Artificial Intelligence’s (AI) capabilities have significantly transformed the communication landscape, presenting opportunities and unprecedented challenges. While AI is not a new concept, its recent democratization, especially with the rise of generative AI, expressed by large language models (LLMS) like OpenAI’s Chatgpt, marks a transformative moment in how content is created and disseminated, but it also raises urgent concerns regarding the stability of democratic systems. The ability of these technologies to generate text, images, music, and media presents innovative opportunities, but their misuse poses real threats to democratic discourse. With the rapid increase of AI-generated content, worries about digital authoritarianism are growing. Various regimes are beginning to exploit AI tools to undermine democratic norms, often generating disinformation at a pace that exceeds governmental regulation and public awareness. The capacity of generative AI to create hyper-realistic media complicates the information landscape, fostering voter confusion and increasing cynicism toward political processes. As such, the study of AI in political field is crucial, offering fresh perspectives regarding the dissemination and consumption of political communication.
AI has the potential to enhance political mobilization, improve citizens’ access to relevant information, and promote a more inclusive decision-making process. However, these benefits come with significant risks to democratic functionality. Several challenges arise at the intersection of AI and political communication, including the manipulation of public opinion through misinformation, algorithmic biases, and the cultivation of online echo chambers that can polarize viewpoints. In light of these dynamics, recent cases of AI’s influence in politics highlight the urgency of the situation. For instance, during the 2024 US presidential race, AI-generated fake images and deepfakes became widespread, often amplified by high-profile figures. Political images that wrongly show endorsements and arrests are part of a larger trend. The influence of AI extends globally, evidenced by deepfake audio clips of political leaders in the UK and Slovakia that generated significant controversy, and even the political turmoil in Türkiye caused by AI-generated videos.
This special issue will explore the critical role of AI in contemporary political communication, particularly its effects on democracy and public opinion in an era marked by disinformation. We call for submissions that investigate how AI is developed and utilized to manipulate political narratives, disseminate false information, and threaten democratic processes. The aim is to deepen understanding of the tools enabling AI’s dissemination of disinformation and its wider implications on political discourse.
We invite contributions from Communication Sciences, Political Science, Cultural Studies, Sociology and Computer Sciences, but we are open to multi-disciplinary approaches. This special issue seeks to amplify scholarly dialogue through studies such as systematic reviews, empirical studies, and case studies. We encourage submissions that explore, but are not limited to, the following topics:
- Deepfakes, synthetic media and AI-generated content in political context
- Automated disinformation campaigns, AI bots and social media manipulation
- Algorithmic filtering, echo chambers and political polarization
- Algorithmic transparency and content moderation
- AI-driven disinformation, electoral integrity and voter behavior
- AI tools, disinformation and political fact-checking
- AI-driven disinformation, critical thinking and media literacy
- Algorithmic transparency and content moderation
- Personalization of political information through AI
- Policies and regulations to protect democracy in the era of AI
- Bias and ethical issues with AI use
Keywords
- Artificial Intelligence
- Political Communication
- Disinformation
- Democracy
- Fact-checking
