Ohio newsrooms and campaigns grapple with AI disclosure as rules lag behind technology
Ohio voters will soon see political ads shaped by artificial intelligence, while the state's newsrooms experiment with the same tools to package journalism. Neither has clear rules to follow.
The state is one of only three - along with Alaska and Missouri - without regulations specific to AI in political advertising. Two bills proposed in Columbus would require disclaimers on deepfakes and criminalize political deepfakes released within 90 days of an election. Both are stalled in committee.
At least two AI-generated political ads are already running in Ohio. One from the Ohio Flyer super PAC, tied to supporters of U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, digitally places Sherrod Brown's face and neck onto another actor's body during a birthday-party scene. Another uses AI-enhanced imagery involving state Rep. Jim Hoops, a Republican from Napoleon seeking a Senate seat.
Newsrooms face the same questions
Cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer are conducting their own AI experiment, using the technology to convert reporting into videos for social media audiences. The newsroom discloses AI use on every such piece of content, but editors acknowledge the issue remains unsettled.
"There's nothing we do anymore that's not touched by AI," said Chris Quinn, editor of both publications. He raised the fundamental question regulators face: If AI is simply one step in the production chain, where does disclosure begin and end?
Quinn compared AI to other tools newsrooms use daily. "AI is a tool, just like our keyboards are a tool. Microsoft Excel is a tool. The journalists are the ones that stand behind the material."
Yet disclosure itself creates problems. A broader backlash against low-quality, machine-generated content - what audiences call "AI slop" - means even responsible AI use gets lumped in with mass-produced garbage. Leila Atassi, a senior editor, said disclaimers trigger an instant negative reaction. "When you put the disclaimer on that, immediately people recoil," she said.
Research cited in the discussion suggests AI disclaimers on political content can reduce trust and cause audiences to flag material as less credible.
Regulation can't keep pace
The speed of AI development makes comprehensive legislation nearly impossible. Two months after Cleveland.com drew criticism for using AI tools, newsrooms across America were adopting similar approaches.
"I thought we were ahead by a year, year and a half," Quinn said. "We weren't even ahead by two months."
Atassi was direct about the challenge. "The genie is out of the bottle," she said. "Here we are plunging headlong into a future where this is a part of every single thing we do in this industry. And, yeah, also in politics."
Some editors suggested public education may matter more than prohibition. "How do we teach people to be really smart consumers of this?" asked Laura Johnston. "I think people are really worried that they're going to be fooled."
What comes next
Cleveland.com plans to continue disclosing AI use in its videos. Political campaigns may face similar requirements if Ohio lawmakers act on stalled bills.
But the panel suggested the future may look different once AI becomes so common that separating it from ordinary digital production becomes nearly impossible.
Quinn said that shift is coming soon. "With the speed that this is evolving," he said, "we're going to get there soon."
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