A new proposal from state lawmakers aims to make sure that when First Read hits your inbox every morning, you know that it\u2019s made by human hands, rather than AI.\u00a0<\/p>\n
State Sen. Pat Fahy and Assembly Member Nily Rozic have introduced the New York Fundamental Artificial Intelligence Requirements in News Act, or the NY FAIR News Act.<\/a> The legislation would enact several protections for journalists and news industry workers, including requiring media companies to inform employees how they utilize AI to make content and prohibiting them from replacing human workers with artificial intelligence. The bill would also create safeguards to protect journalists and their sources from AI systems and establish safeguards for the public, like requiring disclosures if a news organization substantially uses artificial intelligence to create published content.\u00a0<\/p>\n Fahy said the NY FAIR News Act is meant to both protect a vulnerable industry and ensure that people can trust the news media they consume. \u201cPerhaps one of the industries at most risk from the use of artificial intelligence is journalism and as a result, the public\u2019s trust and confidence in accurate news reporting,\u201d she said in a statement. Fahy cited a survey<\/a> published in October from the National Association of Broadcasters that found that 76% of people are worried about AI stealing and reproducing the work of reporters.<\/p>\n The legislation has the backing of several unions, including the New York State AFL-CIO, SAG-AFTRA and the NewsGuild of New York. \u201cThe NY FAIR News Act will uphold<\/p>\n journalists\u2019 credibility, safeguard the integrity of news reporting and strengthen public trust,\u201d state AFL-CIO President Mario Cilento said in a statement. \u201cThese common-sense guardrails are essential for a healthy democracy.\u201d<\/p>\n Fahy\u2019s and Rozic\u2019s new bill is just one of several AI regulatory proposals to pop up in New York. Other, more sweeping bills to create safeguards around the development of AI systems have drawn significant lobbying efforts to prevent their passage from groups funded by Big Tech. Gov. Kathy Hochul signed landmark legislation called the RAISE Act last year to establish the strongest regulations in the country \u2013 but not before she significantly watered down the protections<\/a> compared to what legislators had originally proposed.<\/p>\n