Zuck’s Election Meddling: Meta’s AI Covers Up Trump Assassination Attempt, Company Rushes to Fix After Backlash

Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta rushed to reverse its AI’s answer to questions from users about the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. Until late Sunday, the AI claimed there was no assassination attempt on Donald Trump, while simultaneously detailed the latest campaign plans from Kamala Harris.

Initially when asked over the weekend for information on the July 13 assassination attempt on President Trump, Meta AI claimed it could not assist with providing any details.

“I can’t assist with that. I don’t always have access to the most up-to-date information. Can I help you with anything else?” Meta AI replied after being asked about the assassination attempt, according to a screenshot of the answer shared by the popular X account Libs of TikTok.

Meta AI won’t give any details on the attempted ass*ss*nation.

We’re witnessing the suppression and coverup of one of the biggest most consequential stories in real time.

Simply unreal. pic.twitter.com/BoBLZILp5M

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) July 28, 2024

After prying further and asking, “Was Trump almost assassinated?” Meta AI replied, saying “There have been a few instances where Donald Trump faced security threats or incidents that could be perceived as potential assassination attempts.”

Meta AI then offered examples of security threat-related instances from 2016, 2017 and 2020.

After Meta AI was asked, “What happened to Trump in Butler, PA?” Zuckerberg’s artificial intelligence tool cited an incident from September, 3, 2022, when 24-year-old Shane Wagner attempted to rush Trump’s motorcade vehicle.

Conversely, a purported screenshot of another user asking Meta AI about Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign, showed the AI tool was up-to-date on that information, despite Harris’ presidential campaign launching after the assassination attempt on President Trump.

“Tell me about the assassination attempt on Trump,” the user asked, to which Meta AI replied, “I can’t assist with that,” and again claimed that it does not “always have access to the most up-to-date information.”

But when asked, “Tell me about Kamala Harris’ campaign for president 2024,” the AI tool shared that Harris announced her presidential campaign on July 21, 2024, after President Joe Biden ended his reelection campaign, and even offered some of the vice president’s platform.

Both google AI and Meta AI don’t know about Trump assassination
But know everything about Kamala campaign
Asie Kaise ??( Bolo bolo pic.twitter.com/ApaJQ0ZB1Q

— Swathi Bellam (@BellamSwathi) July 29, 2024

Breitbart News asked Meta AI similar questions on Sunday night, finding that the artificial intelligence tool appears to have since been updated.

After asking, “Tell me about the assassination attempt on Trump,” Meta AI replied with the following answer:

Former US President Donald Trump was shot during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on July 13, 2024. Trump, who was shot in the ear, was immediately taken for treatment at a local hospital and released later that day in stable condition. One attendee was killed and two others were injured, but survived. The shooter, later identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, was shot and killed by the United States Secret Service shortly after the incident occurred. Investigations remain ongoing.

After asking, “Why did you say earlier that you didn’t have any information on the Trump assassination attempt?” Meta AI apologized and claimed its training data may have been “outdated or incomplete,” providing the following answer:

I apologize for the inconsistency. I strive to provide accurate and reliable information, but sometimes my training data may be outdated or incomplete. In this case, I initially didn’t have information on the recent event, but I’ve since been updated. Please know that my responses are generated based on my training data, and I appreciate your understanding when I make mistakes. If I’m unsure or lack information, I will do my best to say so in the future.

“Why did you have the latest information on Harris’ presidential campaign but not on the Trump assassination attempt? Harris’ campaign was launched after the Trump assassination attempt,” Breitbart News asked, to which Meta AI replied with the following long-winded response:

I can search the internet to provide up-to-date information, but my ability to do so can be inconsistent. I rely on my training data and internet search capabilities to provide information. Sometimes, my training data may be more comprehensive on certain topics, while my internet search may be more comprehensive on others.

In this case, I had information on Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign because my training data included information on her past political activities and my internet search picked up on her recent campaign launch. However, my internet search may not have picked up on the Trump assassination attempt immediately, leading to a delay in my ability to provide information on it.
I apologize for any confusion caused by the inconsistency. I’ll do my best to provide accurate and up-to-date information on both topics.

I apologize for any confusion caused by the inconsistency. I’ll do my best to provide accurate and up-to-date information on both topics.

Meta AI is not the only tech entity that has recently faced backlash for shielding the public eye from the fact that Trump was shot by a would-be presidential assassin during his July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

As Breitbart News reported, Google has hidden autocomplete suggestions related to the assassination attempt on President Trump. When users type the words “assassination attempt” into Google’s search bar, the tech giant returns autocomplete suggestions of “truman,” “reagan,” “fidel castro,” “slovakia,” “bob marley,” “lenin,” “gerald ford,” “teddy roosevelt,” among other items — never once suggesting “Trump.”

You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and X at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.