U.S. lawmakers question Meta and X over AI-generated political deepfakes ahead of 2024 election [View all]
Source: PBS News Hour
Politics Oct 5, 2023 11:10 AM EDT
Deepfakes generated by artificial intelligence are having their moment this year, at least when it comes to making it look, or sound, like celebrities did something uncanny. Tom Hanks hawking a dental plan. Pope Francis wearing a stylish puffer jacket. U.S. Sen. Rand Paul sitting on the Capitol steps in a red bathrobe. But what happens next year ahead of a U.S. presidential election?
Google was the first big tech company to say it would impose new labels on deceptive AI-generated political advertisements that could fake a candidate’s voice or actions. Now some U.S. lawmakers are calling on social media platforms X, Facebook and Instagram to explain why they aren’t doing the same.
Two Democratic members of Congress sent a letter Thursday to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and X CEO Linda Yaccarino expressing “serious concerns” about the emergence of AI-generated political ads on their platforms and asking each to explain any rules they’re crafting to curb the harms to free and fair elections. “They are two of the largest platforms and voters deserve to know what guardrails are being put in place,” said U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota in an interview with The Associated Press. “We are simply asking them, ‘Can’t you do this? Why aren’t you doing this?’ It’s clearly technologically possible.”
The letter to the executives from Klobuchar and U.S. Rep. Yvette Clarke of New York warns: “With the 2024 elections quickly approaching, a lack of transparency about this type of content in political ads could lead to a dangerous deluge of election-related misinformation and disinformation across your platforms – where voters often turn to learn about candidates and issues.”
Read more: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/u-s-lawmakers-question-meta-and-x-over-ai-generated-political-deepfakes-ahead-of-2024-election
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