Witnesses urge congress to address AI content theft, deepfakes and platform moderation gaps
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Summary
Creators and managers told the House Small Business Committee that AI‑generated content, dubbing and stolen videos are degrading user experience, harming creators’ income and, in some cases, posing safety risks; witnesses recommended disclosure rules, faster escalation processes and human review for serious complaints.
At a House Small Business Committee hearing on the creator economy, witnesses raised AI content theft, dubbing of videos and deepfake risks as immediate threats to creators’ livelihoods and to consumer safety.
Christina Brennan, president of Celeb Experts, said content theft and AI dubbing have dangerous consequences when a creator with professional credentials is misused in a false advertisement. “I represent a number of medical professionals, including a surgeon. At one point, his content was taken and they dubbed over a completely different ad... That is a very, very big problem,” Brennan said.
Witnesses described AI‑generated or scraped content crowding recommendation feeds and reducing visibility for human creators. One witness said the prevalence of scraped or AI material “gums up the airwaves” on recommendation‑based platforms and degrades the user experience. Creators said that stolen material and AI dubbing have led to false endorsements, safety concerns and lost commercial opportunities.
Panelists proposed several near‑term responses: mandatory disclosures when AI materially alters content; faster human review and escalation paths for alleged impersonations or harmful dubbing; enforcement of copyright and publicity rights where applicable; and improved verification systems to reduce fake accounts. Several witnesses also suggested regulatory models used abroad and stronger incentives for platforms to prioritize legitimate creator content.
Committee members stressed the need to balance technological innovation with protections for creators and consumers and asked witnesses to submit written materials documenting incidents and policy recommendations.