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News Desk
An image circulating on social media claiming to show massive election protests in South Korea has been confirmed as AI-generated, according to fact-checking by AFP.
The viral image appears to depict a large nighttime aerial view of crowds surrounding a stadium in Seoul, with South Korean flags visible and captions linking it to post-election demonstrations in the Jamsil area. However, verification shows the image contains inconsistencies and does not match real-world visuals of the location.
The image was shared across platforms including Threads, Facebook, Instagram and X, often accompanied by claims of widespread electoral fraud following South Korea’s June 3 regional elections, which had been affected by ballot paper shortages.
While protests did take place in Seoul’s Jamsil district over election management concerns, AFP confirmed that the circulating image does not reflect actual events on the ground.
The stadium referenced in the post — currently known as ticketLINK Live Arena — is structurally different from the stadium shown in the image, further confirming the content is digitally generated.
Some social media users had engaged with the post, sharing comments suggesting the image depicted real demonstrations. However, fact-checkers confirmed the scene is synthetic and misleading.
AFP concluded that the image is AI-generated and does not represent any verified protest scene from South Korea’s election-related demonstrations.
