A journalist has faced criticism after acknowledging that she used artificial intelligence to modify a photograph of a woman wearing luxury accessories at a Michigan Democratic Party election-night event.
Olivia Reingold, a staff writer for The Free Press, shared the image on X on November 3. The photograph appeared to show a woman wearing Valentino shoes and carrying a Chanel bag, but Reingold did not initially tell her thousands of followers that she had used AI to enhance it.
‘So far at Abdul El-Sayed’s election night event I’ve spotted Valentino heels, a Chanel bag, a Moncler jacket, Rolex watches, and a YSL bag among other designer items,’ Reingold wrote in the post’s caption.
Hundreds of users quickly questioned whether the image had been generated or altered by AI. Julia Black, a journalist at Vanity Fair, added to the criticism.
‘AI image detectors confirmed that yes, Olivia Reingold used an AI-generated image to make her point, without a drop of disclosure. Wild!!!!’ Black wrote.
Reingold later acknowledged on Thursday that she had used ChatGPT to ‘brighten and sharpen’ what she described as an entirely authentic photograph.
‘After processing, it still shows these same things: a woman wearing Valentino shoes and a Chanel bag,’ the journalist said.
‘She is a real (and chic!) woman, really wearing those items. The observation holds.’
Olivia Reingold, a staff writer at The Free Press, came under fire after acknowledging that she used AI to modify a photograph of a woman wearing luxury accessories at a Michigan Democratic Party election-night event
Reingold shared a photograph showing a woman’s Valentino shoes and Chanel bag on X on November 3. Users quickly claimed the image appeared to have been generated or altered by AI
Reingold later said she had used ChatGPT to ‘brighten and sharpen’ what she maintained was a genuine photograph
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For many users, however, the explanation came too late, prompting questions about Reingold’s judgment and journalistic ethics.
‘I’m sorry but you’re allegedly a professional journalist; how are you not aware that AI “upscaling” completely confabulates missing detail?’ one X user asked. ‘That’s the only way it can work; there isn’t hidden data to recover. This isn’t a 2004 CSI episode where you just say “enhance photo.”’
‘That’s not how it works. It takes your image, obliterates it, then recompiles it to a fully generated image. It’s no longer the same image. You aren’t adjusting the raw source, you’re recompiling the original image into a whole new product. How can you be a journalist?’ another user wrote.
‘My career would be over (rightly so) if I ever tried to pass off an image touched with AI without telling people. Pathetically embarrassing, but not surprising from (narrows my eyes) Olivia Reingold,’ a third person posted.
The Daily Mail has contacted Reingold for comment.
Reingold joined The Free Press in 2022 and was covering the Democratic Party’s election-night gathering as Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed celebrated his victory.
El-Sayed, a Democrat, is set to become the first Muslim senator in US history after defeating Republican Mike Rogers in a fiercely contested and bitter race.
‘After processing, it still shows these same things: a woman wearing Valentino shoes and a Chanel bag,’ Reingold wrote on X after the backlash
The 42-year-old progressive’s victory was among the political shocks of midterm election night, when Democrats reclaimed control of both the House and Senate in a major setback for Donald Trump during his final two years in the White House.
By Wednesday morning, several deeply conservative states had turned blue, helping Democrats take control of Congress in results that could signal the beginning of the end of the MAGA era.
Rogers and conservative supporters questioned El-Sayed’s loyalties, alleging ties to organizations such as the Muslim Brotherhood. El-Sayed firmly rejected the accusations, describing them as Islamophobic attacks intended to divert attention from policy issues.