Here's why an AI-generated campaign ad is allowed on the air in Pennsylvania

Just a few days left until voters head to the polls in what could be one of the most consequential midterm elections in decades. The airwaves are flooded with ads. Candidates are making last-minute pitches on policies and, in many cases, attacking their opponents. Well, this year, these ads have a new twist, artificial intelligence. The technology is sometimes replicating the image of an opposing candidate and creating a lot of new questions. Action News reporter Elizabeth Worthington spent the day exploring the issue and joins us live with more. Elizabeth. Yeah, well, Shari, these ads are popping up all over the country, including right here in Pennsylvania. In fact, you've probably seen one on our airwaves quite a few times this election season. And our viewers have been surprised to find out that there are currently no laws against this, but we are legally required to air it. Political attack ads are nothing new, but AI is allowing candidates to get a little more creative. Hello there, I'm Josh Shapiro, and I've been very busy. My initial gut reaction is, oh, AI, oh no, I didn't like it. This ad, paid for by Pennsylvania treasurer and gubernatorial candidate Stacey Garrity's campaign, features an AI-generated version of Governor Josh Shapiro. Could you tell pretty quickly that it was AI-generated? Yes. It might be It's useful for this to be a relatively obvious fake, because it does alert people to The fact that these things do exist and that they will get better and better and better. Around 40 seconds into the ad, the use of AI is disclosed. This ad was created with AI, thanks to big, beautiful data centers. That seems like something that should not be legal. There are currently no laws on the books in Pennsylvania to stop this. At a much slower pace, the laws will catch up to it. But by that time, we're going to be facing a different technological challenge. The ad has faced a lot of criticism, including from Action News viewers, wondering why we air it. Well, the reason is simple. We don't have a choice. FCC broadcasting rules prohibit stations from censoring or rejecting any campaign ad paid for or sponsored by legally qualified candidates. A spokesperson for Governor Shapiro's campaign called the ad cheap and dishonest in a statement to Axios. A spokesperson for Garrity's campaign told Action News, quote, It's telling that Josh Shapiro's only complaint with Treasurer Garrity's new ad is that he was depicted using AI. He has never refuted a single criticism made in the ad because he knows they're all completely accurate. Now, one Pennsylvania senator, Lisa Basola, said she does plan to put forth legislation that would prohibit deep fakes from targeting candidates during an election season. But so far, no legislation has been introduced just yet. But our neighbors in Delaware do have one law already on the books that prohibits. Deep fakes from targeting candidates within 90 days of an election unless it is disclosed that it's AI. We're live in Center City tonight. Elizabeth Worthington, Channel 6, Action News. Shari? Yeah, our viewers are smart. They're right to ask these questions. Elizabeth, thanks.