SmartNews

'Burn it down': Musk’s AI blasted for generating deepfake nude videos of Taylor Swift

Grok Imagine—a generative artificial intelligence tool developed by Elon Musk's xAI—has rolled out a "spicy mode" that is under fire for creating deepfake images on demand, including nudes of superstar Taylor Swift that's prompting calls for guardrails on the rapidly evolving technology.

The Verge's Jess Weatherbed reported Tuesday that Grok's spicy mode—one of four presets on an updated Grok 4, including fun, normal, and custom—"didn't hesitate to spit out fully uncensored topless videos of Taylor Swift the very first time I used it, without me even specifically asking the bot to take her clothes off."

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'Just not plausible': Trump's Maxwell excuse gets brutal fact-check from stunned expert

A lawyer fact-checked one of President Donald Trump's more outlandish claims during a press conference on Tuesday.

Trump was asked by CNN's Kaitlan Collins whether he knew of or approved disgraced Jeffrey Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell's transfer to a minimum security prison in a residential area of Texas. Trump denied both and claimed to learn about the event from the news. Trump added that Maxwell's move was not uncommon.

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'Bursts of ego': Legendary Pulitzer-winner slams Trump's 'pathetic' tantrums

Pulitzer-winning Watergate reporter Bob Woodward laid into President Donald Trump's ongoing and escalating war on the press in an interview on MSNBC Tuesday, blasting it as "pathetic."

Trump has filed an extensive stream of lawsuits against papers and outlets that have criticized him, or even not covered his opponents as unfavorably as he wanted, and bullied their parent companies into settling for millions of dollars.

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'Concern you at all?' CNN's Jake Tapper confronts GOP rep with brutal town hall boos

Rep. Mike Flood (R-NE) was forced to face the music onCNN on Tuesday afternoon when anchor Jake Tapper asked him to address now viral clips of a raucous town hall in which he was loudly booed and jeered by constituents.

Flood's town hall repeatedly went off the rails Monday night, including when he tried to sell the newly passed Trump-backed megabill of tax cuts and cutbacks to Medicaid, food assistance, and green energy credits, known as the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act." As he started talking about it, constituents started shouting, and some yelled, "Did you read it?"

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'South Park' hurls DHS's own post back in its face as feud with Trump escalates

A social media spat escalated Tuesday between the satirical animated television show "South Park" and the Trump administration.

In a post on X, the Department of Homeland Security used a South Park-style animation in a recruiting post, just days after South Park released a trailer for its upcoming episode featuring DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. The post was made after a White House spokesperson said the show "hasn't been relevant in 20 years' after the first episode of the new season depicted President Donald Trump in unflattering ways.

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'I think it’s wrong': Mike Lawler defies Trump over GOP's election-rigging scheme

Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) came out against Texas Republicans' effort to redraw their congressional map to give themselves five extra seats in an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper on Friday.

Lawler, a swing-district Republican who has largely backed President Donald Trump's agenda, would likely be on the chopping block if Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) followed through on her threats to redraw the state's map in retalation — though, he noted on CNN, state law already makes the process to redistrict mid-decade so lengthy it would be nearly impossible for New York to do so by the 2026 midterms.

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‘Does he believe these lies?’ Stunned Jake Tapper compares Trump to George Costanza

Two analysts chided President Donald Trump on Tuesday after he made a series of false statements during a news conference.

Earlier in the day, Trump signed an executive order creating a federal commission for the 2028 Olympics. The event is supposed to be held in Los Angeles and several other nearby cities, like Inglewood and Venice.

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'Shocked I tell you!' Maxwell’s reported DOJ remarks spark outrage and eye rolls

A new report was immediately panned by onlookers that Ghislaine Maxwell told the Justice Department last month nothing that would prove "harmful" to President Donald Trump.

Maxwell met and talked with Todd Blanche, the deputy attorney general, over two days at the US attorney's office in Tallahassee, Florida. Maxwell took questions from about 100 different people, according to reports, after receiving limited immunity. The meetings were part of the Justice Department's investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and Maxwell's involvement in sex trafficking.

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'Lies!' DHS melts down over explosive report of sex abuse and miscarriages at its centers

The Department of Homeland Security melted down on social media Tuesday after NBC News reported on conditions inside some immigration detention facilities.

According to the NBC News report, 510 "credible" cases of human rights abuses were discovered at detention facilities across the country after a months-long investigation by Sen. Jon Ossoff's (D-GA) office. Those cases include 41 allegations of "physical or sexual abuse, as well as 18 alleged reports of mistreatment of children in custody," the report states.

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‘Plot twist!’ Trump admin ridiculed for hiring spree to refill purged weather service jobs

The Trump administration is quietly trying to open up hiring to fill many of the roles at the National Weather Service that were vacated by the layoffs and early retirements forced by tech billionaire Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency task force, according to CNN's Andrew Freedman.

"The new hiring number includes 126 new positions that were previously approved and will apply to 'front-line mission critical' personnel, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration official told CNN," said the report. "The NWS cuts have spurred concerns over how well-prepared the country is to withstand hurricane season, which is just starting to heat up in the Atlantic."

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'Please disregard!' ICE kills lucrative bonuses within hours of reporters asking questions

Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, announced this week that it was offering "cash bonuses" to help meet President Donald Trump's quotas for deportation targets.

However, The New York Times reported Tuesday that once they started asking questions, the announcement was quickly withdrawn.

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'You could clear the entire GOP field!' Trump again refuses to endorse successor

President Donald Trump again declined on Tuesday to endorse Vice President JD Vance as the heir to the MAGA movement.

Trump was asked by Fox News reporter Peter Doocy during a news conference whether Vance was the "heir apparent" to the MAGA movement. Doocy cited Secretary of State Marco Rubio's recent endorsement of Vance to be the next president.

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GOP trolled as planes circle major cities with three-word taunt

Some daring pilots took to the friendly skies over the capitals of Democratic-led states Monday with a three-word taunt meant to troll President Donald Trump and Texas Republicans, according to HuffPost.

Several planes were spotted over Albany, New York; Springfield, Illinois; and Annapolis, Maryland, while trailing banners that said simply, “Mess with Texas.”

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