The ??? ? ??field of politics has become even more complicated for women leaders, with the rise of generative AI posing an even greater risk for female politicians than men, according to a report released this week.
The analysis, published by disinformation think tank the American Sunlight Project (ASP) via The 19thon Dec. 11, uncovered more than 35,000 pieces of digitally altered nonconsensual intimate imagery (NCII) depicting 26 members of Congress. ASP's numbers, when broken down, outline a stark reality for victims of NCII: Of those thousands of images, the organization found 25 women politicians depicted by AI. Only one man was the subject of such content.
Throughout the entire study, women members of Congress were 70 times more likely than men to be targeted by non-consensual synthetic images and 1 in 6 congresswomen (or 16 percent) are the victims of nonconsensual intimate imagery.
Leaders across the political aisle have attempted to address the rise of both NCII and synthetic AI-generated images, but have been slow to reach consensus. In January, a bipartisan group of Senators introduced the Disrupt Explicit Forged Images and Non-Consensual Edits Act of 2024 (Defiance Act), intended to criminalize the act of spreading nonconsensual, sexualized "digital forgeries" made with AI. It was passed in July but is still being considered by the House.
Last week the Senate passed the Take It Down Act, introduced by Senator Ted Cruz in June. The bill similarly criminalizes the publishing of digitally manipulated deepfakes online but also metes out penalties for companies who fail to remove such content within 48 hours of it being reported.
But the gendered reality of AI-boosted images can't be understated, especially as women leaders navigate a precarious online environment putting them at greater risk for sexual abuse. In August, the Center for Countering Digital Hate published a study on the rise of online hate and negative engagement on the social profiles of women politicians. According to an analysis of the Instagram profiles of 10 female incumbents, one in 25 comments was "highly likely" to be toxic. Instagram failed to act on 93 percent of reported abusive comments targeting female politicians.
"We need to kind of reckon with this new environment and the fact that the internet has opened up so many of these harms that are disproportionately targeting women and marginalized communities," said American Sunlight Project founder and author Nina Jankowicz. "My hope here is that the members are pushed into action when they recognize not only that it’s affecting American women, but it’s affecting them. It’s affecting their own colleagues. And this is happening simply because they are in the public eye."
ASP informed the offices of affected politicians, alerting them to AI-generated NCII. The images were almost entirely removed following the notice, although the organization didn't receive any comments.
If you have had intimate images shared without your consent, call the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative’s 24/7 hotline at 844-878-2274 for free, confidential support. The CCRI website also includes helpful informationas well as a list of international resources.
Topics Artificial Intelligence Social Good Politics
New Clothing Line from Designer with Little Tokyo Roots
Best drone deal: DJI Mini 4K drone 20% off
Here's 5 species to celebrate on International Polar Bear Day
The U.N. says pollution is having this effect on 1.7 million children a year
Karen Umemoto Appointed Director of UCLA Asian American Studies Center
India's Silicon Valley gets a seriously impressive vertical garden
Forget about Mars for a minute: Let's talk about these rad moon missions
These Prime Day deals are still available
National Merit $2,500 Scholarship Winners Named
Best new laptop deal: Get $200 off the new HP OmniBook X with this Best Buy deal
Man Gets Life Sentence for Kidnapping, Torture, Mutilation
Grounded flights today: See which airlines impacted by the Microsoft outage
There might be a real
Prime exclusive deal: $50 off Govee floor lamp
Public Tribute to Rev. Kurai at Sozenji
The Gods are furious with Seattle's Space Needle right now
Prime Day 2024: AirPods deals hang on after Prime Day ends
Best Prime Day deal: Get the Google Nest smart thermostat for 35% off
Miyagi Government Honors Local Kenjinkai Leader
Best Prime Day drone deals: Shop DJI, Holy Stone, and more
The original songs in 'Schmigadoon!' perfectly capture the joy of musicalsVideo games are coming to Netflix for all subscribersKamala's lab mates on ’Never Have I Ever’ don't do justice to nerd cultureThe 9 best Google doodle games to waste time at work5 things we learned about Zuckerberg and Facebook from 'The Ugly Truth'NASA's Perseverance Mars rover to collect samples meant for EarthFirst look at Mars's interior reveals a different picture than EarthSamsung to reveal new foldable phones at Galaxy Unpacked on August 11Who will die on 'The White Lotus'?The U.S. and allies formally accuse China of cyber espionage One Elite, Two Elites, Red Elite, Blue Elite Dating app happn launches AI NYT Connections Sports Edition hints and answers for June 25: Tips to solve Connections #275 Fandango Apple Pay deal: Save $10 on two 'F1: The Movie' tickets Unitree G1 Robots battle?in world’s first humanoid robot combat tournament · TechNode Videos show Tesla robotaxis appearing to violate traffic laws Best earbuds deal: Soundcore V40i earbuds by Anker for under $67 Tesla sales down in Europe for fifth month in a row Private moon spacecraft just took a breathtaking snapshot of Earth Best early Prime Day deal: Save 43% on the Amazon Luna Controller
0.1419s , 9860.8671875 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【??? ? ??】Enter to watch online.1 in 6 congresswomen are victims of AI,Feature Flash
