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macirish's avatar

Here's the introduction to my AI class - hope this contributes to the discussion:

Randy Pausch, author of the Last Lecture, Professor of Computer Science, Human Interaction and Design at Carnegie Mellon University said the most important thing you are going to hear in this class.

“If I could only give three words of advice, they would be, 'Tell the truth.' ”

“If I got three more words, I'd add, 'All the time. ' ”

Why would I begin a class about Artificial Intelligence with a quote about Truth?

Because, telling the truth is what will separate you from AI boogey man.

Never trust AI. It will lie to you without reservation. It does not even know when it is lying. AI is like an obsequious servant that tells you what you want to hear.

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TitaniumDragon's avatar

The problem with making "creation of misinformation illegal" is that you are assuming that we can determine what is and is not misinformation definitively.

What will actually happen with any such law is the persecution of people who say things that people disagree with. This isn't something you can ban and still have any semblance of freedom of speech; the freedom to dissent is core to freedom of speech.

Just think about how Trump acts, or how DeSantis acts, and think about what would happen if it was legal for them to persecute people for spreading "misinformation" that is, in fact, true. The same goes for socialists, who routinely spread misinformation and then claim anyone who points out that they're lying that the people calling them out are spreading misinformation.

There is no way to create a law like this which is remotely compatible with freedom of speech. Slander and libel are specific enough to be actionable, but more general news is generally not slanderous or libelous.

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