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Navarro Comments On Her Social Media Posts
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Navarro Comments On Her Social Media Posts

Oh, the internet had a field day with this one! Ana Navarro, a co-host on The View and self-described "Republican" who often plays defense for Democrats, found herself at the center of a political roast after sharing what turned out to be hilariously fake information about presidential pardons. And the kicker? She blamed it all on ChatGPT.

So, here’s what happened. President Joe Biden faced a storm of criticism for issuing a pardon to his son, Hunter Biden, over the weekend—a move many saw as politically fraught. In Navarro’s rush to defend Biden against the backlash, she hopped onto X (formerly Twitter) with a list of supposed historical precedents for presidents pardoning family members. According to Navarro, Woodrow Wilson pardoned his brother-in-law Hunter deButts. Bill Clinton pardoned his brother, Roger. And Donald Trump? He apparently pardoned his daughter Ivanka’s father-in-law, Charlie Kushner, then made him ambassador to France.

But it was the Woodrow Wilson claim that set off alarm bells. "Hunter deButts"? Really? It didn’t take long for social media sleuths and journalists to call foul. Turns out, Wilson had no brother-in-law named Hunter deButts, let alone a pardon scandal involving him. In fact, the name sounds more like a lost character from a slapstick comedy than a historical figure.

Navarro’s response? She posted a screenshot showing ChatGPT as the source of her claim, paired with a few crying-laughing emojis. "Take it up with ChatGPT," she joked. But critics weren’t letting her off the hook that easily. Glenn Greenwald and others pounced, calling her out for uncritically parroting misinformation from an AI tool. T. Becket Adams, a media critic, quipped that the funniest part wasn’t the fake name but the fact that Navarro didn’t pause to Google it before broadcasting it to millions.

It didn’t help Navarro’s case that Esquire’s Charles P. Pierce fell into a similar trap this week, falsely claiming George H.W. Bush pardoned his son, Neil Bush. His column was quickly retracted, but not before the internet added it to the growing pile of media missteps.

Navarro’s reliance on ChatGPT as her "source" raises some interesting questions about the intersection of technology and media accountability. Sure, AI tools can spit out convincing-sounding claims, but isn’t it the job of commentators—especially ones with a platform as large as Navarro’s—to fact-check before hitting “post”?

Written by Arthur Higgens - December 5, 2024