Philippines condemns Chinese media depicting it as monkey in AI video
The Philippines has condemned an AI-generated video from China Daily that depicts the country as a monkey being coerced by the US and Japan. Manila labeled the propaganda as dehumanizing and racist, further straining regional tensions.
Why it matters
The use of AI-generated propaganda in international disputes marks a new escalation in the information warfare surrounding the South China Sea.
Image source, Reuters Image caption, An earlier photo of two Chinese Coast Guard vessels blasting water cannons at a Philippine boat
The Philippines has condemned the "dehumanising and racist" portrayal of the country as a timid monkey strong-armed by the US and Japan to take Beijing on over the South China Sea .
Last week, China Daily posted an AI-generated video featuring a monkey in a Filipino shirt. It screams as arms bearing the Japanese and US flags shove it onto a rickety karaoke stage set up in a boat.
After it gets scolded for singing the wrong song, it pulls out a sheet reading "South China Sea arbitration award". It is then flung into the sea and blasted by a water cannon.
Tense stand-offs and occasional violent confrontations between Philippine and Chinese vessels in the disputed waters have grown in recent years.
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