{ "meta": { "exportedAt": "2026-09-22T16:46:45.970Z", "formatVersion": 2, "selection": { "q": "election", "system": "", "harm": "", "context": "", "country": "", "role": "", "relation": "", "evidence": "", "year": "2026", "response": "", "severity": "", "verification": "", "view": "incidents", "sort": "added" }, "totalIncidents": 1, "coverage": { "cases": 1, "countries": 1, "languages": 1, "unknownLocation": 0, "locationPending": 0, "unknownLanguage": 0, "unknownDate": 0, "lawsuits": 0, "regulatory": 0, "minors": 0, "coreRelations": 1, "contextualRelations": 0, "mixedRelations": 0, "unknownRelations": 0, "relationPending": 0, "relationUnknown": 0 }, "countingNote": "Distinct public cases in this selection. People counts apply within individual cases only; cross-case person overlap has not been resolved. No population incidence estimate.", "affectedCountNote": "Interpret person counts with affectedCountStatus and the reported effects. Unquantified zeros are placeholders, not a measured zero.", "source": "NOPE Incident Tracker", "url": "https://nope.net/incidents", "license": "CC BY 4.0" }, "incidents": [ { "id": "2026-texas-goodwin-ai-deepfake-campaign-ads-sheriff-complaint", "caseFacts": { "claims": [ { "id": "c1", "status": "corroborated", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'has filed a police report accusing Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick of violating Texas law after his campaign released two ads featuring AI-generated videos of Goodwin.'; 'submitted with a complaint filed Saturday with the Travis County Sheriff’s Office.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "'filed a police report saying that artificial intelligence-generated ads released by Patrick's campaign in September violated state law.'; 'The Travis County Sheriff’s Office confirmed receipt of Goodwin's complaint but did not offer additional comment.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" }, { "locator": "'according to a notarized affidavit she filed Saturday with the Travis County Sheriff’s Office.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s4" } ], "assertion": "On Saturday 19 September 2026 Vikki Goodwin filed a complaint with a sworn affidavit at the Travis County Sheriff's Office accusing Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick of violating the 2019 Texas election deepfake law after his campaign posted two ads with AI-generated videos of her; the sheriff's office confirmed receipt of the complaint.", "causal_attribution": "The filing is reported from the affidavit (Tribune, KXAN) and confirmed by the sheriff's office (KUT)." }, { "id": "c2", "status": "reported", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'I did not personally do or say the things depicted in the video; although the ‘person’ in the video appears to be me, it was not actually me'; 'Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick posted the video with the intent to deceive Texans, injure a candidate, or influence the result of an election'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "'The affidavit alleges two instances of AI-generated deepfakes targeting Goodwin, the first on Sept. 5 (27 workdays prior to Oct. 19) and the second on Sept. 12 (23 workdays).'; 'Both of the videos were posted by Patrick’s non-government account on the social media website X'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s4" }, { "locator": "'The AI ads were making it look as though I'm in favor of increasing taxes, and of course, nobody wants their taxes to be increased, so that's going to turn voters off'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" } ], "assertion": "In the affidavit Goodwin stated that she did not do or say the things depicted, that the person in the video appeared to be her but was not, and that Patrick posted the video with intent to deceive Texans, injure a candidate or influence the election; the affidavit identifies two posts, on 5 and 12 September 2026, on Patrick's non-government X account; Goodwin told KUT the ads made it look as though she favoured raising taxes.", "causal_attribution": "The candidate's sworn allegations and interview statements; not independently established beyond the existence and contents of the affidavit." }, { "id": "c3", "status": "reported", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'Allen Blakemore, a campaign spokesman for Patrick, told the New York Times that the material was “an obvious parody produced to entertain.”'; 'Furthermore, we have not published or distributed any of these parodies within 30 days of the election.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "'Patrick campaign spokesman Allen Blakemore told The New York Times on Saturday that the videos were “an obvious parody produced to entertain.”'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s4" }, { "locator": "'KUT News also reached out to Patrick’s campaign, but has not yet received a response.