UGA Experts Say Artificial Intelligence Growing at Rapid Pace

The capabilities of generative artificial intelligence are growing rapidly, and so is the frequency of AI-generated content. The increase in realistic yet fabricated content creates serious concerns regarding the information ecosystem and spread of disinformation.

Roger Stahl, a University of Georgia professor who studies propaganda and media systems, said the current disinformation we see is a preview of something much larger.

“We’re kind of walking into this house of mirrors,” Stahl said, “and we’re just seeing the very, very edge of it.”

Artificial intelligence has made producing realistic fabricated images, videos and text faster and more accessible than ever before.

Stahl traces the roots of today’s problem to social media’s rise around 2010, when information shifted from centralized outlets like television and newspapers to a fragmented landscape of platforms and influencers. That shift, he said, didn’t just change how news travels — it eroded trust in the institutions that once controlled the flow of information.

There’s a kind of limbic, instinctual trust in whatever personalities people happen to be following at the time,” Stahl said.

Audiences no longer turn to news organizations with editorial and ethical standards. Instead, credibility has become tied to identity, social circles and whoever someone follows online.