FORT BEND COUNTY – As political campaigns flood social media feeds with more digital content than ever, a viral endorsement video from Fort Bend County has triggered debate over artificial intelligence in elections.
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The controversy centers on county judge the race between Republican interim County Judge Daniel Wong and Democratic challenger County Commissioner Dexter McCoy.
Campaign clashes over consent and ethics
Big picture view:
The disputed video depicts individuals endorsing Wong, with audio praising his personal support.
The video has drawn contrasting reactions from both camps regarding political ethics, authenticity, and voter deception.
The other side:
McCoy condemned the video, arguing that it misrepresents real community members without their permission.
“Unfortunately, those images that were taken to make a video, folks were made to say things that they never consented to do,” McCoy said. “They were completely exploited in this sort of situation, and that’s disgusting.”
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What they’re saying:
Following backlash, Wong’s campaign took down the video and released the following statement:
“The video that has purportedly stirred “outrage” among Democrats was actually created by a Democrat. It was shared with the campaign, but it was not produced by the campaign. It has now been removed from the campaign’s social media platforms.”
Wong’s campaign then turned its sights on McCoy, criticizing his attendance and accusing him of weaponizing race:
“Dexter McCoy realizes that he betrayed his constituents by refusing to show up for meetings, not participating in budget hearings, and storming out like a child rather than voting to cut the tax rate for hard-working Fort Bend County residents. Instead, McCoy has rolled out the tired “race card” to blast fellow Democrats simply because they support County Judge Daniel Wong. McCoy should apologize to voters for sinking so low and making every issue about race.”
In an interview, FOX 26 asked McCoy about the allegations in Wong’s statement:
“As a leader, you accept responsibility for anything that you or your organization does. The buck stops with you as a leader. And for Daniel Wong to try to shift blame, it’s what we have come to expect. And I don’t think that people are going to take too kindly to that. They are not responding well to that at all,” McCoy said.
Wong Campaign Responds, Explains Video
Dig deeper:
Wong’s campaign maintains that the video was neither produced nor commissioned by their official team.
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According to the campaign, the video was independently created by an outside supporter — who they noted is a Democrat backing the Republican judge. They said the individual then shared the video with their campaign team.
Bobby Eberle, communications director for Wong, addressed the controversy and stated that the featured individuals were genuine supporters whose likenesses were enhanced using AI tools.
“I talked to the creator of the video today, and he told me that he received consent,” Eberle said. “Obviously, it’s AI-generated, we all know that, but he said he received consent from those people. They are supporters, and like I said, what I’d love to do is make a real video with them in it.”
The Wong campaign maintains three key points:
- The official campaign did not generate the video.
- The material was received from an independent external supporter.
- The creator of the video says they obtained consent from the supporters depicted.
“What I find very disappointing is the fact that Dexter McCoy and others are trying to make this some kind of racial issue, when the supporter and everyone featured in the video were Black Democrats who, in this particular race, are supporting Daniel Wong over Dexter McCoy,” Eberle said.
What’s next:
Meanwhile, McCoy stated that he is calling on the local district attorney to conduct a criminal inquiry into the incident. FOX 26 reached out to the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office, which confirmed it has not received any formal complaints.
At this time, FOX 26 has not been able to make contact with the individuals depicted in the video, but the station is actively seeking to speak with them.
How voters can identify AI-generated political content
What you can do:
With AI media appearing more frequently across campaign cycles, distinguishing authentic recordings from manipulated or computer-generated footage has become increasingly difficult on standard social feeds.
Juan Guevara Torres, a FOX tech expert, recommends running questionable media through digital verification platforms before sharing.
“There are free online tools like ZeroGPT or Detector AI,” Guevara Torres explained. “You can download the video, run it through these platforms, and they will indicate with a fair degree of certainty whether the footage was AI-assisted or entirely AI-generated.”
If you are one of the individuals depicted in the video, FOX 26 wants to hear from you. You can contact our newsroom directly via email or call (713) 479-2801.
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