Democrats file complaint over Blakeman's AI-generated…
New York Democrats filed an election complaint against Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman over the use of AI-generated content in his campaign ads
- Incident date
- Jul 2024
- Target
- Kathy Hochul, Zohran Mamdani
State Democratic committee chair Jay Jacobs filed a formal complaint with the New York Board of Elections on July 22, 2024, alleging that Republican Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman violated state law regarding the disclosure of artificial intelligence in political advertisements. The complaint further alleges that Blakeman improperly utilized taxpayer-funded public matching campaign dollars to finance these AI-generated materials.
What happened
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman has published numerous campaign advertisements featuring AI-generated depictions of Governor Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. These videos have portrayed the officials in various roles, including as basketball players, professional movers, thieves, and characters in the style of the animated series South Park.
New York state law requires political communications utilizing AI to include clear disclosures, though the law provides exceptions for satire and parody. While many of the identified videos included a disclosure at the end of the content, some ads posted between January 1 and July 17, 2024, reportedly lacked these required notices. A Newsday review identified at least 17 videos containing AI-generated content during this timeframe.
In his complaint, Jay Jacobs argues that the campaign is flouting election law and subverting the purpose of public campaign finance funds. Conversely, a spokesperson for the Blakeman campaign, Madison Spanodemos, dismissed the allegations as an attempt to distract from Governor Hochul's policy record, maintaining that the advertisements are clear examples of satire. As of the filing, the state Board of Elections has declined to comment on the matter.