At least three online users posted a picture of Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo working inside a bus in an alleged “photoshoot.” This is fake and was digitally altered.
First published on March 13 by a Facebook page whose posts are mostly supportive of Vice President Sara Duterte, the photo features her predecessor browsing through some documents with her face redacted. Superimposed on the photo is text that reads:
“MAY PHOTOSHOOT PALA! Kaya Sumakay ng Bus. (It was a photoshoot!! That’s why she rode the bus.)”
The caption on the post cited the supposed findings on the post from ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence-powered chatbot. It states:
“Di niyo naman sinabi na umattend lang pala ng Photoshoot sa BUS. (You didn’t say that she just attended a photoshoot the bus.)
According to ChatGPT:
It looks like a real photo taken by a camera
The scene has many details that are consistent with a real behind-the-scenes photo:
- Natural lighting and shadows from the LED panel
- Realistic camera rig, boom mic, and slate board
- Proper depth, reflections, and perspective
- Crew members positioned naturally in a tight space (looks like inside a bus or van)
These elements are difficult to fake perfectly with simple editing.
But there is likely an added graphic
The red box that says “WARNING: SATIRICAL CONTENT” looks like a digital overlay added afterward.
It has the appearance of a graphic stamp rather than something physically present in the scene.
Most likely scenario
- The photo itself was taken with a real camera during a staged or filmed scene.
- The satirical warning text was added later through editing.
Conclusion:
The base image appears to be a real photograph, but some elements (like the warning label and possibly the blurred face) were likely edited in post-production.”
Two other users on FB and X (formerly Twitter) reposted the graphic on March 14.
While Robredo’s face was obscured by a digital scribble on the edited version, a keyword search led VERA Files Fact Check to the original photo published by an aide of the former vice president on FB dated March 12. It noted that Robredo was still working before leaving for Manila.
VERA Files Fact Check reached out to the Deepfakes Analysis Unit of the India-based Trusted Information Alliance, formerly the Misinformation Combat Alliance, to check the photo’s veracity. An expert flagged several signs that it is likely synthetic, including:
- the camera monitor does not necessarily reflect the scene in front, noting the image of the person on the screen “is not discernible given the quality of the visual.”
- the characters on the clapperboard held by a production crew at the backdrop seem to be distorted and nonsensical,
- a part of the roof or the compartment “appears to be bent at an odd angle,” adding “it seems to be strange and out-of-place, when the rest of the (supposed) media crew’s preparation appears to be top notch.”
Another visual inconsistency VFFC found is that the curtain of the bus appears slightly open, compared to the original photo.
The doctored image emerged after Robredo drew accusations from her detractors — including Harry Roque, former spokesperson of erstwhile president Rodrigo Duterte and social media personality Jack Argota — calling the photo staged.
On March 13, Robredo shared a video of her inside a bus with other passengers at a terminal. “Sagot sa fake news ng mga tao na walang kilalang politiko na nag bubus na walang bodyguard na kasama,” she wrote. (This is a response to the “fake news” of people who don’t know any politician who rides a bus without a bodyguard.)
The altered photo, uploaded by FB page PROTECT THE VP (created on May 7, 2016 as Marino Para sa Pilipinas) has so far garnered 32,000 reactions; 9,500 comments and 2,700 shares. Notably, one of the people who manages the page is based in the United States.
