Thousands of people fell for a hoax around a fireworks display in Brooklyn, New York, and Birmingham, England on New Year’s Eve after AI ads popped up on social media.
Once Christmas is over and done with, New Year’s Eve is the day that everyone starts to look forward to. People have plenty of different ways to ring in the new year, too. Some want to just stay at home and follow the celebrations on television, while others want to get out and party with friends and strangers.
Fireworks are a big part of the celebrations, with massive and iconic displays taking place across the world, including in New York as the ball drops in Times Square.
This year, though, people were convinced that Brooklyn would also have their own display, with the Brooklyn Bridge being used just like the Sydney Harbor Bridge in Sydney, Australia.
Brooklyn’s New Year’s Eve fireworks don’t happen
However, that turned out to be a hoax. According to reports, thousands of people turned up for the countdown to midnight, but were disappointed when no fireworks were let off.
“Social media pages and AI-generated posts shared videos of fireworks at the Brooklyn Bridge, claiming they were for NYE. Those videos were actually from July 4th,” New Yorker Marco Abbiati explained on Instagram.
“Many of those pages are run by people who don’t live in NYC and have never experienced New Year’s Eve here. The result? Ruined plans, disappointment, and hours wasted. Social Media and AI are powerful tools, but also very dangerous if used without real local knowledge.”
New Year’s hoax also in Birmingham
This isn’t the first case of this happening, either. Over in Birmingham, England, thousands were tricked for the second year in a row into believing a huge New Year’s Eve event was going down in the city.
What was advertised as ‘the biggest NYE party’ turned out to be a dud. Hundreds of people turned up despite local police stating that no fireworks display was planned.
“Every year, rumours start to spread online about big celebrations in the city. Unfortunately, these false claims often lead to confusion and disappointment,” police said.
