BILL NUMBER: S8451
SPONSOR: FAHY
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the general business law and the civil rights law, in
relation to enacting the "New York fundamental artificial intelligence
requirements in (FAIR) news act"
 
PURPOSE:
This bill would to establish clear, meaningful protections for both
journalists and the broader public to ensure that the integrity of the
news and its workforce are safeguarded.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Short title. This act shall be known and be cited as the "New
York Fundamental Artificial Intelligence Requirements in News Act" or
the "FAIR news act").
Section 2: This section creates a new Article 42-A of the General Busi-
ness Law, regarding Artificial Intelligence in News Media GBL § 1150
would state the legislative intent. GBL § 1151 would articulate key
definitions.
GBL § 1152 would require news media employers to fully disclose to work-
ers when and how any generative AI tool is used in the workplace as it
relates to the creation of content, which includes a description of the
AI system and a summary of the purpose and use of such system.
GBL § 1153 would require conspicuous disclosure when news media content
was substantially created by generative AI. If the content is eligible
for copyright registration, this does not apply.
GBL § 1154 would require that any news media content created in whole or
in material part by generative AI must be reviewed by a human worker who
has editorial authority before such content may be published with the
disclosure noted above.
GBL § 1155 would require consent and an opportunity to bargain over
renumeration before training a generative AI system on a worker's work
product. It also prohibits the diminishment of existing rights of
employees pursuant to a CBA, or the replacement of workers by generative
AI.
Section 3: This section amends Civil Rights Law § 79-h (Special
provisions relating to persons employed by, or connected with, news
media) to add a new subdivision (h) requiring employers of professional
journalists and newscasters to establish safeguards to protect journal-
istic sources and confidential materials, gathered through location
tracking, surveillance or any other means, which can be accessed by any
AI technology.
Section 4: Severability clause. Section 5: Effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New York is the center of the American news industry, and journalists
are a key part of the state's workforce. The State likewise has a strong
interest in the health and preservation of journalism. With the rapid
advancement of artificial intelligence technology, generative AI can
quickly generate articles, summaries, news scripts, audio/visual, and
other media content that may seem professionally done to a lay observer.
However, there is ample evidence that this product often contains false
or misleading content, and generative AI plagiarizes by deriving its
content from original source material without permission or proper cita-
tion.
Given this context, there is an urgent need to prevent news companies
from using AI at the expense of journalists and to the disservice of the
general public which relies on the news for accurate information about
the world. This bill seeks to establish clear, meaningful protections
for both journalists and the public to ensure that the integrity of the
news and its workforce are safeguarded.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the State.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have
become a law.

Statutes affected:
S8451: 79-h civil rights law