Taylor Swift AI Pictures Controversy

Overview

Taylor Swift AI Pictures Controversy refers to a series of AI-generated explicit images of pop star Taylor Swift that circulated on X / Twitter, among other platforms and sites, in late January 2024. As the images widely spread, fans of Swift and other posters responded with calls to "Protest Taylor Swift," and acted to report the images and to flood the algorithm with other material using the phrase "Taylor Swift AI" to limit their visibility. The AI photos also spawned many reactions and memes, largely expressing shock upon seeing the images.

Background

On January 24th, 2024, an X account under the username @Real_Nafu shared explicit AI-generated photos of Taylor Swift and posted them at 12:22 p.m. EST. The post received over 135,000 likes and 12,000 reposts and was saved 63,000 times in eight hours.^[1] The account was subsequently taken down by X and was suspended as of the morning of January 25th. Other accounts posted doctored AI images of Swift as well. Reporting from 404 Media suggests that the images originated on a Telegram chat devoted to non-consensual AI-generated images of naked women, and may have been generated by circumventing an image-generator through writing 'Taylor 'singer' Swift' instead of 'Taylor Swift' and strategic misspellings.^[12]

X account @kirawontmiss posted about the Taylor Swift AI images circulating on the platform on January 24th, receiving over 169,000 likes and over 8,000 quotes and reposts in 13 hours (seen below, left).^[2] In the comments on the @kirawontmiss post, users discussed the viral spread and numbers done by the original @Real_Nafu post of the AI images, many expressing shock by posting reaction images and GIFs (seen below, right).

Precursor

There have already been controversies about AI-generated images of nude celebrities and others, including the Oscar the Grouch Taylor Swift AI Image from mid-October 2023 that garnered similar virality and backlash.

Developments

Swifties "Clog Algorithm"

In response to the circulation of the AI-generated images on January 24th, 2024, Swifties worked to mass-report the controversial AI posts and produce other images and videos of Swift in an attempt to reduce the visibility of the original images in search results.

For example, X user @GetawayKarma (seen below, left) was one of many Swiftie fan accounts imploring users to report the AI-generated pictures of Swift, receiving over 300 likes in just over 15 hours for a January 24th post.^[3] Also that day, X user @midnightsabs (seen below, right) called on others to "clog the search" with photos and videos of Swift and "protect women," earning over 1,000 likes in 14 hours.^[4]

Swift Reaction

The Daily Mail reported on January 25th that Swift was "furious" about the AI pictures and considering legal action, according to a source said to be close to Swift.^[11] Throughout the day on January 25th, major media outlets published articles on the viral images, the Swiftie community's response, and the legal quandary of what to do about AI deepfake technology.

Zvbear Exposure

The identity of one of the users on X who posted explicit AI photos of Swift was apparently revealed by fans of Swift on January 25th, 2024 following the viral circulation of the images. The @Zvbear X account was associated with a Somali national residing in Canada. @theantiqueswift apparently doxxed @Zvbear, gaining 14,000 likes in the four days after being posted on January 25th, 2024.^[13] @Zvbear had earlier reportedly boasted "they'll never find me" in reference to Swifties.^[17]

Posters joked about the consequences faced by Zvbear as the controversy about AI-generated images of Swift picked up national media attention and was discussed by the White House. For example, @YDGT2 earned over 15,000 likes for sharing a clip from CNN and saying "BY GOD HE'S DEAD" in reference to Zvbear (seen below).^[14]

THEY GOT ZVBEAR ON CNN. BY GOD HE’S DEAD LMFAOOOOOO LETS GO pic.twitter.com/P1hTPhoshg

— A🦁 (@itsYDG2) January 26, 2024

Many also made jokes about a Zvbear's possible arrest. For example, @brndxix posted a Clark County Judge Attack meme about the topic on January 26th, 2024, earning over 15,000 likes in three days (seen below left).^[14]

In what was later identified by Community Notes as an undisclosed ad for the gambling website Polymarket, @upblissed posted a picture of odds for @Zvbear's arrest on January 27th, 2024, earning over 33,000 likes in two days (seen below right).^[15] @upblizzed had previously made a post on January 26th about the controversy, earning over 146,000 likes.^[16]

Online Reactions

Numerous users posted their reactions to the nude Taylor Swift AI photos in late January 2024 as they went viral. Some posters expressed worry about the AI photos, including X user @ayeejuju on January 24th who received over 150,000 likes for discussing their response to the pictures and the discourse alongside a Thousand Yard Stare meme (seen below).^[5]

Others appeared to argue with posters who had, purportedly, proposed that Swift's wealth and whiteness meant she didn't need protection from people making AI-generated nudes of her. For example, X user @tayspetch received over 3,100 likes in four hours, making this point on the morning of January 25th, 2024 (seen below, left).^[6]

Others, like X user @kayofalltrades, who received over 420 likes in less than a day for a January 24th post, hoped Swift would use her wealth, power and famous litigiousness to bring lawsuits against people making nonconsensual AI images and set a legal precedent protecting victims (seen below, right).^[7]

There were also Swifties who took more drastic action, seeking to doxx one of the accounts that reposted AI photos of Taylor Swift. On January 25th, X user @swiftcrumbs posted a supposed address of an account linked to the images (seen below), receiving over 4,100 likes in seven hours. Other accounts like @ts_sjoberg applauded the move, even tagging Swift's publicist Tree Paine in replies.^[8]

The AI images also generated some minor discussions and threads on Reddit around the same timeframe.^[9][10]

Related Memes

Oscar the Grouch Taylor Swift AI Image

Oscar the Grouch Taylor Swift AI Image is an AI-generated image of Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street penetrating American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift from behind (often referred to as "backshots") on top of a pile of garbage. The AI image gained virality and reposts on Twitter / X in late 2023, acting as a piece of shock media and inspiring memes.

Search Interest

External References