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Research · Critical theory

Deepfake Satire and the Possibilities of Synthetic Media

Afterimage: The Journal of Media Arts and Cultural Criticism · Mihaela Mihailova · Sep 2023

Key points

  1. Mihailova analyses deepfake satire, where face-swap AI is used to critique powerful figures and institutions.
  2. She argues synthetic media moves beyond utopia and dystopia binaries to enable progressive social and political critique.
  3. Case studies include Sassy Justice, the SeeAsAmStar campaign, and the Spectre / Big Dada installation.

Summary

Mihailova examines deepfake satire as an underexamined but vibrant subgenre of AI art that turns face-swap technology into pointed social and political critique. Through projects targeting entertainment figures, tech entrepreneurs, and authoritarian leaders, she argues synthetic media holds progressive possibilities beyond its well-known harms, positioning the work within traditions of culture jamming and satire. It is a deeper, single-topic companion to her In Focus dossier on AI and the moving image.

Source

Source: Afterimage: The Journal of Media Arts and Cultural Criticism ↗ (Research)

Cite this item

Mihaela Mihailova (2023). ‘Deepfake Satire and the Possibilities of Synthetic Media’, Afterimage: The Journal of Media Arts and Cultural Criticism. Available at: https://online.ucpress.edu/afterimage/article/50/3/81/197199/Deepfake-Satire-and-the-Possibilities-of-Synthetic

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