AI-generated videos depicting scenes of urban decay in UK cities are spreading rapidly on social media, racking up millions of views and shaping public perception in ways that don’t match everyday experience.
Creators of the content combine imagery of disused public spaces with crowds of people in balaclavas. One clip purports to show “roadmen in Parliament” and reached eight million views in a single day.
The originator of the trend, who goes by the handle RadialB and says he is in his 20s from north-west England, explains the logic plainly: “If people saw it and they immediately knew it was fake, then they would just scroll.” His aim, he says, is to make content that engages viewers, not to educate them.
This choice reflects a wider friction most of us recognise. When a product or advert promises something sensational, engagement rises — even if the underlying claim is untrue. In the workplace, leaders face similar incentives: choose the narrative that gets attention, or choose the signal that builds trust. RadialB’s content prioritises engagement.
The impact extends beyond entertainment. Researchers tracking the spread of these videos found they fit into a broader pattern of “decline narratives” online — portrayals of Western cities as overrun by crime and disorder.
Platforms label some videos as “AI-generated” or “synthetic media”. Yet labels do little to curb the reach when audiences treat the images as reality. This disconnect reveals a gap between policy intentions and real-world behaviour. Tools that flag content matter less if viewers don’t understand what those labels signify.
People who live in the cities depicted push back against these portrayals. One resident of Croydon said the trend falsely casts her neighbourhood as “ghetto”, worrying that viewers “think this is real life”. That reaction echoes what professionals encounter when a brand’s external narrative diverges sharply from customer experience: trust erodes.
The rapid rise of this content also reflects how easily improved AI tools lower barriers to creating convincing, fabricated media. In everyday work, we’re familiar with tools that accelerate output — but without guardrails, speed can outpace accuracy.
Is it enough for platforms to rely on labels and policies while misinformation thrives? If regulators and tech firms fail to keep up with the pace of AI content creation, these deepfakes could continue to shape narratives about safety, investment and civic pride — not through evidence, but through spectacle.
Author: Pishon Yip