In an exclusive sit-down interview with Symone, Texas Democratic Senate Nominee James Talarico blasted his opponent, Ken Paxton, for using AI deepfakes in a new political ad to "deceive voters.”
Politicians have long made it hard to trust their words. Now, AI -generated campaign ads flooding the airwaves and social media are making it harder to trust your own eyes and ears. Why it matters: Americans' trust in politicians and institutions has been tanking in recent years — and AI campaign ads could deepen that erosion, political tech experts say. What they're saying: "I think that it is true that Americans are losing faith in elite institutions to tell them what is true and what is not, and AI exacerbates that trend," Nate Persily, co-director of the Stanford Law AI Initiative, tells Axios. - "The more artificial media that we consume, the less likely that people will be able to discern what is true from what is false, and…
A societal spotlight on extreme thinness is stripping body diversity from screens, just as fashion magazines did in the early aughts, mental health experts tell Axios. The big picture: Fake content creators are introducing unattainable, AI-generated body images that prey on human nature and exacerbate the struggle for many to reach self-acceptance for their bodies. - When shrunken celebrities "become the ideal ... because of their status, then the virtual influencers are going to be emulating that," Katy Bruchmann, who leads Santa Clara University's Social Cognition and Comparison Lab, says. - "Then, the more really thin, super beautiful virtual influencers you have, the target changes for all the real people again. It's a really scary…
Artificial-intelligence tools increasingly allow political actors to fool voters — and help candidates cast doubt on reality.
A shadowy polling firm confessed this week to faking survey results in two marquee races — then claimed the entire operation was a "short-term social experiment" on misinformation. Why it matters: An AI-enabled flood of synthetic and outright fabricated content is wreaking havoc on reality, poisoning the signals people rely on to understand politics, business and culture. Catch up quick: Median Strategies, a previously unknown polling outfit with little public footprint, surfaced this summer with two blockbuster surveys that were quickly absorbed into the political conversation. - In Wisconsin's Democratic gubernatorial primary, Median's fake poll showed democratic socialist Francesca Hong leading Milwaukee County Executive David…
Elon Musk’s controversial chatbot, Grok, is notorious for polluting the “cloud” with deepfakes and racist content. But in the Memphis metropolitan area, it’s under fire for literally polluting the air. MS NOW's Josh Einiger reports from the Tennessee-Mississippi border, where Grok’s “supercomputer” is located in massive data centers.
Data: NCSL ; Map: Sara Wise/Axios Americans across the country could have very different experiences with AI deepfakes leading up to Election Day , thanks to a patchwork of state rules. Why it matters: AI-generated attack ads and campaign content are rampant leading up to the midterms as candidates across the political spectrum use the technology. State of play: Twenty-nine states have AI election deepfake laws in effect, while two others — California and Hawaii — have had their laws permanently enjoined, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures . - Minnesota and Texas prohibit political deepfakes for a certain number of days before an election. Maryland's ban is year-round. - The other states require disclosures…
Finland, wary of misinformation from Moscow and beyond, has a leg up on other nations in spotting fake news. But A.I. is a whole new challenge.
“We should not allow pedophiles and sexual abusers to run amok because you just don’t like a girl,” the representative said.
Journalists, human rights advocates and open source analysts recoiled in horror at the move: "The opportunities for abuse and disinfo are literally boundless," said one.