Authorities in Philadelphia are currently probing into a collection of counterfeit political ads that depict Vice President Kamala Harris donned in an Eagles helmet, clutching a football. These adverts were placed at bus stops managed by Intersection Media within the city, prompting the firm to clarify that these ads were not authorized.
The Philadelphia Eagles have also verified that the adverts are spurious and are actively collaborating with their advertising ally to remove them. The football team clarified they had never sanctioned this ad and have not supported any candidate for the presidency.
Intersection Media communicated to NBC 10 explaining the breach, “We are aware that several of our bus shelters located in Philadelphia have been vandalized and that the paid advertising copy in each of those shelters has been replaced with an unauthorized copy. Despite having locked ad boxes to prevent the installation of unsanctioned ads by individuals outside of Intersection staff, there are instances where these locks are bypassed, and unauthorized ads are inserted.”
The Eagles responded to the falsehood, labeling the advertisements as “counterfeit political ads” and asserted their intentions to have them removed. Interestingly, the advertisements contained a genuine URL, which redirected individuals to voter resources in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, without directly mentioning Harris or any other presidential figure.
Authorities are intensifying their efforts to uncover the individuals responsible for these posters. The city confirmed that the insertion of the ads was not a result of a digital interference but an act of physically placing them in the locations. The goal is to have all fraudulent posters removed by the upcoming Tuesday morning.
With Pennsylvania poised as a pivotal battleground in the forthcoming elections, potentially swayed by a minimal margin of votes, this incident underscores the critical nature of verifying political advertisements to fend off misinformation and guarantee the integrity of the electoral process.
