"Beware: Government Using Image Manipulation for Propaganda"

On the one hand, I'm glad people are still bringing horseshit like this to light. The moment people give up on trying to do that is the moment the Trump """""administration""""" finally wins, and that would be terrible. Well, I mean, even more terrible than everything already is, anyway.

On the other hand, for me personally, it's like... "So, the Trump '''''administration''''' was caught in yet another blatant lie, you say? Well, I guess it must be a day that ends in '-day' then. *eye roll*"

I mean, this isn't even the first time that they've used AI-doctored bullshit in their favor. With that said, this might be the first time they've actively and obviously directly done it themselves, rather than just reposting something "made" by some other dipshit on social media or whatever, though? Or, at least, the first time they've been caught red-handed doing it? I wouldn't bet money on that being the case, though. (On them having never done it before, to be clear.)

"Protest Music From Bruce Springsteen and Billy Bragg"

A post on John Scalzi's Whatever.

"When the history of the moment is said and done, there are going to be people who wished they had been on the same side as Bruce Springsteen and Billy Bragg, and some who will lie that they had always been. But they will know the truth, and so will others. It won't be forgotten."

"Highguard Struggles to Win Over the Internet, Video Game Developers Come to Its Defense"

Full headline, due to the usual reasons: "'When Did It Become Trendy to Hate on a New Game?' — as Highguard Struggles to Win Over the Internet, Video Game Developers Come to Its Defense"

There are only two things I know about this game. One, this game apparently started getting shat upon from the first moment they showed it off at the Game Awards or whenever. Two, it is a "free-to-play 'PvP raid shooter.'" Of those two distinct facts that I know about this game, the latter one is the far bigger catalyst to my utter apathy toward this game, because I have great antipathy toward that particular type of video game, just in general. The only reason I'm even making a post about this game at all is because the former one is morbidly interesting to me.

What's really funny to me is that the three developers IGN is quoting here as defending this game are a veritable "Who's Who" of "says stupid things" types. They literally quoted irrelevant has-been Cliffy B of all people, for fuck's sake. I'm kind of surprised that they didn't scrape a quote from Tim Sweeney, given he's been on a real run recently of saying stupid things, though I do still have reason to add the "fuck epic games store" tag (i.e. the de facto "fuck epic" tag), given IGN found a different Epic head asshole from which to scrape a quote from 卐 for this thing.

(EDIT) The argument seems to be that Internet assholes are attacking the game's developers, rather than (just) the game itself. I haven't personally seen that myself, but then I haven't been looking for it, either, so I don't doubt it a bit. The Internet has a lot of assholes, after all, all of them constantly dumping shit on anything and anyone in spew range. However, what should be known by now is that trying to appeal to the humanity and empathy of Internet assholes and get them to stop being big meanies typically has the exact opposite effect than the one desired. That's just how Internet assholes function. Especially when the appeal apparently is "would you pwease think of the poor widdle video game devewopers." (/EDIT)

Anyway, I'll just leave this here:

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