Newberry City Manager Denounces AI Meme Depicting him with Infamous Child Predators
On October 16, Newberry City Manager Jordan Marlowe made a Facebook post condemning a meme made with Artificial Intelligence (AI) that depicted him sitting at a table eating pizza with convicted Newberry sex offender Joel Searby and deceased international sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The caption of the AI photo states, “We asked ChatGPT to imagine how Jordan Marlowe and Joel Searby came up with their plan to take control of an elementary school, and this is what it gave us.”
Searby was a leader in the movement to turn Newberry Elementary School into a charter school until his arrest for grooming a minor. Epstein obviously had no part in Newberry affairs, and the creator of the image appeared to add him due to his infamy for sexually abusing minors. The creator of the meme prompted the image to depict Marlowe next to Searby and Epstein even though he has never committed such crimes.
Marlowe called the meme “reprehensible” and thanked individuals who offered him support.
“I believe in the overall goodness of mankind,” Marlowe said on Facebook. “I will never let the worst examples of human behavior change my mind.”
Marlowe does not specify the contents of the meme in his statement.
The majority of individuals commenting on Marlowe’s post offered support. “The ones who made that have a mental illness,” one commenter said.
Marlowe did receive criticism from one individual, University of Florida Warrington Business College Executive Assistant Elizabeth Hauck. “Not saying [Joel Searby’s] actions reflect yours,” Hauck said, “But the fact the charter school push was led by a man who was a sex pest and pedophile taints the entire project, and always will for many. Your choice to work with the man (even not knowing his behavior) will always hang heavy over this topic, and some will always paint you with that brush. You will have to accept that.”
Marlowe responded, “The charter school effort was led by parents in our community. [Joel Searby] was a spokesperson. Those parents separated from him immediately. I would not disparage the [Alachua County School Board] for all of the people they have worked with [who have] similar issues, even when they have not taken immediate action. If you hold this position, then, I am sure you would hold the [Alachua County School Board] accountable for everything that has happened at Santa Fe, and all five of those Board members will forever be tainted by that association.”
The Alachua County School Board was sued last year for not properly handling sexual assault incidents committed by Santa Fe High School baseball coach Travis Yeckring, who has not been criminally charged.
The primary evidence concealers named in the lawsuit were Santa Fe High School administrators Timothy Wright and David Rendek, along with the school’s athletic director, Michele Faulk. The lawsuit failed in court in the school board's favor, however, Wright, Rendek and Faulk began facing criminal cases a few months after the judge's dismissal. The trio has not been arrested, with no warrants issued. They, along with Yeckring, remain on administrative leave.
The AI meme appears to have originated from the Facebook account Gainesville Non-Partisan Dank Meme Stash. The account no longer has the photo on their page, but they have many memes that are a similar style, and a post that appears to be a response to Marlowe’s statements, saying, “We are not sure why a photo of someone eating pizza with Anthony Bourdain is offensive.”
Epstein may bear a resemblance to Bourdain; however, the photo clearly depicts Epstein.
