Description
Write an essay discussing the following topic on corporate liability for the posted speech of others:
Over the past few years, AI has risen to a new level. It has enabled amazing progress in certain areas. At the same time, it has enabled a level of misinformation and disinformation never before seen.
For a number of years, the public has had to struggle to sift fact from fiction in published works, especially on the Internet. Doctored photos and videos have long been a possibility. Recently, however, completely original false photos, videos, and audio clips, often referred to as “deepfakes,” have become readily available through the assistance of advanced AI techniques.
These deepfakes have now risen to a point where they can affect a wide range of people, from innocent individuals, to highly publicized public figures. Their impact ranges from invasion of privacy, to infringement of intellectual property rights, to the integrity of our public institutions.
For example, on 1/26/24, Wired reported that robocalls presented an impersonation of President Biden’s voice, with a message urging democrats not to vote in the Jan. 23rd New Hampshire primary. https://www.wired.com/story/biden-robocall-deepfake-elevenlabs/ On the very same day, the New York Times reported that “[f]ake), sexually explicit images of Taylor Swift likely generated by artificial intelligence spread rapidly across social media” that week. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/26/arts/music/taylor-swift-ai-fake-images.html
But public figures are not the only ones targeted. On 12/23/23, NBCNews.com published an article detailing how fake pornographic images of innocent teenage girls have been produced in a number of instances. https://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/national-international/they-appeared-in-deepfake-porn-videos-without-their-consent-few-laws-protect-them/2976655/ The Hartford Courant detailed similar findings, along with an effort to enact legislative restrictions. https://www.courant.com/2024/01/29/from-taylor-swift-to-teens-pornographic-deepfakes-are-spreading-online-with-dangerous-impact-heres-one-state-senators-proposal-to-protect-residents-in-ct/
While President Biden and Taylor Swift may have the resources and legal footing to confront those responsible for deepfakes through laws against election fraud and laws protecting intellectual property or public image, the average private citizen has far fewer options. And issues pertaining to our institutions can affect us in far graver ways. As you will study later in the course, the strong U.S. constitutional protection for free speech also makes it difficult for Congress to pass protective legislation, especially since courts traditionally have been extremely reluctant to impose prospective limitations on free speech in the absence of a clear and present danger of physical harm. That leaves protection up to technology companies, who have frequently refused to impose restrictions on their own products and platforms, even in the face of these outcomes.
Do you believe that the laissez-faire (“hands off”) attitude shown by many technology companies is ethical? Why or why not? What professional responsibility should technology companies have when considering how these deepfakes may affect the mental and emotional health of individuals, and/or the integrity of our institutional systems and our democracy as a whole?
Write an 1000+ word draft essay that discusses your personal views of the ethical and professional responsibilities of the platforms that host and enable these deepfakes. As part of your discussion, analyze this situation using TWO of the ethical theories presented in Ch. 2 of the course textbook (not including relativism or egoism). Complete your essay by comparing and contrasting the two theories you analyzed above. Do they suggest a common outcome? Or do they argue for diverse assessments of responsibility for technology companies? If they differ, which outcome seems most appropriate to you?
Outside research is permitted but not required. A general citation is presumed for any concepts taken from the textbook or class lectures and course materials. This means that you need not include citations or a bibliography if your information is limited to those sources and if no specific verbiage is borrowed. (However, if you use specific words from others, whether from the course textbook or from other sources, you must always use quotations marks and provide citation information. This remains true as long as the quote is recognizable, even if some modifications are made.)
