Steven Miles says deepfake video represents a 'turning point for our democracy' but rejects truth in advertising laws An AI-generated TikTok video of Queensland premier Steven Miles, created by the LNP opposition, has sparked a debate about the political use of deep fakes online. Posted on the Liberal National Party's TikTok five days ago, the video depicts Miles dancing beneath text reading "POV: my rent is up $60 a week, my power bill is up 20%, but the premier made a sandwich on TikTok". Is it is marked "AI-generated". Miles claimed this morning that the video "represents a turning point for our democracy" and has said the state Labor party will not use AI-generated advertisements during the upcoming elction campaign. "Until now we've known that photos could be doctored or Photoshopped. But we've been trained to believe what we see in videos and for a political party, now, to be willing to use AI to make a deep fake Attack Videos. It's a very dangerous turning point," he said. Miles said Labor would not consider truth in advertising laws, but also wouldn't use AI to create their own content. "I can assure Queenslanders that we have no intention of using artificial intelligence to create deep fake videos," he said. A spokesperson for the LNP said the premier "knows AI is a tool commonly used by many creators on this platform and knows his own party has used it". "Steven Miles has become so desperate that he'll stoop to baseless lying to try to cling to power," she said. "The post was very clearly tagged as being AI generated. "Young Queenslanders have been hit with higher rents and increased power prices under Labor, and this post - which is clearly labelled as being created with AI - is an example of one way we can share that message." A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission of Queensland said the state's electoral act doesn't specifically address the use of AI, but does "regulate the publication of any false statements of fact regarding the personal character or conduct of a candidate". "Any AI publication that breaches that prohibition can be the subject of prosecution by the ECQ," they said. The ECQ only regulates electoral material during an election period, a few weeks before election day. Griffith University communications lecturer Susan Grantham said the Miles video was far from the first time AI had been used in Australian politics. She said it had been used as early as 2022 in Australia and frequently around the world, including in the recent 2024 UK election, and in Pakistan. The federal Labor party posted an AI-generated video of Peter Dutton in April. Grantham said people could find easily themselves tricked by AI-generated content and politicians like Miles, who is known for humorous videos of himself making lunch to broadcast a more down-to-earth image, are at greater risk. "Because they're already using that space themselves, to put this fun, interesting slant on what is ultimately quite important topics, does help with people believing when this kind of AI driven material is developed," Grantham said. Patrik Wikstrom from the QUT Digital Media Research Centre said AI can be even more dangerous if used in a more subtle manner. For instance, some parties in other parts of the world have used AI to create fake audio of their opponent and used it to make robocalls to their supporters putting negative words in their mouth. But it's a difficult tactic to regulate, beyond the typical requirements for an authorisation line, because the internet is global. "I just cannot see how it could be done," Wikstrom said. "I think everyone can agree that this is in the category of 'awful but lawful.'" Wikstrom said the problem was not the use of AI itself, but any political communication designed to deceive.

'Dangerous turning point': Miles blasts LNP over deepfake TikTok clip

Queensland Premier Steven Miles has hit back at the state opposition over a deepfake AI video of him shared on a popular social media platform. The Liberal National Party published a 14-second clip on TikTok last week, taking aim at the Premier over the cost of living crisis ahead of Queenslanders heading to the polls in October. The short video, tagged by the LNP as "AI-generated", portrays Mr Miles dancing to 2008-pop-hit "Closer" by Ne-Yo accompanied by the caption "wrong priorities". "POV (point of view): My rent is up $60 a week, my power bill is up 20 per cent, but the Premier made a sandwich on TikTok," the wording on the video read. Earlier this month, the Premier and father-of-three had shared a video on his personal TikTok account making a sandwich in preparation for back to school time. Speaking at a media conference on Tuesday, Mr Miles lashed the LNP for using AI to create the video, warning it was a "pretty dangerous turning point" for democracy. "This individual video might be harmless enough, but I think it represents a turning point for our democracy," he told reporters. "Until now we've known that photos could be doctored or Photoshopped, but we've been trained to believe what we see in video." He claimed voters heading into the state election, set to be held on October 26, will now "need to question everything that they see" from the opposition. "For a political party now to be willing to use AI to make deepfake attack videos, it's a pretty dangerous turning point," Mr Miles said. "And it means that Queenslanders between now and October will need to question everything that they see from the LNP and ask weather it is real or a deepfake." Voters were quick to share their thoughts on the TikTok clip, some claiming the LNP had missed the mark while others defended Mr Miles' cost-of-living relief. "I love this about him, he is a real person. So maybe you could take notes," one TikTok user stated. "Bro just gave me 1,000 bucks off my energy bill," another said. "This ain't it LNP," a third warned. "Whoever is in charge of LNP marketing, you need to do better. That's the best you've got? He made a sandwich is a bad thing?" a fourth said. "My rent is up $200 and power bill up 100 per cent," another contributed to the discussion. "He must go!" one person declared. Labor unveiled a raft of cost-of-living measures in June's state budget, comprising of $11.2 billion of handouts for Queenslanders as many families feel the pinch financially. The relief includes a $1,000 rebate off electricity bills, reduction in car registration costs and cutting public transport fares to 50 cents. Labor also announced an incentive for Queenslanders hoping to snap up their first home by increasing the first home buyer stamp duty concession threshold. However, fresh poll results paint a rather bleak picture for Mr Miles as Opposition Leader David Crisafulli remains the preferred premier among voters. A YouGov poll, published last week for the Courier Mail, revealed Mr Miles' satisfaction rating had climbed six points to 31 per cent in July. Voters however still ranked Mr Crisafulli as the state's preferred leader with 40 per cent believing he would do a better job as premier compared to 29 per cent in favour of Mr Miles. SkyNews.com.au has reached out to the LNP for comment in relation to the TikTok clip.

Qld Premier slams AI-generated video attacking government's record on cost-of-living

Queensland Premier Steven Miles has taken issue with an AI-generated video published on social media by the Opposition which attacks the government's record on cost of living. "This individual video might be harmless enough but I think it represents a turning point for our democracy," Mr Miles said during a media event. "Until now we've known that photos could be doctored or photoshopped, but we've been trained to believe what we see in video, and for a political party now to be willing to use AI to make deepfake attack videos, it's a pretty dangerous turning point."