Nirosta Steel Issues Apology for Following AI Accounts

Steven Hall, the musician who performs as Nirosta Steel, has issued an apology for following the accounts of what appeared to be AI-generated child actors on the popular Chinese social media platform Xiaohongshu, also known as Red Note.On Monday, August 24, an X account with the username @simonwestgate shared a post that read, “now wtf is nirosta steel following suspicious ai shotacon accounts and random kids on xiaohongshu?????” (“Shotacon” is an Anglicized Japanese term for an attraction to or erotic depiction of underage boys.) @simonwestgate’s post included one screenshot of what appeared to be Hall’s “Following” list and another of his “Notes” section. Among the accounts Hall followed, several have profile images picturing young Asian boys—some showing the boys shirtless, many of which appear to be AI-generated. Hall’s account has since been deleted.“A few weeks ago my husband told me people on Rednote were getting into my music,” writes Hall in a statement, “so I went on to take a look and followed a bunch of accounts quickly without paying much attention to what they posted. I was really surprised when a friend sent me screenshots of accounts I followed. I did not realize th...