Field Dispatch
Matt Connarton Unleashed: Tom Hanks warns us about deepfakes
Speaker 1: Before we hit the top of the hour, because we
Speaker 1: do talk on the show a lot about AI and
Speaker 1: concerns people have about AI and eye. Yeah, this is
Speaker 1: trying to click this link here. This is something that
Speaker 1: you brought to my attention. Yeah, this is from BuzzFeed.
Speaker 1: Don't be swindled. Here's why Tom Hanks issued a public
Speaker 1: service announcement about some AI ads. It says Tom Hanks. Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 1: he says. Tom Hanks has issued a strong statement against
Speaker 1: medical ads made with AI that fraudulently uses his name, likeness,
Speaker 1: and voice. In an Instagram post on Thursday, the actor
Speaker 1: made what he called the public service announcement and captioned
Speaker 1: the statement extra extra read all about it. There are
Speaker 1: multiple ads over the internet falsely using my name, likeness,
Speaker 1: and voice promoting Miracle cure and Wonder drugs, he wrote.
Speaker 1: While Hanks didn't specify which specific medical ads he was opposing,
Speaker 1: he clarified, quote, these ads have been created without my consent,
Speaker 1: fraudulently and through AI. I have nothing to do with
Speaker 1: these posts, or the products and treatments, or the spokespeople
Speaker 1: touting these cures unquote. Hanks revealed in twenty thirteen that
Speaker 1: he has type two diabetes and noted in his Instagram
Speaker 1: posts that he only works with board certified doctors regarding
Speaker 1: his treatment. He handed his statement with three directives, don't
Speaker 1: be fooled, don't be swindled, and don't lose your hard
Speaker 1: earned money.
Speaker 2: And this is again what we've been talking about a
Speaker 2: lot recently, is about people controlling their own images and likenesses. Yeah,
Speaker 2: you know, and as AI becomes more and more prevalent,
Speaker 2: is going to be more and more of these type
Speaker 2: of situations where you really get to be careful.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 2: I mean, it looks like them, it sounds like them,
Speaker 2: but it's not them, right, and that's scary. Yeah, but
Speaker 2: you know what, you really shouldn't be taking medical advice
Speaker 2: from any ad. I In my perfect world, medical ads
Speaker 2: don't exist because they are not helpful. They try to
Speaker 2: they convince people they need stuff they don't need, or
Speaker 2: they need things that cost more money than they don't
Speaker 2: really need. Like, there's no good reason for this. Your
Speaker 2: doctor can tell you what you need. You don't need
Speaker 2: an ad on TV trying to force feed you you
Speaker 2: must take this pill. Your life will be better if
Speaker 2: you just take this pill, right, you know, at the
Speaker 2: magic pill the snake oil salesman has always existed and
Speaker 2: will always exist in our society. Is just now they're
Speaker 2: coming in the form of AI, which makes it even
Speaker 2: scarier because you can't tell the difference.
Speaker 1: Yeah, although when it comes to voices, it seems to
Speaker 1: me that, I mean, you could do that anyway, you like.
Speaker 1: You don't need AI to replicate someone's voice. You just
Speaker 1: need someone who can do a good impression.
Speaker 2: Right, But this isn't that. This is them replicating his likeness,
Speaker 2: his image.
Speaker 1: Right right, Well, yeah, his image.
Speaker 2: It looks like he's saying these things and he's endorsing
Speaker 2: them and saying, Look, Tom Anks says this pill is
Speaker 2: great for you, so I'll take it too, because you know,
Speaker 2: he's a great guy. He's so wholesome and nice, and
Speaker 2: we love Tom Hanks, so we must trust Tom Hanks.
Speaker 2: And so if you don't want to feel that way,
Speaker 2: then listen to heat his words, because he's telling you
Speaker 2: it's not him. He didn't give him permission. And these
Speaker 2: companies shouldn't be able to do that, but they're getting
Speaker 2: away with it because we don't have strong enough laws
Speaker 2: to control AI, to protect artists and entertainers, so they
Speaker 2: can control their images and how they're seen and what's
Speaker 2: coming out of their mouths, because they can make you
Speaker 2: say anything, right.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I felt from the beginning when I, uh, the
Speaker 1: first time I ever saw Tom Hanks and in that
Speaker 1: TV show Bosom Buddies, I thought, I trust this man,
Speaker 1: Peter Sculleri not so much terrible. Remember that show bos
Speaker 1: and Buddies.
Speaker 2: I do. I loved that show.
Speaker 1: Yes, yes, I love.
Speaker 2: But you know, when I think of Tom Hanks, I
Speaker 2: always think about Bubba Gums Shrimp. Now. Oh yes, I
Speaker 2: got to go to a bubble Gum shrimp restaurant in
Speaker 2: Minnesota and they had like a like that. They had
Speaker 2: his suit, white suit with the suitcase, and had all
Speaker 2: kinds and of course they were running the movie but
Speaker 2: they had all kinds of memorabilia and stuff there, and
Speaker 2: I of course got the jenny, which was shrimp and salmon. Yes,
Speaker 2: but no, I mean yeah, I mean he's he's a
Speaker 2: great People look at Tom Hanks and they see a
Speaker 2: trusted person. So when you think you seeing him telling
Speaker 2: you this is a great pill, I take it you
Speaker 2: should too. It's easy to fall prey to that.
Speaker 1: Oh of course, yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 2: But as technology continues to grow. We need to grow
Speaker 2: laws to protect artists.
Speaker 1: What would be the worst is if you start seeing
Speaker 1: this kind of thing with somebody like Morgan Freeman, because
Speaker 1: isn't he I mean, would you say, Morgan Freeman one
Speaker 1: of the most trusted voices to a point, you know, but.
Speaker 2: If he doesn't say certain words, I don't know that
Speaker 2: anybody believed that it was him, and you can't say
Speaker 2: those words.
Speaker 1: So Morgan Freeman.
Speaker 2: Oh wait, wrong, wrong guy, I mixed.
Speaker 1: You're thinking of Samuel L. Jackson.
Speaker 2: I was, yes, yes, I had him in my head
Speaker 2: for some reason.
Speaker 1: He's not always a potty mouth. I see him in
Speaker 1: commercials where he keeps it cleaned. But uh no, Morgan Freeman.
Speaker 1: Though everyone everyone trusts Morgan Freeman, how can you not
Podbean