We reported earlier about how the White House struggled, trying to explain how Joe Biden came up with an imaginary daughter when he issued his official statement on the death of former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and condolences to the family.
Here is the relevant part of the initial official statement from Biden:
Bill and I crossed paths for the first time decades ago, when he was a staffer on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which I served on as Senator. Over the years, I saw firsthand his passion for politics, love for America, and unflagging belief that, with respect and good faith, people can come together across any difference, no matter how vast. He was a patriot and true original, and will not be forgotten. Jill and I send our love to his family, including his wife of over 50 years, Barbara, and their daughter Heather.
Except, as we explained, there was no daughter Heather. There was no daughter at all, and the White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre couldn't explain how such a thing could have happened or what they were doing to address the problem that might have resulted in the mistake. She didn't even try. Because, of course, it's the Biden White House, there is never any accountability, despite it being constantly wrong about so many things, including something so basic.
But as I wrote about that story and the bad Biden take, I realized there was another problem when I went to double-check the facts. I ran the alleged daughter's name and started seeing a troubling issue.
CNN reported on the "daughter" based on the White House statement and later had to correct their reporting.
— Dr. Nickarama (@nickaramaOG) September 8, 2023
But then what happened? Suddenly, Heather Blaine Richardson was born -- starting about five days ago, presumably because of the White House and the bad reporting. The name "Blaine" was Bill Richardson's middle name.
She was listed in the thumbnail when you googled Bill Richardson's Wikipedia page.
— Dr. Nickarama (@nickaramaOG) September 8, 2023
So if you Googled him, you now might reasonably believe he had a daughter with that name.
It gets worse. If you then clicked on the link and went looking for "Heather Blaine Richardson," you got this:
— Dr. Nickarama (@nickaramaOG) September 8, 2023
This even gives her a birthday and connects her to the rest of the Richardson family.
A whole page of what looks like AI-generated pages even have "stories" about her.
Here's a sample of the sterling journalistic writing on the remarkable "career" of Heather Blaine Richardson.
Heather Blaine Richardson (born July 19, 1973) is a prominent figure and advocate in the United States. She is the daughter of former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson.
Heather is 50 years old as of September 2023 and has had a substantial impact in a variety of fields. She grew up in a politically active family, which definitely influenced her career path.
She has used her background and passion for social justice to become a well-known champion for a variety of causes. Heather has demonstrated a commitment to constructive societal change by being notably active in education reform, environmental protection, and humanitarian activities.
Heather has established herself as a respected public policy and advocacy figure due to her strong educational background and professional expertise. Her work exemplifies her determination, brilliance, and compassionate nature, all while carrying on the legacy of her late father, Bill Richardson.
That's the typical kind of writing that you would get from AI -- fabulous no content "career" -- no real achievements listed, no facts or details, but a lot of words that say nothing. However, in this case, the person -- the "daughter of former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson" -- isn't even real.
I find it troubling and maybe a bit Orwellian that reality can be rewritten so easily, mainly based on a mistake by Joe Biden and his team, but then made worse by media and AI articles. In Stalinist Russia, they erased people from pictures after they fell out of favor. Here, we seem to be having reality changed in the other direction, making up someone who didn't exist. I suppose that's fully consistent with how much Biden makes things up in so many other areas, but it shows how easily something so wrong can populate in a search and completely fool people.