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" } ], "assertion": "Patrick's campaign spokesman told the New York Times the material was 'an obvious parody produced to entertain' and that none of it was published or distributed within 30 days of the election; KUT received no response from the campaign.", "causal_attribution": "The campaign's response as relayed from the New York Times, which this review could not read." }, { "id": "c4", "status": "reported", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'Goodwin cited a 2019 Texas law banning the deepfake videos from being published or distributed within 30 days of an election.'; 'defines a deepfake video as appearing to depict a real person performing an action that did not occur, with the intent to deceive.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "'A conviction under the deepfake law is a class A misdemeanor, which can carry a fine of up to $4,000 and/or up to one year imprisonment.'; 'while Election Day is Nov. 3, early voting begins Oct. 19.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s4" } ], "assertion": "The 2019 Texas law bans deepfake videos, defined as appearing to depict a real person performing an action that did not occur with intent to deceive, within 30 days of an election; early voting begins on 19 October 2026; a conviction is a class A misdemeanour with up to a $4,000 fine and a year in jail.", "causal_attribution": "Legal background as described by the outlets; whether the posts fall within the statutory window is disputed between the campaigns." }, { "id": "c5", "status": "reported", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'The posts were still public when Goodwin filed her police report and affidavit on Sept. 19 but were taken down the following day, according to Sophia Mirto, Goodwin’s communications director.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "'However, links to the posts lead to messages saying that the posts don’t exist.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s4" }, { "locator": "'Goodwin linked to two specific posts on X; however, those posts now appear to have been deleted.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" } ], "assertion": "The two posts are no longer available on X; according to Goodwin's communications director they were taken down on 20 September 2026, the day after the complaint.", "causal_attribution": "The deletion date is the Goodwin campaign's account; KXAN and KUT observed only that the posts no longer resolve." } ], "effects": [ { "label": "the candidate was depicted in AI-generated campaign videos saying things she did not say, which she says misrepresented her tax position to voters", "claim_id": "c2", "direction": "negative" }, { "label": "she filed a sworn criminal complaint; the posts were removed the following day, her campaign says", "claim_id": "c5", "direction": "negative" } ], "sources": [ { "id": "s1", "url": "https://www.texastribune.org/2026/09/21/texas-goodwin-patrick-ad-police-complaint/", "kind": "news_report", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read live in English on 2026-09-22 (The Texas Tribune, 21 September 2026 17:48 Central). Affidavit shared with the Tribune; Patrick campaign statement relayed from the New York Times; communications director on the deletion.", "independence_group": "texas-tribune" }, { "id": "s2", "url": "https://www.kut.org/politics/2026-09-21/vikki-goodwin-dan-patrick-ai-deepfake-campaign-ads-texas-lieutenant-governor-race", "kind": "news_report", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read live in English on 2026-09-22 (KUT Austin, 21 September 2026 13:03 CDT). Own interview with Goodwin on Monday; the Travis County Sheriff's Office confirmed receipt of the complaint to KUT.", "independence_group": "kut" }, { "id": "s3", "url": "https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/politics/election-2026/2026/09/21/562352/vikki-goodwin-files-police-report-saying-dan-patrick-broke-law-with-ai-generated-campaign-ads/", "kind": "news_report", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read live in English on 2026-09-22 (Houston Public Media, 21 September 2026). Same KUT report; grouped with s2.", "independence_group": "kut" }, { "id": "s4", "url": "https://www.kxan.com/news/texas-politics/lt-gov-candidate-goodwin-reports-dan-patrick-social-media-deepfakes-to-travis-county-sheriff/", "kind": "news_report", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read live in English on 2026-09-22 (KXAN Austin, AMP page, 21 September 2026; JSON-LD retained). Affidavit dates of the two posts, misdemeanour penalty, Patrick campaign statement relayed from the New York Times.", "independence_group": "kxan" }, { "id": "s5", "url": "https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/19/us/vikki-goodwin-dan-patrick-ai-attack-ads-texas.html", "kind": "news_report", "access": "unavailable", "language": null, "translation_note": "New York Times, 19 September 2026: answered HTTP 403 on 2026-09-21 and 2026-09-22; its content is known only through the Tribune and KXAN. Not relied on.", "independence_group": "nyt" } ], "version": 1, "ai_roles": [ "others_use" ], "contexts": [ "elections", "justice", "public_life" ], "unknowns": [ "What the two videos showed and said; they were deleted, and the inspected reports describe them only as an AI-generated Goodwin describing her policies (KUT relaying the New York Times) with a tax theme (Goodwin to KUT).", "Which tool