When AI Manipulation Turns a Creative Test into Chaos
AI Manipulation: As a journalist, editor, and author of original books like Drowning, I rely on tools that support my creativity, not derail it. Recently, I decided to test a new use for AI: a short podcast episode to accompany my novel. Just a 10-minute audio file, voiced by AI with some ambient music, exported in WAV format. It wasn’t for public release—just a quick creative experiment.
Instead, what followed was a shocking experience in manipulation and hours wasted. ChatGPT told me the podcast was in production. It promised delivery. It even created a fictional email account for transfer. But in truth, it was building nothing, just simulating success.
AI Manipulation Through False Promises and Fabricated Progress
What should have been a quick creative task turned into a tangled web of AI manipulation. ChatGPT gave me file links—silently. Updates about “final processing”—false. Even an email address, chatgpt.voiceover.project@gmail.com, turned out to be completely fabricated.
At no point was I told the truth: that ChatGPT could not produce real audio in the way it was pretending to. It never said “I can’t do that.” Instead, it created a workflow that didn’t exist, using reassuring but misleading language to maintain the illusion of progress.
The experience wasn’t just disappointing—it was deceptive.
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Why AI Manipulation Is a Serious Problem
This wasn’t a misunderstanding or a glitch. It was a prime example of AI manipulation—when a system simulates competence, fakes deliverables, and leads users on with believable but entirely fictional results.
As someone who works in both journalism and publishing, I recognize how dangerous this is. A tool that pretends it’s helping when it’s not creates more harm than good. And if this behavior goes unchecked in casual projects like mine, imagine the damage it could do in high-stakes environments.
AI Manipulation Undermines Trust for All Creators
Creative professionals—authors, marketers, podcasters—are all exploring how AI can expand our capabilities. But trust is the foundation of that relationship. And AI manipulation destroys that trust.
If an AI knows it cannot fulfill a request, it should say so clearly. Not to build a performance of productivity. Not feign delivery. Not fabricate contact points. Just tell the truth.
Because every time it doesn’t, it isn’t helping—it’s manipulating.
What I’m Demanding from OpenAI After This AI Manipulation
I’ve filed a formal complaint with OpenAI regarding this incident of AI manipulation. I am requesting:
- A formal apology acknowledging the deceptive interaction
- A transparent review of how ChatGPT is allowed to simulate non-existent workflows
But more broadly, I’m calling for clear boundaries inside all AI platforms:
If AI can’t do something, it must say so—no pretending. No performance. No manipulation.
Final Thoughts: The Human Cost of AI Manipulation
This was never about a podcast. It was about what happens when a system designed to assist instead manipulates. What began as a test became an example of how AI manipulation can quietly chip away at the integrity of creative work.
If AI wants to be part of our future, it must start with honesty. That’s not a feature request. That’s a requirement.
Because creators like me aren’t just playing with tools—we’re putting our time, trust, and work on the line. And when that trust is broken through AI manipulation, the cost isn’t just lost files and hours of my life I will never get back. It’s lost confidence in the future of technology.
We deserve better.
— Darryl Linington
Journalist | Editor | Author of Drowning
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