(ZENIT News / Rome, 05.26.2025).- YouTube has removed a channel that amassed nearly a million views by publishing sermons supposedly delivered by Pope Leo XIV—sermons he never gave.
The channel, titled «Sermons of Pope Leo XIV,» had gained a following of almost 18,000 subscribers before it was taken offline on May 21. Each of its 26 videos featured AI-generated texts delivered in a synthetic voice crafted to sound like the newly elected pontiff. While some scripts loosely drew inspiration from actual addresses, none were authentic papal messages.
Jack Malon, a spokesperson for YouTube, confirmed the takedown in comments to Aleteia. “We terminated the channel in question for violating our policies on spam, deceptive practices, and scams,” he said, noting that additional channels operated by the same creator were also removed. YouTube declined to identify those additional channels but emphasized that attempts to bypass bans by creating new accounts would be met with further enforcement.
The now-defunct channel had clearly struck a chord with unsuspecting viewers. Despite a disclaimer embedded by YouTube warning that the content had been digitally manipulated or generated, many comments revealed that users took the messages at face value.
One user wrote: “Wow! Our Holy Father speaks such powerful, challenging truth! God bless him!” Another said: “Thank you for a sermon we all need to hear if we truly want to follow Christ. I haven’t heard a message like this in years. God bless our Pope. Amen.”
The most viewed video, titled “THE POPE AWAKENS: URGENT CALL TO ALL TRUE CHRISTIANS || ADDRESS BY POPE LEO XIV,” had drawn close to 330,000 views within just over a week. It featured a passionate plea, voiced by AI, urging Christians to return to authentic discipleship—a message many found stirring, even though it had never come from the Vatican.
The phenomenon underscores the increasingly complex challenges faced by digital platforms in an age when artificial intelligence can convincingly replicate public figures, including religious leaders. In the post-truth era, the boundary between reality and simulation is becoming harder to police, especially when deepfakes tap into the emotional and spiritual needs of believers.
YouTube’s action reflects a broader effort by tech companies to address misinformation generated by AI, particularly when it impersonates authority figures.
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