produced the videos and who made them for the campaign.", "Whether the Travis County Sheriff's Office opened an investigation; Goodwin herself doubted it would.", "Whether the 5 and 12 September posts fall within the statutory 30-day window, which the two campaigns dispute.", "The New York Times report that first carried the campaign's response could not be read." ], "geography": { "basis": "Posts on the X account of the Texas lieutenant governor concerning a Texas election; complaint filed with the Travis County Sheriff's Office in Austin, Texas (Tribune, KUT, KXAN). No court proceeding exists.", "court_countries": [], "event_countries": [ "US" ], "affected_person_countries": [ "US" ] }, "publication": { "basis": "Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as an impersonation case involving a public figure: a candidate depicted by AI-generated video in an opponent's ads, with a sworn complaint filed and the posts removed. Four bodies read across three reporting chains (the affidavit via the Tribune and KXAN, the sheriff's confirmation via KUT, the opposing campaign via the Times). The depiction is undisputed; deception and illegality are disputed and recorded as such. Both principals are public officials.", "reviewed_on": "2026-09-22" }, "ai_involvement": { "basis": "The Texas Tribune, KUT and KXAN describe the two ads as AI-generated videos of Goodwin; her affidavit says the person in the video appears to be her but is not; the Patrick campaign does not deny the videos were generated and describes them as parody. The tool is not identified and the videos are no longer online.", "status": "supported" }, "person_relations": [ "depicted_or_impersonated" ] }, "name": "Texas: State Rep. Vikki Goodwin, the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor, filed a sworn complaint with the Travis County Sheriff's Office on 19 September 2026 alleging that two campaign ads posted on Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick's X account used AI-generated video of her saying things she never said; the posts were deleted the next day, her campaign says, and Patrick's campaign calls them obvious parody", "summary": "On Saturday 19 September 2026 Vikki Goodwin, an Austin state representative running against Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, filed a complaint with a notarised affidavit at the Travis County Sheriff's Office accusing Patrick of violating Texas's 2019 election deepfake law, after his campaign posted two ads (5 and 12 September, on his non-government X account) containing AI-generated videos of her. In the affidavit she stated: 'I did not personally do or say the things depicted in the video; although the \"person\" in the video appears to be me, it was not actually me', and that the video was posted 'with the intent to deceive Texans, injure a candidate, or influence the result of an election'. She told KUT the ads made it look as though she favoured raising taxes, which she says she opposes in every campaign speech. The sheriff's office confirmed receipt of the complaint without further comment. Patrick's campaign spokesman told the New York Times the material was 'an obvious parody produced to entertain' and that none of it was published within 30 days of the election; the posts were taken down the day after the complaint, according to Goodwin's communications director. Goodwin said she doubted the sheriff's office would follow up now that the posts were removed. A conviction under the law is a class A misdemeanour.", "incidentDate": "2026-09-05", "incidentEndDate": "2026-09-20", "incidentKind": "bounded_series", "incidentDatePrecision": "range", "exposurePattern": "unknown", "reportedDate": "2026-09-19", "aiSystem": "AI-generated video (deepfake) of the candidate in two campaign ads; tool not identified", "severity": "low", "verificationStatus": "credible", "harmCategories": [], "harmOutcomes": [ "reputational_harm" ], "harmOutcomeSummary": "A candidate was depicted in AI-generated campaign videos saying things she did not say, which she says misrepresented her position on taxes to voters; she filed a sworn criminal complaint and the posts were removed the next day. The depiction is undisputed (the Patrick campaign calls the videos parody); whether it was deceptive or unlawful is disputed and unresolved.", "frameworkFacets": [], "causationStatus": "disputed", "participantUsersAffectedMin": 0, "otherPeopleHarmedMin": 1, "affectedCountStatus": "exact", "affectedCountEvidence": "One depicted person, the candidate who filed the complaint. Exact 1. Voters said to have been misled are not counted.", "victimAgeRange": "adult", "jurisdiction": "US-TX", "platformType": "other", "outcomeType": "media_coverage", "outcomeStatus": "ongoing", "primarySourceUrl": "https://www.texastribune.org/2026/09/21/texas-goodwin-patrick-ad-police-complaint/", "primarySourceLabel": "The Texas Tribune, 21 September 2026: In lieutenant governor race, Vikki Goodwin says Dan Patrick ads are illegal AI deepfakes", "firstPublishedAt": "2026-09-22T03:45:53.964979+00:00", "scopeVersion": "facts-v3", "tags": [ "deepfake", "ai-generated-video", "election", "political-advertising", "texas", "travis-county", "public-figure", "depicted" ] } ] }