White Influencer Faces Backlash for Posting AI Image Placing Her Face on a Black Creator’s Body
White Influencer Lauren Blake Boultier used AI to place her face on a photo of Black influencer Tatiana Elizabeth, according to People Magazine. The image was a 2-year-old photo of Elizabeth at the US Open. Boultier shared the image to her 1.6 million followers last month, leading them to believe she attended the Miami Open.
Social media users started to notice that the image belonged to Elizabeth. On March 30, Elizabeth posted a screenshot of Bouliter’s photo next to her original on threads. The image showed that Boultier was wearing the same clothes as Elizabeth, in the same pose and with the same background.
“The weirdest part about this is that it’s not even an AI influencer. This is a real person who used AI to put her head on my body. She geotagged MIAMI as if she’s at the Miami Open. When my photo was taken at the US open two years ago,” Elizabeth said on Threads.
Influencers using AI for content
Boultier addressed the controversy in an interview with TMZ. “That shouldn’t have happened, and I take full responsibility.” She told TMZ that the image came from an AI content system that her team uses to create images. “I did not see the original image or intentionally set out to copy anyone’s work, but that doesn’t change the outcome.”
“I understand this impacted another creator, especially when it comes to respecting original work, and I never want to contribute to that kind of frustration or harm within the creative community that I have been a part of for 10 years.”
Boultier has now deleted the post and intends to be more intentional about the content she posts on her social media.
The influencer pay gap
Elizabeth responded to Boultier’s apology, stating, “I don’t think it’s coming from a sincere place. “I think she just wants the situation to blow over and to get back to scheduled programming.” She added that Serena Williams personally invited Elizabeth to the US Open.
“That was a very exciting experience for me, and I think that historically, Black women have been copied, we’ve been used as an inspo, all these things, and we don’t get our due respect or our credit,” Elizabeth said. Black influencers earn 34.04% less than white influencers, according to a report by Sevensix agency.
Hopefully, this incident will highlight how hard Black influencers work to secure the same opportunities as White influencers and prompt change.
Image: Tatiana Elizabeth
