VOA新闻杂志2023--New York Mayor Makes Robocalls in Different Languages Using AI

New York Mayor Makes Robocalls in Different Languages Using AI

New York Mayor Eric Adams has been using artificial intelligence (AI) to make robot phone calls in several languages.

The technology changes Adam's voice into languages that he does not speak. And it raises new ethical¹ questions about the government's use of AI.

Adams told reporters about the phone calls, called robocalls, recently. He said they have gone out in languages like Mandarin² and Yiddish for city events. They have not included any information that he only speaks English or that the calls were created using AI.

"People stop me on the street all the time and say, ‘I didn't know you speak Mandarin,'" Adams said. "The robocalls that we're using, we're using different languages to speak directly to the diversity of New Yorkers."

The calls come as questions arise over how best to use AI ethically³ and legally. Deepfake videos or audio can make it appear that anyone anywhere is doing anything a person on the other side of a computer screen wants them to do.

The Surveillance Technology Oversight⁴ Project called Adams' robocalls an unethical use of AI that is misleading to the people of New York.

Albert Fox Cahn is executive director of the organization. He said the calls are very unethical, especially because they are paid for with public money. "Yes, we need announcements in all of New Yorkers' native languages, but the deepfakes are just a creepy vanity project."

There is a growing use of artificial intelligence and deepfakes, especially in politics and election misinformation. It has led to calls for more rules and policing from the government and major media companies.

Google was the first big technology company to say it would identify political advertisements that use AI to fake a candidate's voice or actions. Meta does not have a rule specific to the use of AI in political ads. But the company has a policy restricting fake or manipulated audio and imagery used for misinformation.

A bipartisan bill in the U.S. Senate would ban "materially deceptive⁵" deepfakes relating to federal candidates, with exceptions for parody⁶. This month, two Democratic members of Congress sent a letter to the heads of Meta and X, formerly⁷ known as Twitter. The letter shared concerns about AI-created political ads on social media platforms.

In recent weeks, a number of technology companies have shown off AI tools that can take a person's speech and make it sound as if that person is speaking a different language.

In September, the music streaming service Spotify introduced an AI feature to translate a recording⁸, or podcast, into several languages in the speaker's voice. More recently, the startup ElevenLabs in October introduced a voice translation tool. The tool can change spoken words to another language while keeping the voice of the speaker.

A spokesperson for Adams' office said they used the ElevenLabs tool for their robocalls. Native speakers listened to the recordings⁹ before they went out to make sure the translations were accurate. Calls have been made in Spanish, Yiddish, Mandarin, Cantonese and Haitian Creole.

Adams defended himself against ethical questions about his use of artificial intelligence, saying his office is trying to reach New Yorkers through the languages they speak.

"I got one thing: I've got to run the city, and I have to be able to speak to people in the languages that they understand, and I'm happy to do so," he said.

Words in This Story

mayor — n. an official who is elected to be the head of the government of a city or town

diversity — n. the quality or state of having many different forms, types, ideas, etc.

deepfake — n. a real-looking, but untrue, video.

creepy — adj. causing people to feel nervous and afraid

vanity — n. the quality of people who have too much pride in their own appearance, abilities, achievements, etc.

manipulate — v. to move or control with your hands or by using a machine

deceptive — adj. intended to make someone believe something that is not true

 

parody — n. a piece of writing, music, etc., that imitates the style of someone or something else in an amusing way

1 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

2 Mandarin   

n.中国官话，国语，满清官吏；adj.华丽辞藻的

参考例句：

• Just over one billion people speak Mandarin as their native tongue.大约有十亿以上的人口以华语为母语。
• Mandarin will be the new official language of the European Union.普通话会变成欧盟新的官方语言。

3 ethically   

adv.在伦理上，道德上

参考例句：

• Ethically , we have nothing to be ashamed about . 从伦理上说，我们没有什么好羞愧的。
• Describe the appropriate action to take in an ethically ambiguous situation. 描述适当行为采取在一个道德地模棱两可的情况。

4 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

5 deceptive   

adj.骗人的，造成假象的，靠不住的

参考例句：

• His appearance was deceptive.他的外表带有欺骗性。
• The storyline is deceptively simple.故事情节看似简单，其实不然。

6 parody   

n.打油诗文，诙谐的改编诗文，拙劣的模仿；v.拙劣模仿，作模仿诗文

参考例句：

• The parody was just a form of teasing.那个拙劣的模仿只是一种揶揄。
• North Korea looks like a grotesque parody of Mao's centrally controlled China,precisely the sort of system that Beijing has left behind.朝鲜看上去像是毛时代中央集权的中国的怪诞模仿，其体制恰恰是北京方面已经抛弃的。

7 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

8 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

9 recordings   

n.记录( recording的名词复数 )；录音；录像；唱片

参考例句：

• a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
• old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