Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is facing some more online backlash, but this time for marketing his campaign merchandise using what appears to be a Russian stock photo.
Are we sure he's running for president of the US? pic.twitter.com/1JpRSqZNE4
— John Scott-Railton (@jsrailton) June 28, 2023
The post depicted a woman in a “Kennedy 2024” sweater walking on a Russian street, surrounded by Cyrillic signage. Twitter sleuths quickly determined that the photo was taken in Krasnodar, Russia, and that it had been edited from its original version. Initially, the woman wore a black sweater with the word “Fika?” on it, a Swedish term meaning “coffee break.”
Looks like it's not AI, but a stolen photo, then photoshopped. From a street in Krasnodar, Russia.@RobertKennedyJr is a pathetic grifting 🤡 https://t.co/xBlXTjIbZB pic.twitter.com/X2MI9LTfr0
— 57th Overlanders (@57thOverlanders) June 28, 2023
The jury’s still out on why of all the thousands of stock photos of “attractive blonde young woman wearing a sweater,” he chose one that was prominently shot in a Russian street and only photoshopped the sweater, leaving the Cyrillic signages as is. One thing’s clear, though, he needs a new graphic designer.
Left – RFK Jr’s first attempt at this campaign ad using a stock photo from Russia.
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) June 28, 2023
Right – cleanup on aisle 5. pic.twitter.com/S5LcPKAcEy
Shortly after removing the controversial tweet, RFK Jr. shared a new post that included a different image and directed followers to his campaign’s merchandise store. He is one of two candidates seeking to challenge President Joe Biden as the party’s nominee in the 2024 presidential election.
RFK, Jr, who’s the nephew of President John F. Kennedy and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, is trailing Biden by a substantial margin among Democratic voters, with 15% support compared to the incumbent’s 62%, according to the recent Harvard CAPS/Harris Poll.
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