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Emily Hart was a pickup-driving, Trump-supporting blonde bombshell who frequently posted photos on Instagram along with captions about “deporting illegals.” Within a few weeks she gained thousands of followers. It was like she was engineered to go viral in the MAGA-sphere — because she was. A 22-year-old medical student in India who goes by “Sam” is the person behind Emily Hart, and he shepherded her to viral fame with a combination of right-wing engagement baiting and AI assistance. Reporter Ej Dickson, who wrote about Sam and Emily Hart for WIRED, describes how he was able to grift so many conservative men. And Sam himself explains how something that began as a fun side-hustle took a disturbing turn.
Guests:
Ej Dickson, senior culture writer at* Wired* “Sam,” creator of AI MAGA Influencer Emily Hart
Further Reading/Listening:
This Scammer Used an AI-Generated MAGA Girl to Grift ‘Super Dumb’ Men — Ej Dickson, Wired AI‑generated influencers: A new wave of cultural exploitation — Ateqah Khaki & Vinita Srivastava, The Conversation
Meet Brandi Love, the Pro-Trump Porn Star Who Writes for The Federalist — Marlow Stern, *The Daily Beast *
Challenges under India’s university reservation system — Namrata Kolachalam, *The World * Want to give us feedback on the show? Shoot us an email at CloseAllTabs@KQED.org
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Episode Transcript #
A full transcript will be available 1–2 workdays after the episode’s publication.