ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — DISLCAIMER: This story covers a sensitive subject matter. Viewer discretion is advised.
An Asheville-area drag queen is speaking out after being featured in a political attack ad targeting Democratic Congressional candidate Jamie Ager, saying the scenes depicted in the ad were fabricated using artificial intelligence.
Nova, the Asheville drag queen featured in the 30-second ad, said she was caught off guard when she learned about the spot, which was created by Republican Congressional candidate Jennifer Balkcom’s campaign.
The ad depicts Ager at a barn dance with drag performers and includes the line, “Jamie Ager talks like you and me on TV, but he’s dancing with they/them.”
Nova said the scenario shown in the ad never happened. She said she has never even met the Democratic candidate.
“None of it was real,” Nova said. “I’ve never met the man in my life. I’m going to be honest with you: I’ve never been to a barn dance in my life.”
Nova said Balkcom’s campaign did not contact her before being featured in the ad. She also expressed concern about the message she believes the spot sends about the LGBTQ community in western North Carolina.
KNOW YOUR CANDIDATE: JAMIE AGER FOR NORTH CAROLINA’S 11TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT
“It’s just hurtful towards an entire community of people, and it’s not just us in the ads that are mad,” Nova said. “It’s the entire LGBTQ in western North Carolina.”
Nova said she believes the ad reinforces the stereotype that drag performers are attempting to indoctrinate children.
“I feel like they are mocking the community. I think this idea that drag queens want to indoctrinate children is a huge aspect of this, and that is simply not the truth,” she said.
Ager’s campaign also criticized the ad, accusing Balkcom of using artificial intelligence to create misleading political attacks.
“Our opponent is attacking Jamie with 100% fake, AI-generated ads. She can’t win on the truth, so she is using AI to lie. It’s insulting to the intelligence of voters in western North Carolina and another example of the exact corrupt system he is running against. Jamie got into this race because we can and must do politics better,” Ager’s campaign said in a statement.
Nova said she has issued a cease-and-desist letter to Balkcom’s campaign. As of the time of her interview, Nova said she had not received a response. When asked whether the campaign had responded to her request, Nova said, “They have not.”
Balkcom’s campaign confirmed that it paid for the ad and produced it in coordination with the campaign.
KNOW YOUR CANDIDATE: JENNIFER BALKCOM FOR NORTH CAROLINA’S 11TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT
When contacted for comment, Balkcom’s team declined to provide an on-camera interview but issued the following statement:
“Liberal Jamie Ager is sending his left-wing army to attack his political opponents after being exposed for hosting events exposing young children to inappropriate performances from individuals like Sister Domina Trix and Sister Helen Bedd. Ager owes North Carolina voters answers for why he’s trying to push sexualized performers onto kids.”
The campaign’s statement accuses Ager of hosting events involving performances it considers inappropriate for children. Nova, meanwhile, disputes the depiction of events in the advertisement and says the use of AI to create the scenes raises concerns about how drag performers and the LGBTQ community are portrayed in political messaging.
The controversy also raises questions about the use of artificial intelligence in political advertising. Currently, North Carolina has no broadly enacted law requiring disclosure of AI use in political advertisements.
Nova said she believes the issue extends beyond whether a political ad is legally permissible.
“We teeter that line of when is it okay just because it’s legal, and when are y’all going to start creating other preposterous storylines about gay people to fit into your narrative,” she said.