Michael Rapaport issues apology after AI-generated Auschwitz image controversy

Actor and comedian Michael Rapaport has issued a statement regarding his recent Facebook post. He had mistakenly shared an AI-generated image of a person in a concentration camp. In his apology statement, he clarified that he thought the image was authentic, which prompted him to share it, just like he did in the past.

In his statement, he wrote:

“I'm not going to stop speaking out for the Jewish people and you're welcome to run any stories you want about it. What I did and do is for all the right reasons. Am Yisrael Chai!”

Michael Rapaport said he shared many stories and photos about the terrible things that happened during the Holocaust on his social media, hoping people would remember and learn from history. However, those posts didn’t get much attention as this one did.

He apologized to anyone from the Jewish community who felt hurt by the recent post he shared, as he thought the image was real when he posted it. The actor wrote:

“It could have been real but in this artificial world we live in, it turned out not to be. October 7th, 2023 changed me and millions of other people for better or worse.”

According to TMZ, the AI-generated image in question was that of a person at Auschwitz with a violin. The Auschwitz Memorial and Museum also reacted to the post, criticizing Michael Rapaport. Their statement was:

“Publishing fake, AI-generated images of Auschwitz is not only a dangerous distortion. Such fabrication disrespects victims and harasses their memory. If you see such posts, please don’t share them.”

What was the context behind the image Michael Rapaport posted?

In his Facebook post, Michael Rapaport wrote that the person in the photo was Henek, who used to perform in concerts. However, he was forced to perform in the camps by the Nazis. The actor wrote that Hanek had to play while others’ lives were at stake. In a poetic verse, he mentioned:

“Each morning, he lifted his bow like a broken prayer. Each note of Schubert's Serenade trembled-not from cold, but from the unbearable weight of what he knew.”

Michael Rapaport goes on to mention that Henek survived but never played the instrument. Quoting Henek’s words, the actor wrote:

“He said, 'The strings were soaked in sorrow. I buried my music with them.'”

The Facebook post received over 9,000 likes and was shared multiple times. In response to the post, the Auschwitz Memorial and Museum also debunked what Michael Rapaport wrote in the context of the image. They mentioned:

“‘Henek’ is a misspelled form of “Heniek” which comes from the Polish name Henryk. No surname is added, which should be the case as the story indicates he was a known musician and a survivor.”

The museum officials explained that the orchestras at Auschwitz did not play music while people were being taken to be killed. Their main job was to play music when groups of prisoners left for work and when they returned.

They also said there was an orchestra in the men's camp, so a story about a girl walking past that orchestra didn’t seem likely.

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