Political campaigns are increasingly using AI and deepfakes to shape their messaging, raising concerns among experts about the scale at which false information can spread, according to the Guardian.
Key facts
- Political campaigns are increasingly deploying AI and deepfakes to further their messaging, according to the Guardian.
- Jonathan Rinaldi, a city council candidate in Queens, New York, used an AI chatbot to create fake news stories and endorsements.
- Rinaldi shared a fabricated story bearing a CNN logo claiming his opponent had dropped out of the race.
- His opponent, incumbent Democrat Lynn Schulman, had not quit and won the race by a landslide in November.
- Experts are concerned about the scale at which AI-generated content can spread.
Political campaigns are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence and deepfakes to shape and spread their messaging, a shift that has raised alarm among experts worried about how quickly false information can now circulate, according to the Guardian.
The concerns are illustrated by the case of Jonathan Rinaldi, a candidate for a city council seat in Queens, New York. From the comfort of his bed, Rinaldi used his iPhone to prompt an AI chatbot to generate fake news stories and endorsements he had never actually received, the Guardian reported.
During the campaign last October, Rinaldi shared one of those fabricated stories on his Facebook and Instagram accounts. The story was designed to look authentic, complete with a CNN logo, and claimed that his opponent, incumbent Democrat Lynn Schulman, had been “forced to drop out of the race due to a series of critical mistakes.”
The claim was false. Schulman had not quit her campaign. In November, she went on to win the race by a landslide, according to the Guardian.
The episode highlights a broader question raised in the reporting: whether AI tools could level the playing field for political campaigns by lowering the cost and effort of producing ads, or whether the same technology will primarily serve as a vehicle for spreading lies. Experts cited by the Guardian expressed concern about the scale at which AI-generated content can now be produced and shared.
The ease with which a single candidate was able to create convincing fake content from a phone underscores the challenges facing voters, platforms and regulators as the technology becomes more accessible.
Why it matters
AI tools make it cheap and fast to produce convincing but false political content, which can mislead voters and erode trust in legitimate news sources. As the technology becomes more accessible, it poses a growing challenge for voters, platforms and regulators trying to safeguard the integrity of elections.
Frequently asked questions
What did the Queens candidate do with AI?
According to the Guardian, Jonathan Rinaldi, a city council candidate in Queens, used an AI chatbot on his iPhone to create fake news stories and endorsements he had never received, and shared one of them on Facebook and Instagram.
Was the fake story about his opponent true?
No. The fabricated story, made to look real with a CNN logo, claimed opponent Lynn Schulman had been forced to drop out of the race. Schulman had not quit and won by a landslide in November, the Guardian reported.
Why are experts concerned about AI in campaigns?
Experts cited by the Guardian are concerned about the scale at which AI and deepfakes can spread political messaging, raising questions about misinformation in elections.