Image of Trump holding a $1,300 check for hurricane relief is fake

As recovery efforts continue in areas recently battered by hurricanes Helene and Milton, an image of former president and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump went viral appearing to show him making a donation.

The image looks like a screenshot from Fox News with Trump holding a large novelty check for $1,300. The banner reads: “TRUMP DONATING $1300 FOR HURRICANE RELIEF.” Some people online are sharing the image with comparisons on how his donation ranks among other celebrities.

The image racked up more than 1 million views across social media. 

THE QUESTION

Is the image of Trump holding a $1,300 check for hurricane relief real?

THE SOURCES

• Fox News spokesperson
• Review of Fox News’ website and social media pages
• VERIFY analysis of the image
• RevEye, a reverse image search tool

THE ANSWER

No, the image of Trump holding a $1,300 check for hurricane relief isn’t real. It appears to be created with artificial Intelligence.

WHAT WE FOUND

The image claiming to be a screenshot from Fox News of former president Donald Trump holding a large novelty check is not real; it appears to have been created with generative artificial intelligence software.

Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence technology that can produce new content, such as images, videos, audio and text, based on a prompt. 

Here’s how we determined the image is fake: 

First, we searched Fox News’ website and social media and found no evidence of a story claiming Trump donated $1,300 to hurricane relief. We also contacted Fox News, and a spokesperson confirmed via email, “This did not air on Fox News.”

Then, we analyzed the image and found visual cues indicating it was AI-generated.

Often, AI tools struggle with generating realistic numbers, letters, textures and background details. The software also often creates misshapen or distorted human features.

In this case, the check doesn’t look like a real check – novelty or not. For example, the payee text doesn’t make any sense and appears to be a mix of words, reading “Trump Manie Mar MATFAL.” The logo on the check doesn’t match any of Trump’s businesses or slogans, and the same applies to the logo on his shirt. Trump’s skin and hair are also unnaturally smooth, and the palm of his hand appears to be painted white. The background on the image is also very blurry; AI tools often struggle with realistic backgrounds. 

VERIFY conducted a reverse image search of the viral image and found this Reddit post that appears to be one of the earliest instances of the image online. The Reddit post’s title says the image is a parody. The post was also shared in a subreddit known for posting manipulated or parody images of the former president.