My Deepfake Nightmare
From The Modern Mann by Olly Mann
April 10, 2026 · 1h 41m · Season 17 · Episode 4
About this episode
Cheryl Bennett shares her harrowing experience of being a victim of a deepfake that ruined her life, while also discussing the implications of prediction betting.
Cheryl Bennett doesn’t follow politics. But when her colleague said he was standing in local elections, she agreed to help deliver leaflets. Within days, doorbell video footage was circulating online, in which Cheryl could be seen calling prospective voters “f***ing P***s”. Cheryl had never said such words, but wasn’t sure anyone believed her. After being posted by an independent candidate for West Midlands mayor - ‘TikTok lawyer’ Akhmed Yakoob - the deepfake went viral, receiving over two million views across TikTok, Facebook and X. Cheryl was sent death threats. Police were sent to her house to arrest her. She was forced into hiding. Her career as a PE teacher was put on hold. And, even after the video was proven to be an AI distortion, she is still feeling the consequences years later. In her first podcast interview, Cheryl tells Olly how her world turned upside down - all because she did a favour for a friend… Content warning: racist language, suicidal ideation. _____________ Meanwhile, in the Zeitgeist, Ollie Peart investigates the trend for prediction betting - in which users buy and sell "Yes/No" shares on a variety of weird and wonderful real-world outcomes. How much…
People in this episode
Hosts: Olly Mann, Ollie Peart, Alix Fox
Guest: Cheryl Bennett
Topics covered
- deepfake technology
- politics
- online harassment
- prediction betting
- personal trauma
- AI distortion
- grief and libido
Keywords
- deepfake
- politics
- harassment
- AI
- prediction betting
- personal trauma
- grief
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: TikTok, Facebook
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