Artificial intelligence or AI. It’s a topic that generates a lot of talk, a lot of hope, and a lot of concerns these days.
On the positive side, AI has the potential to aid in solving an array of vexing societal problems and to help average people work better and faster in numerous ways.
On the other hand, of course, AI also raises real concerns – both with respect to the ability of humans to control and manage it and the possibility that it will be abused by bad actors in order to mislead people with false or phony communications. This latter concern is of particular relevance as Americans prepare to vote in the 2024 election. Fortunately, a lot of smart people are paying close attention to these kinds of issues and recently NC Newsline caught up with one of them for a special extended conversation on the topic, the head of online expression policy at the UNC-Chapel Hill Center on Technology Policy – Dr. Scott Brennen.
In Part One of our conversation, we delved into the subject of artificial intelligence (or AI) and some of the good and bad things it can do when it comes to communication. In Part Two of our chat, we continued this discussion with a special focus on political communication – both with respect to the 2024 election and more generally. And as Brennen told me, while he remains optimistic that phony AI messaging poses only a limited risk to the national election, there are risks and some important steps that elected officials can and should consider taking to help preserve the health of our democracy.
Read: The new political ad machine: Policy frameworks for political ads in an age of AI
Eugen Boglaru is an AI aficionado covering the fascinating and rapidly advancing field of Artificial Intelligence. From machine learning breakthroughs to ethical considerations, Eugen provides readers with a deep dive into the world of AI, demystifying complex concepts and exploring the transformative impact of intelligent technologies.
