NYT: Wesleyan Finds $137M Spent on 220 AI-Generated Midterm Ads, 70% Carry No Disclosure and 80% Are GOP
Summary
The New York Times, citing Wesleyan Media Project and AdImpact, reports campaigns and PACs have spent $137M+ promoting 220 AI-generated or AI-enhanced ads in the 2026 midterm cycle — up from an earlier $80M/164-ad count. About 80% came from Republicans or GOP-aligned PACs, 70% carried no AI disclaimer, and nearly half fabricated real politicians, including a Bruce Blakeman spot inserting a synthetic Zohran Mamdani and Kathy Hochul pushing a fake 'political delusion pill.'
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The slop party: "More than 80 percent of the [AI-generated] ads were produced by Republican campaigns or Republican-aligned political action committees."
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Justin Hendrix @justinhendrix.bsky.social
"Candidates and political action groups, mostly tied to Republicans, have rushed to adopt the technology, spending more than $137 million to promote such ads this year, the researchers found."
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Originally reported by nytimes.com
Read the original article →Original headline: NYT: Wesleyan Finds $137M Spent on 220 AI-Generated Midterm Ads, 70% Carry No Disclosure and 80% Are GOP