The Democrat candidate for U.S. Senate has called for pausing data center construction even as he uses AI to attack his Republican opponent. Hyde-Smith’s campaign manager said Tuesday, “Desperate candidates deploy desperate tactics.”
Scott Colom began his campaign for U.S. Senate last year by making a fake phone call to U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith to “wish her a good night.” A woman’s voice was heard answering the phone, to which Colom said, “I can’t believe she answered,” referring to it being Hyde-Smith.
Colom then goes on to unload a litany of campaign talking points over the call, until he closed with, “Bless your heart, OK?”
That was day one of the Democrat’s campaign against the incumbent Republican.
Now, even as he attempts to capitalize on anti-data center sentiment, Colom is again producing fake content, this time using the very artificial intelligence technology those data centers support to attack Hyde-Smith with a month left until the November General Election.
An AI generated video shared by Colom on his social media platforms shows images of a woman generated to look like Hyde-Smith exiting what is assumed to be the U.S. Capitol. Awaiting her outside is a slew of press shouting questions Colom’s campaign has used in their messaging, such as “Why don’t you do a town hall?” The woman is then shown running away before getting into a car.
Earlier this week, Colom shared a video where he claims “the average Entergy household in Mississippi is paying about $10.60 more every month because of the data center bailout, about $127 a year.” He has called for a pause on data center construction while also highlighting a pro-AI data center super PAC ad buy backing Hyde-Smith.
Entergy Mississippi has since disputed Colom’s claim, saying their customers are benefitting from data centers, not subsidizing them.
Hyde-Smith’s campaign manager Jake Monssen said Tuesday, “Desperate candidates deploy desperate tactics.”
“Colom’s unserious campaign is just a mashup of lies and deception, and this AI video is no different. Rest assured, this’ll all be over on November 3 when Mississippians send him back into obscurity,” Monssen said. “I do wonder, though: Which data center here in Mississippi did he use to make it?”
-- Article credit to Frank Corder for the Magnolia Tribune --
