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Digitally-altered campaign materials must use disclaimer under House-approved bill

Julie Olthoff speaks into a microphone on the House floor. Olthoff is a White woman with blonde hair, wearing glasses and a dark purple jacket over a light purple top.
Brandon Smith
/
IPB News
Rep. Julie Olthoff (R-Crown Point) addressed the House about her bill to require disclaimers for digitally-altered or artificially-generated campaign materials on Jan. 25, 2024.

Campaign materials that digitally alter or artificially generate a candidate or elected official’s appearance, speech or conduct without their consent would now have to include a disclaimer under legislation unanimously approved by the House Thursday.

Rep. Julie Olthoff (R-Crown Point) said the rise of artificial intelligence has made creating and altering images, videos and recordings easier and more realistic.

“People can no longer always decipher what is real and what is fabricated,” Olthoff said.

READ MORE: How do I follow Indiana’s legislative session? Here’s your guide to demystify the process

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If digitally-altered or artificially-generated campaign materials don’t include the disclaimer, HB 1133 would allow candidates or elected officials to sue the person who paid for or sponsored the campaign material.

The measure now heads to the Senate.

Brandon is our Statehouse bureau chief. Contact him at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.

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Brandon Smith has covered the Statehouse for Indiana Public Broadcasting for more than a decade, spanning three governors and a dozen legislative sessions. He's also the host of Indiana Week in Review, a weekly political and policy discussion program seen and heard across the state. He previously worked at KBIA in Columbia, Missouri and WSPY in Plano, Illinois. His first job in radio was in another state capitol - Jefferson City, Missouri - as a reporter for three stations around the Show-Me State.