DETROIT – President Donald Trump shared a manipulated video to his Twitter feed and it’s sparked some controversy.
The original video showed two little boys, one White and one Black running toward each other to hug. It was a moment captured by a father of one of the boys and went viral on social media last year.
The version Trump shared begins with footage of the boys running set to ominous music, with a fake misspelled CNN caption reading, “Terrified todler runs from racist baby.” It then cuts to footage from the original video of the boys running to each other and hugging. The manipulated video then reads, “America is not the problem. Fake news is.”
READ: Twitter flags Trump’s tweet of doctored ‘racist baby’ video
Maxwell and Finnegan had been made famous by the original video of them sharing a touching moment together last September.
Their parents have successfully challenged the manipulated video and gotten it taken down. Trump’s Tweet still exists, but the video is no longer viewable.
Ven Johnson, a Detroit attorney, said that he will be seeking civil and punitive damages in the tens of millions against both Trump and the person who manipulated the video.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 19, 2020