Should political candidates use artificial intelligence (AI) to create fake videos of their opponents to use in advertisements? Democratic congressional candidate Jamie Ager doesn’t think so, and he’s speaking out after his opponent, state Rep. Jennifer Balkcom (R-Hendersonville), put forth an ad last Friday that depicts an AI-generated version of Ager dancing with an AI-generated drag queen.
Ager did host a barndance, but did not dance with any drag queens as depicted in the video. Some of the drag queens featured in the artificial video have spoken out, denying having ever met Ager, let alone danced with him. Ager blasted the ad in a video posted to his social media accounts.
“Our opponent’s attacking us with 100% fake AI generated lies. When you don’t have anything to run on in your campaign, I guess you have to resort to this kind of bullcrap,” Ager says to viewers.
Balkcom’s campaign website is light on specific policy positions and priorities. The website provides an “About Me” section where voters can learn about Balkcom and sign up to volunteer with the campaign.
How would this AI generated ad have been created?
AI-generated video can be created in several ways.
One approach involves text-to-video technology, in which a user describes a scene and an AI video generator creates footage based on those instructions. Another approach, image-to-video, involves using an existing photograph or image and using AI to animate it.
AI can also be used to manipulate existing video footage, including replacing or altering the appearance of people. Users also combine these technologies with video editing to produce more convincing fakes.
The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) paid for the advertisement, which was approved by Balkcom and subsequently shared by the North Carolina Republican Party. The NRCC confirmed that AI was used in producing the ad and said it stands by the advertisement. Balkcom’s campaign also reportedly coordinated in its production.
According to Model Evaluation and Threat Research, a nonprofit research institute, AI technology is doubling its research and software capabilities roughly every seven months. While some people can recognize that Balkcom’s video is made with AI, some who watch the video may not be able to make that distinction.
Will AI-generated campaign ads or graphics become the new normal? If this technology continues to advance at its current rate, even those familiar with AI image and video may soon find themselves struggling to differentiate the real from the artificial.
Drag queens Divine Holeburn and Nova have issued a cease and desist notice to Balkcom, calling for the ad to be taken down.
