In Other News · United States · Technology

Source: Axios

Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.) was hit with a cease-and-desist letter this week over an AI deepfake he posted falsely depicting his Democratic opponent voicing positions her campaign says she rejects.Why it matters: Van Orden is the latest in a growing number of candidates and elected officials facing legal complaints and threats over AI deepfakes in campaign ads.Driving the news: Attorneys for Rebecca Cooke, Van Orden's Democratic opponent, sent him a cease-and-desist letter on Wednesday over his "pattern of posting misleading AI-generated videos that falsely attribute statements to Cooke."The letter singled out an August X post by Van Orden showing an AI-generated Cooke saying she wants to "take advantage of as much corruption as possible and give every illegal alien free healthcare" — something she never said.Van Orden's team didn't respond to Axios' request for comment, but he responded to Cooke publicly with an AI-generated video of a duck wearing a Democratic Socialists of America T-shirt, yelling, "cease and desist."The big picture: AI deepfakes have proliferated this election cycle, while Congress has yet to establish a federal standard governing their use.Some campaigns have used hyperrealistic ads. Texas Senate GOP nominee Ken Paxton combined real and inaccurate statements from his opponent,...