David E. Clemson, an assistant professor at the University of Georgia in the United States, has outlined six key ways in which artificial intelligence or AI is making politics more deceitful than ever before.
1. Different false promises for different voters
Candidates in political campaigns can now use AI to analyze voters' personal information and online behavior to make promises based on their beliefs and interests. For example: If a voter is anxious about unemployment, his feed may show false promises about it. This method makes a candidate more credible, although the promises are not the same for everyone and are often not realistic.
2. Exploiting the tendency to easily believe
People often believe what they hear or see, even if it is false. Scientists call this the 'truth default' tendency. AI can use this psychological tendency to create false messages in a very natural and realistic way, which can easily gain credibility.
3. Spread of lies and lack of accountability
AI chatbots, such as ChatGPT, often produce false information. If this false information is used in campaigns, there is no human accountability for it. The situation becomes even more dangerous because campaigners can easily avoid responsibility.
4. Voter incitement and political bias
AI chatbots have become so advanced that they can even personally incite someone. For example, a New York Times reporter was incited against his wife by an AI from Bing with a love proposal. This ability can be used in politics to persuade a voter to move away from his preferred candidate and support another candidate. In addition, many AI systems have political bias, which can give additional support to a particular party.
5. Candidate face distortion or deepfakes
AI technology can now distort images and videos. Deepfakes can be used to alter a candidate's appearance, expression, or behavior to make them appear sincere, smiling, or 'presidential'. For example, some deepfakes of Trump show him praying or smiling in a friendly manner, which is not seen in reality. This allows a candidate to convey the wrong message to voters.
6. Creating opportunities to avoid liability
The use of AI allows software or AI to be blamed for mistakes or controversial content in political campaigns, rather than directly blaming a human. This creates a new type of 'safe haven' in campaigns.
According to David Clemenson, while AI can play a positive role in politics, its misuse can also cause huge damage.
(Translated by Lutful Hoque)
