On April 25, 2024, a former Pikesville High School employee was arrested and charged with using artificial intelligence to fake this racist, antisemitic recording. Read this update here.
Pikesville High School’s principal is under fire for a leaked recording of a racist, antisemitic rant that was recently posted to social media. But his union claims this recording is nothing more than a product of AI generation.
The recording was first shared by the Instagram account murder_ink_bmore on Wednesday, Jan. 17, and contains audio of a man purported to be Pikesville High School principal Eric Eiswert complaining about the test performances of Black students and complaints from Jewish families. The video’s caption also alleged that Eiswert had been accused of similar behavior during his time working at Catonsville High School.
The person in the recording refers to “ungrateful Black kids who can’t test their way out of a paper bag,” as well as saying “If I have to get one more complaint from one more Jew in this community, I’m going to join the other side.”
Baltimore County Public Schools is currently investigating the legitimacy of the recording and how to proceed in the case that it is real.
“These statements are deeply disturbing and do not reflect the core values of our school system,” said Superintendent Myriam Rogers in a statement released by BCPS. “Although BCPS cannot confirm the veracity of this recording at this time, we are taking this matter seriously and have launched an investigation. Once we have determined the facts, we will swiftly address this incident.”
Both Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski and Baltimore County Council Chairman Izzy Patoka said they are also looking into the situation, with Olszewski stating that BCPS has his full support as they investigate.
“Hate, discrimination and prejudice have no place in our community — especially in our schools,” Olszewski said in an official statement.
Billy Burke, executive director of the Council of Administrative and Supervisory Employees (CASE), has other ideas. The head of the Baltimore County administrators’ union stated that he believes the recording was produced through AI generation, citing its lack of background noise.
“The outrageous language in the audio is not the language, thoughts or character of Principal Eiswert. He is an outstanding school leader who has daily demonstrated his commitment to the students, community and faculty of Pikesville HS,” Burke said in a statement, adding that he fully supports BCPS’s investigation. “We ask that there be a pause in any rush to judgment, and that we act respectfully to his family, staff, and to each other. Let this be a reminder that hate has no place.”
