Law / United States / Alabama
Distribution of Materially Deceptive Media to Influence an Upcoming Election
A citation is an address, not a summary. The first part names the law; what follows narrows it to the exact section, article or paragraph.
In force since 1 October 2024.
An AI transparency rule binding public and private bodies.
As of 6 September 2026.
What it requires
- If you distribute AI-generated or AI-manipulated media that falsely depicts a candidate, and do so within 90 days of an election intending to harm that candidate's reputation or prospects or to change how electors vote, carry a clear and conspicuous disclaimer that the media has been manipulated by technical means and depicts speech or conduct that did not occur.
- The disclaimer has format-specific requirements: it must appear throughout a video, be read at the start and end of an audio-only piece, and be clearly visible on a still image, each in the language used in the media.
- A first violation is a Class A misdemeanor; a second or subsequent conviction within five years is a Class D felony.
- The Attorney General, the depicted individual, an affected candidate, or an entity representing voters can seek a permanent injunction against a violation, separately from any criminal charge.
If you get it wrong
Criminal exposureYes
Private right of actionYes
Criminal exposure note
A violation of the distribution prohibition is a Class A misdemeanor; a second or subsequent conviction within five years is a Class D felony.
What it reaches
Obligation class
Content labelling, Disclosure
What this law does
Drafted with AI from the cited sources under the direction of UnGovr staff. UnGovr holds editorial responsibility for this page.
A person may not knowingly distribute, or agree with another to distribute, materially deceptive media, defined as an image, audio, or video produced by artificial intelligence that falsely depicts a candidate engaging in speech or conduct that did not occur, within 90 days of an election, where the distribution intends to harm the candidate's reputation or electoral prospects or to change how electors vote.
The duty is a disclosure one: a distributor avoids the prohibition entirely by including a specified clear and conspicuous disclaimer that the media has been manipulated by technical means, with format-specific rules for video, audio, and still images. A violation is a Class A misdemeanor, rising to a Class D felony on a second or subsequent conviction within five years.
The Attorney General, the depicted individual, an injured or threatened candidate, or an entity representing voters may also seek permanent injunctive relief, with fee-shifting against a frivolous complaint. The codified section attributes the enactment to Act 2024-349, sections 1 to 3, which is the citation used here.
When LexLint raises it
generates_content
Read the law
official text, Code of Alabama (alison.legislature.state.al.us)
effective date confirmed against the enrolled act, Alabama Legislature