Most radio broadcasters know the company for its Audition audio editing software, but now Adobe is trying to curry favor with the FCC as it supports the agency’s efforts to increase transparency around the use of AI-generated content in political advertisements.
Adobe met with the staff of FCC Commissioners Geoffrey Starks and Anna Gomez on August 14, 2024, to discuss the agency’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on AI Disclosures in Political Advertisements. The visits built on an initial document filed as a comment on the NPRM in September.
The company used the comments to specifically push its Content Credentials tool to be integrated into the FCC’s proposed framework. Adobe says the tool helps ensure transparency by showing the origins and edits of digital content, helping viewers determine whether AI was used to alter media.
During the Starks and Gomez staff meetings, Adobe representatives discussed the company’s efforts to combat misinformation and ensure content authenticity.
Outside of its own technology, Adobe highlighted its leadership role in the Content Authenticity Initiative, a cross-industry community of around 3,000 companies, and its collaboration with the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity. This initiative, founded by Adobe in 2019 alongside partners like the New York Times and Twitter, works to establish standards for content provenance across media and technology industries. Major CAI participants include AP, Reuters, Microsoft, TikTok, and others.
While Democratic lawmakers have expressed support for the NPRM, broadcast groups and the National Association of Broadcasters have raised concerns, arguing that the proposal would impose an excessive burden on radio and TV operators to implement the required disclosures.
The FCC’s decision on the AI disclosure rule will be determined following the final public reply submission deadline on October 11.
