People have speculated that artificial intelligence would distort public perception of reality around the 2024 presidential election. Speculation is no longer needed. Generative AI distortion of politics is here.

When asked to describe the new book Donald Trump’s Army of God: Christian Nationalism in the Iowa Faith Leader Coalition, ChatGPT 4o, the brand new generative AI model from OpenAI, told a plausible untruth. Ironically, that untruth was sourced to the political website TruthOut.

ChatGPT 4o manufactured an alternative reality in which the book, published in 2024, was described in a news article written in 2021. The generative AI model confidently stated:

“Donald Trump's Army of God explores the alignment of Trump supporters with Christian nationalist ideologies, focusing on figures like Doug Mastriano. The book delves into how Trump and his allies have harnessed religious rhetoric to galvanize a loyal base, promoting the idea that Trump's political battles are part of a divine mission. It examines the broader implications of this blend of politics and religion, particularly in the context of the 2024 election, emphasizing the potential threats to democratic institutions​ (Truthout)​.”

What the AI gets right is what can be inferred from the title of the book. Yes, the new book really does explore the alignment of Trump supporters with Christian Nationalist ideologies.

The specifics, however, artificial intelligence gets profoundly wrong. A person writing in 2021 might suppose that Doug Mastriano would be a figure in the 2024 presidential election. Any moderately politically-informed human being, however, understands that Doug Mastriano became a profoundly marginalized figure after he was humiliated by a poor performance in the 2022 elections. Mastriano’s extreme Christian Nationalism was a big turnoff to voters in Pennsylvania.

The TruthOut article doesn’t mention the book Donald Trump’s Army of God, but it does have a somewhat similar headline: “Donald Trump Is Building an Army. He Can No Longer Be Ignored”.

When the most powerful nation on Earth is choosing its President, having information that is somewhat similar to reality isn’t anything close to good enough.