As a member of the chronically online Gen Z community, I spend at least a good few hours on YouTube every day. After scrolling through flashy thumbnails for some time, I finally click on a video I’m interested in, heartily waiting for the quality content to load, when a familiar gong of a boxing bell obtrudes my earbuds. As my eyes meet with the Gollum-esque AI-generated eyeballs of little Josh Gottheimer, I let out a silent shriek of dread. Josh the fighter has risen once again.
Recently, Josh Gottheimer’s campaign video has been all over my YouTube ads. Titled “Born Fighter,” the video presents Gottheimer boxing Donald Trump, portraying the aspiring governor as a warrior ready to fight for New Jersey.
“He’s a born fighter,” the narrator says in a disturbingly chad voice.
Well, seeing this ad over and over again has been making me feel like a born hater. The first time I was exposed to this video (those were the good times), I couldn’t believe my eyes. Above a white caption that read “AI Generated Imagery,” the screen projected a pair of bulging eyes that I couldn’t identify, and certainly did not want to. Then, the video transitioned to show the full upper form of the figure—a child Gottheimer with boxing gloves staring down into my soul.
I have never felt so much horror at the sight of a child since the Grady sisters in The Shining. Now, although an AI enactment of a kid is bound to look uncanny, this one truly exceeds expectations. The black shadow over AI Gottheimer, as well as the eerie smile on his face, is something that I look for in a horror film, not an ad. The pixelated texture of the face and the black and white color scheme of the ad especially contribute to this unnatural appearance, which can make 18-year-olds spam their friends in horror (not that I did that).
Yet, despite all of its disturbing imagery, I wouldn’t have held the personal contempt I have for this ad if it had not been shoved into my face every five seconds I wanted to watch a video. Without any exaggeration, I have been seeing this ad more than many of my own family members. Unfortunately, it’s a highly unpleasant experience—looking into the eyes of AI Gottheimer is the last thing I’d want to do at any time of the day.
Well, it turns out there was a reason the born fighter kept challenging me to a staring match. According to The Jersey Vindicator, Gottheimer has spent “more than 10% of [his] public-funded office budget on ads days after announcing [his] run for New Jersey governor,” which “exceeds even the combined advertising expenditures of all 11 other members of the New Jersey delegation.” Knowing the amount of money invested certainly puts the incessant advertisement into context. However, it also makes me raise my eyebrows that this was the best his team could do with all that investment.
Of course, Gottheimer has other campaign ads, but this one just feels like a waste of a video. All jokes aside, I really don’t know what made his team think this was a good idea. First of all, why would he use AI in a simple campaign video? Oftentimes, the older generation seems to think that catching up with new technologies and using AI will help them connect with the young demographic, and sometimes they’re right. However, AI-generating himself into a creepy child boxer does not help Gottheimer’s cause whatsoever. Not only does it scare the viewers, but it also removes sincerity. There’s nothing that connects people more than genuine human authenticity. A video of him interacting with Jersey residents or talking in real life would have been much more effective. It might be generic, yes, but at least it’s human.
Now, I would like to emphasize that I do not have any political opinions on Gottheimer. However, it’s clear that he needs a better sense of judgment in choosing ads that are supposed to promote him. If he decides to run again, I genuinely hope his ads won’t include his AI child boxer imagery. Please, I don’t want to wake up in four years and see that terrifying pair of eyes again.
