Voices of the dead: shooting victims plead for gun reform with AI-voice messages

[erronis]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/feb/14/ai-shooting-victims-calls-gun-reform

It's really haunting. I hope enough congress critters get to hear this.

Voices of people lost to gun violence have been re-created using AI to call for action, now six years to the day after the Parkland shooting that killed 17

Six years ago today, Joaquin Oliver was killed in a hallway outside his Florida classroom, one of 17 students and staff murdered in the worst high school shooting in the US. On Wednesday, lawmakers in Washington DC will hear his voice, recreated by artificial intelligence, in phone calls demanding to know why they’ve done nothing to tackle the plague of gun violence.

“It’s been six years and you’ve done nothing. Not a thing to stop all the shootings that have happened since,” the message from Oliver, who was 17 when he died in the 2018 Valentine’s Day’s tragedy at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school, says.

“I’m back today because my parents used AI to recreate my voice to call you. Other victims like me will be calling too, again and again, to demand action. How many calls will it take for you to care? How many dead voices will you hear before you finally listen?”

[harumph]

1. No. This is not good.

AI shouldn't be used for purposes of bringing the dead back to "life."

"The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last week unanimously voted to recognize AI-generated voices as “artificial” under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, banning them from use. The vote came shortly after a call with an AI-generated voice impersonating President Biden spread throughout New Hampshire ahead of the state’s primary."

IMO, this is morbid, exploitive (yes, even with the parent's permission). Gross.

Edited to add: While I agree with gun reform, this is FOR SURE going to turn off and gross out more people than it will persuade.

[malaise]

2. Get thee to the greatest page

RFN

[WhiskeyGrinder]

3. Oof that's a big turnoff for me.

[SYFROYH]

4. Fake AI-generated voices don't vote or donate funds to elections.

People can do what they want, but this does not seem like a promising avenue for advancing gun control.

[cbabe]

5. Staff answer the phone, not the office holder. Many screen all calls with voice mail.