Abstract
Artificial Intelligence-generated photos and videos, ranging from deepfakes to artificially
enhanced campaigns, make it difficult for citizens to distinguish between facts and deliberate
manipulations. This is a challenge to the ability of Nigerians to discern truth in political
engagements on social media. Anchored on media ethics and social responsibility theories, this
study examined ethical limits for AI photo and video usage in social media political engagement.
A mixed-methods approach was used. A sample size of 385 Abuja social media users were
surveyed while nine journalists from prominent Nigerian media outlets were interviewed.
Findings reveal a high level of awareness of AI-generated political content by the general public
and low level of trust and negative perception. Journalists do not use AI-created images due to
ethical concerns such as disinformation, risks to authenticity, and political polarization and
demand for transparency, norms of verification, regulation, and privacy protection. The study
concluded that transparency, verification, and professional responsibility are the ethical
standards needed to curb manipulation, misinformation, and disinformation in social media
political engagement. The study recommends that media organizations, media professionals and
the federal government of Nigeria should prioritize digital literacy for Journalists, transparency
in newsrooms, updated industry standards and responsible regulation.
Keywords: AI-generated visuals, deepfakes, political communication, social media, journalistic
ethics
Publication Date: 2026-03-13