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Generating Meaning In Artificial Intelligence-Based Deepfake Videos: A Semıotically Reading Experiment
Abstract
Despite the conveniences and features they provide, artificial intelligence technologies have also brought about many problems such as distortion of the perception of reality and the creation of false information. These problems have been taken to a different dimension with the Deepfake technology that has developed and emerged thanks to artificial intelligence technologies. Deepfakes, which are created especially to put people in the political scene in a difficult situation and to blackmail them through the content created, have now become a threat to democracy. This study aims to reveal how deepfake videos created for political figures such as Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin are presented to the audience and the meanings hidden in these videos. In the videos, leaders are seen smiling and getting along well, conveying a sense of hope for world peace. Furthermore, powerful leaders are portrayed as weak, passive individuals who are easily influenced, while more moderate leaders are presented as strong, assertive, and active figures. References are frequently made in the videos to events that political figures, who are also portrayed as simple and ordinary people, have experienced in real life and to world politics.
Keywords
References
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Details
Primary Language
English
Subjects
Sociolinguistics, Political Communication
Journal Section
Research Article
Publication Date
June 30, 2026
Submission Date
January 30, 2026
Acceptance Date
May 3, 2026
Published in Issue
Year 2026 Volume: 8 Number: 1
APA
Balcı, Ş., & Özben Çelik, K. (2026). Generating Meaning In Artificial Intelligence-Based Deepfake Videos: A Semıotically Reading Experiment. Kritik İletişim Çalışmaları Dergisi, 8(1), 20-43. https://doi.org/10.53281/kritik.1877790
AMA
1.Balcı Ş, Özben Çelik K. Generating Meaning In Artificial Intelligence-Based Deepfake Videos: A Semıotically Reading Experiment. Kritik. 2026;8(1):20-43. doi:10.53281/kritik.1877790
Chicago
Balcı, Şükrü, and Kübra Özben Çelik. 2026. “Generating Meaning In Artificial Intelligence-Based Deepfake Videos: A Semıotically Reading Experiment”. Kritik İletişim Çalışmaları Dergisi 8 (1): 20-43. https://doi.org/10.53281/kritik.1877790.
EndNote
Balcı Ş, Özben Çelik K (June 1, 2026) Generating Meaning In Artificial Intelligence-Based Deepfake Videos: A Semıotically Reading Experiment. Kritik İletişim Çalışmaları Dergisi 8 1 20–43.
IEEE
[1]Ş. Balcı and K. Özben Çelik, “Generating Meaning In Artificial Intelligence-Based Deepfake Videos: A Semıotically Reading Experiment”, Kritik, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 20–43, June 2026, doi: 10.53281/kritik.1877790.
ISNAD
Balcı, Şükrü - Özben Çelik, Kübra. “Generating Meaning In Artificial Intelligence-Based Deepfake Videos: A Semıotically Reading Experiment”. Kritik İletişim Çalışmaları Dergisi 8/1 (June 1, 2026): 20-43. https://doi.org/10.53281/kritik.1877790.
JAMA
1.Balcı Ş, Özben Çelik K. Generating Meaning In Artificial Intelligence-Based Deepfake Videos: A Semıotically Reading Experiment. Kritik. 2026;8:20–43.
MLA
Balcı, Şükrü, and Kübra Özben Çelik. “Generating Meaning In Artificial Intelligence-Based Deepfake Videos: A Semıotically Reading Experiment”. Kritik İletişim Çalışmaları Dergisi, vol. 8, no. 1, June 2026, pp. 20-43, doi:10.53281/kritik.1877790.
Vancouver
1.Şükrü Balcı, Kübra Özben Çelik. Generating Meaning In Artificial Intelligence-Based Deepfake Videos: A Semıotically Reading Experiment. Kritik. 2026 Jun. 1;8(1):20-43. doi:10.53281/kritik.1877790