MA House passes bills banning AI in political ads, deceptive ads

The Massachusetts House has passed a bill requiring any political advertisement that uses synthetic media, generated by AI, to include an alerting message stating “contains content generated by AI” at both the beginning and the end of the ad, and throughout the ad’s duration.
The bill aims to ensure voters are aware of AI-generated content, following similar efforts in other states, such as New Hampshire.
The bill explicitly mentions penalties, including fines of $1,000, for any violations of the disclosure requirements.
Another bill, also passed by the House, prohibits the distribution of “deceptive communications” by candidates or political groups within 90 days of an election, including misleading voter information and injuries to a candidate’s reputation.
The House bill allows victims to sue for deceptive communications and excludes media reporting, satire, or parody from its coverage.
The bill was passed unanimously and will now move to the Senate for further consideration.
The bills reflect the Massachusetts legislature’s focus on election-related reforms amidst broader efforts to ensure transparency and authenticity in political advertising practices.