Why fake AI videos of UK urban decline are taking over so...

What’s Happening

Real talk: Deepfakes showing grim taxpayer-funded waterparks have gone viral and drawn some racist responses.

Why fake AI videos of UK urban decline are taking over socials 2 days ago Save Marianna Spring socials investigations correspondent Save BBC An AI-generated video shows a crowd of young - mostly black - men, wearing balaclavas and padded jackets, slipping down a water slide into a dirty swimming pool with litter bobbing on the surface. The caption describes the scene as a taxpayer-funded water park in Croydon. (it feels like chaos)

It is one of a wave of deepfakes showing often absurd scenes of urban decline, and regularly purporting to be in the same south London neighbourhood.

The Details

Dozens of copycat accounts have begun producing similar content and collectively they have racked up millions of views across TikTok and Instagram Reels. These fake videos have become part of a much wider trend - where online influencers and content creators portray Western cities such as London, Manchester, San Francisco or New York as overrun with immigrants and crime.

It has been dubbed “decline porn”. These narratives - often exaggerated or fabricated, some obviously satirical - are fuelling anger and racist backlash among some viewers who take them at face value.

Why This Matters

The BBC tracked down the originator of the Croydon AI videos for the new podcast Top Comment , which investigates the stories behind our socials feeds. What we found was a new brand of online faker, who thrives off engagement and shrugs off responsibility for how the content can be used to push divisive political narratives. The shame around posting fakes seems to have gone completely out of the window.

Tech companies have been making moves like this as competition heats up.

Key Takeaways

• The creator, who uses the online handle RadialB, says he didnt expect to spawn copycats or be politically provocative.
• He says his content is intended to be funny - but that he also wants people to believe his fake scenes are real to grab their attention.

The Bottom Line

The creator, who uses the online handle RadialB, says he didnt expect to spawn copycats or be politically provocative. He says his content is intended to be funny - but that he also wants people to believe his fake scenes are real to grab their attention.

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