Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign event.
The slowed-down clip is eight seconds longer than the original. Image by Morry Gash/AP PHOTO

Video manipulated to make Kamala Harris slur her words

David Williams September 24, 2024
WHAT WAS CLAIMED

Kamala Harris slurred her words when speaking at an event.

OUR VERDICT

False. The video has been slowed down to make it appear is if she slurred her words.

AAP FACTCHECK – US Vice President Kamala Harris has been captured slurring her words at an event in Georgia, videos on social media appear to show.

This is false. The clip has been slowed down to make it appear that Ms Harris is drunk.

The clip appears in Facebook posts, with the text “Looks like she’s never too far from her favorite bottle!” suggesting Ms Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, had been drinking alcohol before giving the speech.

In the post, Ms Harris begins with the words “On the other side are my … you know, the other folks, Trump and his running mate” and ends with “Let’s break that down”, repeated three times.

One of the Facebook posts spreading the altered video.
 The manipulated clip is doing the rounds on social media. 

This clip goes for about 31 seconds, in which Ms Harris appears to falter as her voice deepens and slows.

But a comparison with news footage from the event reveals the social media version has been manipulated.

US news network ABC posted a 22-minute video on YouTube of Ms Harris speaking at a September 20 campaign rally in Georgia.

The relevant section can be seen from the nine minute 43 second mark, where Ms Harris begins with the same words: “On the other side are my … you know, the other folks, Trump and his running mate.”

It ends with the thrice repeated “Let’s break that down” at the 10:06 mark.

The genuine portion of the footage lasts 23 seconds, not 31 seconds.

That’s a total of 23 seconds, compared to the 31-second clip showing the same section of footage in the social media post.

The post has lengthened the clip by about eight seconds by slowing it down.

In the original ABC News footage, Ms Harris can be seen tripping over her words slightly.

But the section that’s made to look like she’s slurring her speech appears to be Ms Harris doing an impression of Republican candidate Donald Trump, deepening her voice to sound more like her opponent.

AFP FactCheck has also debunked the manipulated clip.

The Verdict

False – The claim is inaccurate.

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