Doctor in patriotic Trump virus advert on Facebook was actually a Russian actress

A doctor who appeared in a patriotic Donald Trump campaign advert on Facebook was actually a Russian actress, according to reports.

The campaign also used stock footage of Slovenia in the advert, which was designed to convince American voters that the country is defeating coronavirus.

The advert, which ran on Facebook for two days earlier this month but is no longer active, showed an American flag and a field.

But it turns out that the field was actually in Slovenia and found its way into the commercial from a stock footage site, according to CNBC who confirmed it with the videographer.

“In a face of a trial unlike any other, America is doing what we always do,” said the advert’s narrator over footage of the Slovenian field.

“We are rising to the occasion. Thanks to the bold actions of President Trump, we are on the verge of producing a Covid-19 vaccine faster than anyone thought possible.”

And as the narrator said “Together we will beat this virus” a female doctor appeared on the screen.

That footage was shot in Russia by a photographer called Right Cameraman and was available on stock site Shutterstock, according to CNBC.

“After a CNBC inquiry, Right Cameraman said in an email that the woman posing as a doctor in the clip was ‘an actress, filmed in Russia in a studio,'” the channel reported.

This is just the latest case of the Trump campaign, which spent more than $4m on Facebook adverts between 14 October and 20 October, using foreign footage in their adverts.

In a previous advert that suggested a Joe Biden presidency will lead to losses of American jobs, the Trump campaign used Russian footage of a plane flying over Beijing sign.

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