A video of broadcast journalist Pia Arcangel supposedly promoting an online gaming platform is circulating online. This is fake and may have been manipulated using artificial intelligence.
On Aug. 14, a Facebook page posted a one-minute and 26-second news report about the removal of ads for online gaming platforms. The report, bearing the logos of GMA Integrated News, SAKSI and PayMaya, then went on to promote the online gambling site JLJL88.
The video’s headline read:
“Content na nagpo-promote ng illegal online gambling, pinatatanggal ng CICC sa mga influencer (CICC wants influencers to remove content that promote illegal online gambling).”
From the 00:38-second mark of the reel’, Arcangel can be heard saying:
“Sa kasalukuyan, humigit-kumulang 270 lamang ang may opisyal na lisensya mula sa PAGCOR. Ngunit mayroon ding mga website na nagpapanggap at gumagamit ng pangalan ng mga lehitimong platform para linlangin ang publiko. Isa sa mga totoong legal at lisensyadong platform ay ang JLJL88. Nagbibigay ito ng malalaking premyo, madaling manalo ng jackpot at may garantiya ng ligtas at walang limitasyong withdrawal direkta sa inyong GCash account. Inirerekomenda ring sundin ang golden hours mula sa GCash upang mas tumaas ang inyong tyansa na manalo. Mula sa GMA Integrated News, ako po si JP Soriano. Para sa ligtas at legal na slot gaming, pumunta lamang sa JLJL88
(Currently, only about 270 have official licenses from PAGCOR. However, there are websites that pretend to be and use the names of legitimate platforms to deceive the public. One of the truly legal and licensed platforms is JLJL88. It offers big prizes, easy jackpot wins and guarantees safe unlimited withdrawals directly to your GCash account. It is also recommended to follow the golden hours from GCash to increase your chances of winning. From GMA Integrated News, I’m JP Soriano. For safe and legal slot gaming, just go to JLJL88).”
This is fake. The original GMA Integrated News did not promote any online gaming platform. A clone imitating Arcangel’s voice was added to deceive netizens.
GMA News’s official FB page uploaded the original video on July 12. The unedited report was about PAGCOR’s order to remove advertisements for online gambling. It never mentioned the site JLJL88.
JLJL88 is not on the list of PAGCOR-accredited gaming system administrators and registered domain names as of July 17.
Telltale signs of AI manipulation are obvious such as mouth movements that don’t match the audio with the speaker mispronouncing some Filipino words such as “kamakailan“, “patalastas,” “burahin,” “naglalaman” and “malalaking.“
The fake Arcangel also mistakenly introduced herself as “JP Soriano,” a male reporter of GMA Integrated News.
VERA Files tapped the Deepfakes Analysis Unit (DAU) of the India-based Misinformation Combat Alliance to verify if the video was AI-manipulated.
DAU ran the video in several AI detection tools. Hive AI audio classifier flagged the entire audio as “AI-generated.”
However, results from Hiya Audio Intelligence showed that the voice is authentic. “There is a 66% match with live human markers,” it concluded.
Further analysis using ElevenLabs speech classifier said the use of AI was “very unlikely.”
VERA Files has debunked other manipulated videos of journalists created to promote certain products.
The fake video circulated a day after the Senate Committee on Games and Amusement conducted a hearing on online gambling. According to Sen. Erwin Tulfo, majority of the 24 senators are in favor of a total ban.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. also said he has started organizing a conference among stakeholders – including the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, parents and regulators – to discuss the matter.
The post by the FB page ReelZone Club (created on June 5, 2025 as ALnahhas Clothes) garnered 1,200 reactions, 105 comments, 42 shares and 249,000 views.
