Watch: Trump defends AI-generated image of Pope, says ‘Catholics loved it’

When a reporter asked Trump that some Catholics were offended by the AI-generated image of Pope, the president said it was posted on his Truth Social account as a joke.

By: Express Web Desk

May 6, 2025 07:11 AM IST

2 min read

Trump attended Pope Francis’ funeral on April 26 at St. Peter’s Square in Rome. (Photo: @realDonaldTrump / Truth Social)

US President Donald Trump on Monday dismissed the criticism and backlash against an AI-generated image of him as Pope, which was posted on his social media account and reposted by White House account as the president said it was a harmless joke.

When a reporter asked Trump that some Catholics were offended by the AI-generated image of Pope, the president said it was posted on his Truth Social account as a joke. “I had nothing to do with it. It was just, somebody did it for fun. It’s fine. Have to have a little fun don’t you?” Trump said.

Trump downplayed the effect of the image and said that “Oh, they can’t take a joke,” and then criticized the “fake news media”. Trump insisted that the image, which was first posted on his social media account on Friday, was seen by him on Sunday evening.

Taking further potshots at the AI-generated image, Trump said “I have no idea where it came from. Maybe it was AI. But I know nothing about it. I just saw it last evening. Actually my wife thought it was cute. She said, isn’t that nice?”

Trump stated on Monday that “Catholics loved it” though Italy’s former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said it was “an image that offends believers, insults institutions and shows that the leader of the global right enjoys being a clown,” Reuters reported.

Even the Archbishop of New York, Timothy Dolan, who was recommended by Trump last week for papacy, expressed his dismay over the AI-generated image of the US president. The New York State Catholic Conference also expressed disappointment over the image.

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