MA State House: Watch out for the ‘Sacred Cod’
Meet Margie Cullen, New England Politics Reporter, and get introduced to the Massachusetts State House – including the ‘Sacred Cod.’
- The bill requires that any audio or video political ad that uses “synthetic media” must contain a message reading “contains content generated by AI.”
- Similar efforts have been made in other states.
- The House also passed a bill Wednesday that would prohibit candidates or other political groups from distributing “deceptive communications” within 90 days of an election.
The Massachusetts House passed a bill Feb. 11 to ban the use of artificial intelligence in political advertisements without a disclosure.
“If you watched the Super Bowl, you saw how widespread artificial intelligence has become. AI is no longer theoretical – it is in our everyday lives,” said Rep. Daniel Hunt, D-Dorchester, House Chair of the Committee on Election Laws, in a statement. “Voters deserve to know that what they’re seeing is real.”
The bill, which would require ads to include messages alerting the viewer of AI use, follows similar efforts made in other states. In 2024, New Hampshire passed a law regulating AI use in political ads after a phony Biden robocall told New Hampshire residents not to vote just a couple of days before the presidential primary.
In Massachusetts, the bill passed 157 – 0 and next goes to the Senate for further consideration.
The bill comes as the Massachusetts legislature moves on more election-related bills in the midterm year. The House also passed a bill Wednesday that would stop candidates from distributing deceptive ads within 90 days of an election, and the Senate in January passed legislation that would require ballot campaigns to be more transparent about their campaign finance.
What would the bill do?
The bill requires that any audio or video political ad that uses “synthetic media” must contain a message reading “contains content generated by AI” at both the beginning and the end. It must also show or say out loud a similar message throughout the duration of the video or audio content that contains AI.
The rule would apply to any audio or video communication paid for by a candidate or political group intended to influence voting for or against a candidate or ballot proposition that uses artificial intelligence.
Any violations would be punishable by a fine of $1,000.
Another election bill
The House also passed a bill Wednesday that would prohibit candidates or other political groups from distributing “deceptive communications” within 90 days of an election.
That would include media that depicts a candidate with the intent to injure their reputation or deceive a voter into voting for or against them and content that misleads voters about the date or time of an election. The bill would allow victims of such ads to sue.
The bill would not apply to media outlets who report on the ads or content that constitutes satire or parody.
It passed 154 – 3, and will also now go to the Senate for consideration.
