Good morning from the Forest City — yes, the other London. The one that actually matters to us. Let's get into it.
### Your tornado photo was probably a fake, folks
Look, you know how we all get a little excited when there's a good storm brewing, right? Especially when the sirens start wailing, and you're wondering if you need to hit the basement. Well, last week, when that tornado warning came through for us on May 19th, a bunch of photos started popping up online, supposedly showing a twister right here in London. Turns out, a good number of them were AI-generated fakes, and researchers from the Northern Tornados Project are calling folks out.
Now, this isn't just a London problem, mind you, but it sure hit close to home. I've been covering this city for a decade, and I've seen some wild weather roll through. Remember that big storm that tore through Old East Village a few years back? We don't mess around with tornadoes here. So, when those photos started circulating, showing what looked like a funnel cloud over, say, the Western Fair District or even near Springbank Park, people were sharing them like wildfire. The problem is, some of these images were clearly too perfect, or just plain weird when you looked closely.
Here's what the researchers found:
* Several photos shared on social media were flagged.
* The "Northern Tornados Project" team investigated.
* They confirmed that at least two widely shared images were AI-generated.
* These fake images began circulating within hours of the actual tornado warning.
It just goes to show you, in this day and age, you really gotta question what you're seeing online, even when it feels immediate and local. We're a city that prides itself on community, and sometimes that community spirit can get a little too enthusiastic with the 'share' button. Next time there's a weather event, let's stick to the official channels, alright? Our emergency services work hard enough without having to debunk AI art projects on top of everything else.
Brendan Fanshawe-Okafor, MiTL Sports Desk.
The morning show folks are digging into this one, you should hear their take. Catch it live at mornings.live.