Why the Zelensky Deepfake Failed
What Next | Daily News and Analysis
Slate Podcasts
4.3 • 2.4K Ratings
🗓️ 25 March 2022
⏱️ 23 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The FBI warned that Russia would use deepfakes to support its invasion of Ukraine. Are they missing the real threat?
Guest: Noah Giansiracusa, professor of math and data science at Bentley University.
Host: Seth Stevenson
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | This episode is brought to you by Best Buy. This year let Best Buy be your holiday |
| 0:05.3 | height partner. Whether you're searching for exciting gifts, trying to snag the hottest |
| 0:09.3 | holiday deals or looking for ways to simplify the giving and receiving experience, Best Buy is |
| 0:14.7 | here to help. Best Buy has the best assortment of impactful tech gifts, along with fast and free |
| 0:20.9 | fulfillment options and great deals all season long. Maybe you're looking for an air-fire to help |
| 0:26.9 | the aspiring foodie in your life unlock new recipes, or a new phone or camera for an aspiring |
| 0:32.6 | filmmaker who's turning their passion into a side gig. Or you might be on the hunt for a new |
| 0:37.8 | smartwatch to support a friend's wellness journey. No matter what you're looking for, Best Buy is your |
| 0:43.2 | gifting destination for everyone on your list. And Best Buy makes it easy to get your gifts how and |
| 0:49.4 | when you need them with free next day delivery on thousands of items, as well as same day delivery |
| 0:54.7 | and in-store pickup options, shop great deals on gifts now at Best Buy. |
| 1:25.0 | The video shows Ukrainian president Vladimir Zelensky speaking into a camera, |
| 1:35.2 | telling Ukrainian soldiers to lay down their arms and surrender to the Russians. |
| 1:39.6 | Which never actually happened. This was a phony clip meant to fool people into thinking Zelensky |
| 1:45.0 | had given up the fight. But the funny thing was it was pretty impotent. It didn't work, |
| 1:49.7 | it didn't trick anyone, it was detected very quickly and debunked very quickly. Noa Jansi |
| 1:55.3 | or Kusa is a professor of math and data science at Bentley University. And the author of a book |
| 2:00.0 | about how algorithms can both create and prevent misinformation like deepfakes. He thinks this |
| 2:05.6 | particular deepfake effort was a little silly because it was easily refuted. Even to the naked eye, |
| 2:11.0 | it wasn't all that convincing. And right after the video appeared, the real Zelensky made a statement |
| 2:16.0 | assuring Ukrainians his resolve was strong. And so, in this case, the deepfake was immediately |
| 2:21.6 | thwarted. For some, the fact that this video was so simple to dismiss suggests that deepfakes |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Slate Podcasts, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Slate Podcasts and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.