Make a Father's Day promo image for a bagel shop with ChatGPT (it backfired)

Source checked Oct 31, 2026
Results shared
Limitations noted

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Prompt Recreated prompt

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Create a Father's Day image for my DC bagel shop's Instagram: a dad holding a bag of our bagels in front of the Washington, DC, skyline, warm and celebratory.

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ChatGPT Used in source Gemini Grok

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Before you start, ask me 1–3 short questions about the details below and wait for my answers. Once I've answered, confirm the plan in one line and run the whole task start to finish.

Goal: Make a holiday social post for my small business that looks real, fits my city and won't embarrass the brand.

Questions to ask me first:
- What's the holiday, and what's the offer or message?
- What city or neighborhood should it show, and what landmarks are correct?
- Do you have your own photos of the shop, staff or food to use?

Inputs (fill in or confirm):
- Business name and offer: [BUSINESS / OFFER]
- City and correct landmarks: [CITY / LANDMARKS]
- My own photos to build on: [PHOTOS]
- Brand colors and fonts: [BRAND]

Rules:
- Prefer my real photos, and use AI only for layout, text or light touch-ups.
- If you make an image, avoid people's hands and faces, and don't invent signs, text or landmarks.
- Write the caption separately so I can edit it.
- List every part of the image I should check before posting (hands, text, skyline, logo).

Checkpoint: Show me a draft and the checklist, and don't treat it as final until I confirm I've zoomed in and checked each item.

If you get stuck: If the image keeps getting details wrong, switch to a text-only graphic or a photo template.

Verify before you finish: Check the image against the checklist: correct skyline, readable real text, normal hands and arms.

Output: One post image, a caption and a pre-posting checklist.

Done when: I've checked every detail and the post is ready to share.

AI tool

ChatGPT

Outcome

Gina Chersevani, owner of the Buffalo & Bergen bagel shops in Washington, DC, used ChatGPT to make a Father's Day social media promotion during a hard holiday, months after the death of Chersevani's husband. Chersevani posted it without checking it closely. The image showed a man whose arm was twisted backwards holding a bag of bagels, a generic cap reading 'BAGEL PROVIDER EST. ALWAYS.' and New York skyscrapers on DC's skyline. A Reddit thread mocking the post passed 100 comments, Chersevani received hostile DMs, and the image was deleted from the shop's Instagram.

Evidence: Article or interviewA newsletter, journalist or interview account of what happened.

Known limitations

FailureThe source says the AI did not get the job done.

What went wrong: The image had obvious AI errors that weren't caught before posting, and it was deleted after online backlash.

Source

Posted: Jun 26, 2026 by Jessica Sidman (Washingtonian)
Last checked: Oct 31, 2026
Method:: How we verify

https://washingtonian.com/2026/06/26/this-bagel-shop-used-chatgpt-for-a-fathers-day-promotion-then-it-got-roasted-online/

Context: The owner was grieving and didn't review the image before posting. The article doesn't share the prompt, so the one here is a recreation.