One of the many things Americans fear about AI is the threat it could have in politics. In this year’s Jacobs Media Techsurvey of 30,000+ radio listeners, 83% are somewhat or largely concerned about “
AI and its potential to influence the 2024 elections.” It was one of the most universal opinions expressed in this year’s survey.
So the recent kerfuffle between the Federal Elections Commission and the Federal Communications Commission is a big deal. The FCC, under Chair Jessica Rosenworcel, has proposed requiring AI disclosure on broadcast, cable, and radio advertisements. Radio ads would require this amendment to the ad: The following message contains information generated in whole or in part by artificial intelligence.
On the other side, FEC chair Sean Cooksey penned a 454-word oped in Wednesday’s Wall Street Journal rejecting any regulation of AI in political advertising. Cooksey claims that not only is there no Federal authority to regulate the ads, but that these Federal agencies, “Don’t have the experience or expertise to craft effective and appropriately tailored rules.”
Coincidentally, while this regulatory spitting-match was going on, X (formerly Twitter), released a new version of its AI engine, Grok, which now allows all of X’s premium users to generate images with FEW limitations on content or characters.
If you’ve been on X over the last several days, you’ve seen the results: unauthorized AI-generated of Mickey Mouse, Taylor Swift, Marvel characters, and politicians in compromising and not-brand-safe situations. One of the most tame images I found is of Kamala and Donald in a wrestling ring — much less offensive than the several I saw of them kissing.
While these images started flying across social media, Cooksey’s open meeting Thursday to discuss this at the FEC was cancelled.
Granted, most of the images today are silly or extreme enough that users will know they are AI-generated or parody. But what about images and voices that could seem real? We are now in an era that many Americans dismiss as AI anything they encounter that challenges their current view of the world. What happens when broadcasters — the maligned “media” — must run ads with undisclosed AI that skews reality even more than the current lot of political ads? And what happens to the reputation of the station who runs the ads? Voters on both sides blame the station for running the ad.
Of course, as Chairman Cooksey claims, there are First Amendment concerns, but there must be some solution that doesn’t leave broadcasters as the boogiemen.
Google Releases ‘Gemini Live’ to Android Users
During this week’s Made By Google event, the tech giant rolled out its answer to ChatGPT’s Voice Mode. Gemini Live launches on Google Pixel devices and will come soon to other phones, with a forthcoming iOS app teased. Here are some of the highlights of the AI tool, many of which were teased in January at the CES Google House that we saw on the Jacobs Media CES Tour.
Call Notes: This transcribes phone calls and creates a summary of the content, which is stored in the device’s call log,
Email Generation: Compose an email by telling your Gemini Live assistant what you want and who you want to tell. See a demo here.
In-Depth Voice Chats: The new voice interface is claimed to have a more emotionally expressive speech engine that can converse with users, and even allow users to interrupt mid-response.
Pixel Studio Image Generation: Here’s a text-to-image generator on your phone that will create non-human images.
Details on the Made by Google event
Commonwealth Comedians Cultivate Content Using AI
AI is stepping into the comedy spotlight! Comedians like Candian Anesti Danelis have begun using AI to help write their shows, and audiences are buzzing. Danelis, who debuted his AI-infused act at the Edinburgh Festival, admits that while the jokes ChatGPT produced were often “terribly hilarious,” the tool offered unexpected inspiration. From writing songs about bisexual dilemmas to creating entire show orders, AI seems to know how to structure a comedy set. But don’t worry, comedy lovers—Danelis insists that 80% of his show is still powered by human wit, leaving the remaining 20% to the tech.
Others, like Kiwi-Filipino comedian James Roque, remain skeptical, claiming that AI lacks the authenticity needed for genuine laughs. With AI shaking up the comedy world, could we be facing a future where robots bring the punchlines? Only time—and more tech-savvy comedians—will tell! Details
Originally published by Jacobs Media
