Vicky Pattison has broken her silence on the huge backlash against her deepfake sex tape amid the upcoming release of her documentary, Vicky Pattison: My Deepfake Sex Tape.
The former Geordie Shore star, 37, promoted the upcoming Channel 4 documentary by superimposing her own face onto a performer taking part in a sex act in a fake video on X.
Vicky had aimed to highlight the struggles deepfake porn victims face in the ‘increasingly disturbing’ trend, but has left some survivors ‘deeply offended’ with the material.
And reacting to the wave of criticism she received from people who branded the move as a ‘PR stunt’, Vicky told how she questioned whether she’d made the ‘right’ decision to post it at all before explaining why she stands by her choice.
Speaking to The Sun, she explained: ‘The video itself has always been the part of the documentary I’ve wrestled with the most. So it isn’t a decision I made lightly, and it is one that I struggled with right until the end. Like, right until Sunday night I was asking – am I doing the right thing?
‘I completely understand some people might be angry and upset about what we’ve done and I in no way want to diminish that. I’d never want to trivialise victims’ feelings’.
Vicky Pattison has broken her silence on the huge backlash against her deepfake sex tape amid the upcoming release of her documentary, Vicky Pattison: My Deepfake Sex Tape
The former Geordie Shore star, 37, promoted the upcoming Channel 4 documentary by superimposing her own face onto a performer taking part in a sex act in a fake video on X
Vicky went on to say that she had the ‘privilege’ of speaking to deepfake porn survivors, with many of them agreeing that the sex tape was a ‘bold’ way to highlight the issue.
The star noted that the ‘form of abuse’ is showing no signs of slowing down, noting that she’s ‘made her peace’ with the way she’s chosen to shine a light on the problem.
Meanwhile Vicky, who tied the knot with Ercan Ramadan last summer, admitted that she couldn’t bring herself to ask her new husband to be by her side as she posted the video online last week.
While she also noted that the enormous attention she’s received for her ‘shocking’ move ‘hasn’t been very nice’ for her family.
She explained: ‘I don’t think this is how we pictured the first six months of our marriage. Ercan was there for me a lot. He features in the documentary but he had his limits, so I was mindful of that. This was my decision alone. I was aware there’s only so much I can ask the people who love me to do. So I sat there by myself.’
Deepfake porn is the latest in a long line of methods of sexual abuse of women online.
Vicky directed and produced the deepfake porn footage of herself and released the video on social media to show the way the content spreads online and how these images and videos are taken down.
In her own video, to ensure that the production of it was fully consensual, her likeness in the video was portrayed by an actor, with AI technology used to insert Vicky’s face.
Reacting to the wave of criticism she received from people who branded the move as a ‘PR stunt’, Vicky told how she questioned whether she’d made the ‘right’ decision to post it at all before explaining why she stands by her choice
‘It isn’t a decision I made lightly, and it is one that I struggled with right until the end. Like, right until Sunday night I was asking – am I doing the right thing? ‘
‘I completely understand some people might be angry and upset about what we’ve done and I in no way want to diminish that. I’d never want to trivialise victims’ feelings’
A deepfake victim called the footage ‘disrespectful’ and said they were ‘deeply offended’ by it
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Vicky Pattison is criticised for creating 'deeply disrespectful' deepfake sex tape
The clip appeared to show Vicky engaged in a sex act with a man while first wearing a bra and then later, topless.
In her interview, Vicky went on to add that she couldn’t ‘compare my experience’ to the victims, adding that in no way did she want to ‘diminish’ what they’ve been through.
She went on to express her hope that they watch her documentary if it’s not ‘too distressing’ so that they can see that her film is ‘so much more’ that the sex tape made to promote it.
Ahead of the release of her sex tape, Vicky said: ‘I am hugely passionate about women’s issues, and have found myself increasingly disturbed by how prevalent the problem of deepfake porn is becoming.
‘This is just the latest trend in the abuse of women and having met some of the inspirational women who have put their lives back together after being victims of sexually explicit deepfake abuse, I feel more strongly than ever that we need to stand with these women and continue to put pressure on the greater powers within the government to catch up with the speed at which this technology is advancing.’
She continued: ‘As part of the documentary, I have made the challenging decision to release my own deepfake sex tape online, which I directed and produced with actors to ensure the process was fully consensual from start to finish.
‘I wrestled with this decision for a long time, mulling over the permanence of it, and ultimately coming to accept the fact that this content may live online forever.
‘Whilst I know this doesn’t compare to the distress and horror actual victims feel when they discover this content of themselves, I hope it will give some insight into what they go through.’
Meanwhile Vicky, who tied the knot with Ercan Ramadan last summer, admitted that she couldn’t bring herself to ask her new husband to be by her side as she posted the video online last week
‘I don’t think this is how we pictured the first six months of our marriage. Ercan was there for me a lot. He features in the documentary but he had his limits, so I was mindful of that’
She added that she wanted the documentary to raise awareness about the problem and encourage lawmakers and tech companies to ‘provide stronger protections’ to victims.
Earlier this week, a deepfake image abuse survivor named Jodie criticised Vicky’s choice to create the porn video and claimed campaign groups ‘strongly advised’ against the idea.
‘As a survivor of synthetic intimate image abuse, I feel deeply offended, let down, and disappointed by Channel 4’s decision to create and distribute a “deepfake” video of Vicky Pattison for her upcoming documentary,’ she told The Sun.
‘Survivor organisations, including those I work with, strongly advised against this approach, warning it could compromise her safety, increase traffic to the very websites profiting from non-consensual abuse, and undermine the fight for survivor-centered legislation.
‘We have been campaigning tirelessly for a consent-based law to criminalise deepfake abuse, but this PR stunt fuels harmful narratives.’
In her interview, Vicky went on to add that she couldn’t ‘compare my experience’ to the victims, adding that in no way did she want to ‘diminish’ what they’ve been through
A Channel 4 spokesperson said: ‘This documentary hears directly from survivors of image-based abuse, to ensure that their stories are an important focus of the programme.
‘The reality of deepfake abuse is an alarming and growing one, and this documentary, and the creation of Vicky’s consensual deepfake video, aims to tackle this issue.
‘This comes at a crucial time when it is at the forefront of national conversation and the government is currently looking at legislation to address the deliberate exploitation of women online.
‘Channel 4 has a long history of complex and challenging programming, and has a remit to explore difficult topics.’
Vicky Pattison: My Deepfake Sex Tape will be available to watch and stream on Channel 4 at 10pm on Tuesday 28th January.