Fact Check: Ukrainian Flag On Statue Of Liberty? No, Viral Video Is AI-Generated

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<h2 style=”margin: 0; padding: 10px;”>The Verdict [Fake]</h2>
<p>The viral clip, created with Open AI’s Sora, was first uploaded on TikTok with an AI label. No credible reports confirm the Ukrainian flag was raised.</p>
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<h3><strong>What’s the claim?</strong></h3>
<p>Several social media users on X and Threads have shared a video that appears to show the Ukrainian flag being raised on the torch of the Statue of Liberty in New York City, United States. The 10-second video posted on Threads consists of two drone-shot clips. In the first, a person wearing a high-visibility vest is seen attaching the flag to the torch. The second shows a small group of individuals in high-visibility vests and construction helmets standing on the torch while the flag flies.</p>
<p>On X, users have shared a zoomed-in, three-second version of the first clip. Archive links to these posts are available <a title=”here” href=”https://archive.ph/KgNhT” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>here</a>, <a title=”here” href=”https://archive.ph/BOrjX” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>here</a>, <a title=”here” href=”https://archive.ph/9vFsh” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>here</a>, and <a title=”here” href=”https://archive.ph/Cyngi” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>here</a>.</p>
<figure class=”image”><img src=”https://feeds.abplive.com/onecms/images/uploaded-images/2025/03/04/1c9248f93748af5231614601ed3a77eb1741112247080236_original.jpg” alt=” Screenshots of X and Threads posts claiming to show a video of the Ukrainian flag being hoisted on the Statue of Liberty’s torch in New York city. (Source: X/Threads/Modified by Logically Facts)” width=”720″ />
<figcaption>Screenshots of X and Threads posts claiming to show a video of the Ukrainian flag being hoisted on the Statue of Liberty’s torch in New York city. (Source: X/Threads/Modified by Logically Facts)</figcaption>
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<p>However, the video was likely created using artificial intelligence (AI). There are no reports or official records of the Ukrainian flag being raised on the Statue of Liberty.</p>
<h3><strong>What did we find?</strong></h3>
<p>We found no reports confirming that the Ukrainian flag was hoisted on the Statue of Liberty. The National Park Service, which manages the monument, has made no <a title=”announcements or statements” href=”https://www.nps.gov/stli/index.htm” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>announcements or statements</a> regarding such an event.</p>
<p>We also reviewed live webcam <a title=”footage” href=”https://www.earthcam.com/usa/newyork/statueofliberty/?cam=liberty_torch#google_vignette” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>footage</a> from EarthCam, which monitors the statue, and found no frames showing the Ukrainian flag on the torch.</p>
<p>Additionally, the full version of the video shared on Threads contains a ‘Sora’ watermark in the bottom right corner, indicating it was created using OpenAI&rsquo;s text-to-video model, <a title=”Sora” href=”https://sora.com/login?next=%2Flibrary” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>Sora</a>. The shorter versions shared on X do not display the watermark, as they have been zoomed in to crop it out.</p>
<figure class=”image”><img src=”https://feeds.abplive.com/onecms/images/uploaded-images/2025/03/04/21917876ee791e26e63656d6fe5399521741112171386236_original.jpg” alt=”There is a Sora watermark on the bottom right of the full video shared on Threads, indicating that it was made with the text to video AI generator. (Source: Threads/Modified by Logically Facts)” width=”720″ />
<figcaption>There is a Sora watermark on the bottom right of the full video shared on Threads, indicating that it was made with the text to video AI generator. (Source: Threads/Modified by Logically Facts)</figcaption>
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<h3><strong>Tracing the video&rsquo;s origin</strong></h3>
<p>A reverse image search of keyframes from the video led us to its earliest known upload, a <a href=”https://www.tiktok.com/@saxotomde/video/7477205616163818774″>TikTok</a> post from March 3, 2025 (archived <a title=”here” href=”https://archive.ph/5JtEt” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>here</a>). The post was labeled ‘AI-generated,’ and its caption read: “The AI video opens with a sweeping aerial view of the Statue of Liberty, standing majestically against the backdrop of a clear blue sky.” Hashtags such as ‘#aivideo’ and ‘#sora’ further suggest it was AI-generated.</p>
<figure class=”image”><img src=”https://feeds.abplive.com/onecms/images/uploaded-images/2025/03/04/86f016c9fa51368ae08a2af115d37ef41741112070067236_original.jpg” alt=”A screenshot of the video was shared on TikTok, and the caption specifies that it was made with AI. (Source: TikTok/Modified by Logically Facts)” width=”720″ />
<figcaption>A screenshot of the video was shared on TikTok, and the caption specifies that it was made with AI. (Source: TikTok/Modified by Logically Facts)</figcaption>
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<p>The same TikTok user also shared a photo <a href=”https://www.tiktok.com/@saxotomde/photo/7477860561187818774″>collage</a> on March 4, 2025 (archived <a title=”here” href=”https://archive.ph/MVamP” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>here</a>), explaining how to generate similar flag videos using Sora.</p>
<p>The Misinformation Combat Alliance’s <a title=”Deepfakes Analysis Unit” href=”https://www.dau.mcaindia.in” target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>Deepfakes Analysis Unit</a>&nbsp;(DAU), which Logically Facts is a part of, also analyzed the video using deepfake detection tools Hive AI Image Classifier and WasItAI:</p>
<p>- Hive AI Image Classifier assigned a 0.30 score to Sora at the seven-second mark, suggesting AI involvement.</p>
<p>- WasItAI detected a “chance that this image or parts of it were created by AI” in a keyframe from the first clip.&nbsp;</p>
<figure class=”image”><img src=”https://feeds.abplive.com/onecms/images/uploaded-images/2025/03/04/29e381a3450635afb27a7f3254ea7af91741112023182236_original.jpg” alt=”The Hive AI Image Classifier and WasItAI both found chances of the video or keyframes from it to be created by AI or have parts created by AI. (Source: Hive AI Image Classifier/WasItAI/Modified by Logically Facts)” width=”720″ />
<figcaption>The Hive AI Image Classifier and WasItAI both found chances of the video or keyframes from it to be created by AI or have parts created by AI. (Source: Hive AI Image Classifier/WasItAI/Modified by Logically Facts)</figcaption>
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<h3><strong>The verdict</strong></h3>
<p>The video is AI-generated and contains a watermark from Sora, OpenAI&rsquo;s text-to-video model. There are no credible reports or visual evidence supporting the claim that the Ukrainian flag was raised on the Statue of Liberty.</p>
<p><strong><em>This report first appeared on <a href=”https://www.logicallyfacts.com/en/fact-check/ai-video-ukrainian-flag-statue-of-liberty-torch-new-york” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>logicallyfacts.com</a>, and has been republished on ABP Live as part of a special arrangement. Apart from the headline, no changes have been made in the report by ABP Live.</em></strong></p>