US Intelligence: Russia's Deepfake Video Smearing Tim Walz Aims to Help Trump in Election

Oct 22, 2024, 06:00 PM

On Tuesday, US intelligence officials stated that the Russian government was behind the creation and amplification of a fake video falsely accusing Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz of sexually assaulting a former student. The disinformation campaign, which aims to interfere in the election to help elect Trump, involved a deepfake video alleging child molestation. The campaign is traced back to John Dougan, a former Florida police officer now residing in Moscow, and his Russian-aligned propaganda network, Storm-1516. The spread of the false claims has raised concerns about Russian efforts to disrupt the US elections.